Coconut White Brownies with Chocolate Cream Cheese Filling-Improv Challenge

The theme that Kristen from Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker chose for this month's Improv Challenge was ebony and ivory.  At first, I couldn’t quite put my brain around this one.  With an explanation that the recipe could be any combination of black/brown or white/ecru, I began to develop an idea.

There are many recipes out there that combine brownies with a cream cheese filling.  I decided to reverse this idea and make white brownies with a chocolate cream cheese filling.  I took my favorite white brownie recipe and added a cream cheese filling which included melted chocolate chips.  I decided to add coconut to the brownie dough and pecans to the chocolate filling for a little extra zip.

This makes a very dense, moist cookie that will become denser as it sits in the refrigerator.

Coconut White Brownies with Chocolate Cream Cheese Filling
1 c. butter or margarine, melted (I use butter)
2 c. sugar
4 eggs
1 t. vanilla extract
2 c. flour
1/2  c. sweetened flaked coconut
1 c. semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips
2 T. butter
1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, regular or low-fat, softened (see tip to soften quickly here)
1/2 c. sugar
1 egg
1 t. vanilla
1 T. cornstarch
1/3 c. chopped, toasted pecans

Melt butter in a microwave-safe mixing bowl.  Let cool 5 minutes.  Add sugar and mix well.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating until well blended after each addition.  Beat in vanilla with the last egg.  Add flour and mix until well blended.  Stir in coconut.  The batter will be stiff.  Set aside.  In another microwave-safe mixing bowl, melt chocolate chips and butter about 1 minute at 50% power.  Stir.  Continue to microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring after each until chips are melted.  Add cream cheese, sugar, egg, vanilla and cornstarch and beat until well blended.  Stir in pecans.  Spoon half of the white dough in a foil-lined 9x13-inch baking pans.  Spread evenly to make a thick layer.  Spoon chocolate mixture over bottom layer, spreading evenly.  Dollop spoonfuls of white dough over cheesecake layer and smooth out as evenly as possible with a damp metal spatula.  Bake 30-40 minutes in a 350-degree oven.  Cool and cut into bars.  Makes 36.  Store, tightly covered. in refrigerator.

Next month's challenge is lemon and lime.  To find out how to join in the fun, visit Kristen's Improv Page.

Check out the links below to see what other bloggers have made with ebony and ivory.

An InLinkz Link-up