Double Chocolate Cheesecake Muffins

I'm on a bit of a muffin kick at the moment, and as the last few bakes I've done have not involved chocolate, the plea from the boys was for something very much chocolatey. I thought I'd be a bit daring with these, though, as there is a cheesecake layer which is swirled into the muffin batter (I didn't tell the boys as they are cheesecake averse - no idea where they've got that from!).

With melted chocolate in the mix, the result is quite a fudgy muffin, fluffy sponge with the cheesecake layer - especially on the top of the muffin - giving a bit of a fudgy contrast.

The recipe I based these on calls for plain cream cheese, but as I had bought some of the new Cadbury Chocolate Philadelphia, I had to give it a go. Consequently, these are double chocolate (never a bad thing in my book!).

Double Chocolate Cheesecake Muffins (adapted from Muffins Galore by Catherine Atkinson)
Makes 12

150g plain flour
175g caster  sugar
35g unsweetened  cocoa powder
1/2 tspn bicarbonate of soda
1/4 tspn salt
125ml buttermilk
3 tbspns vegetable oil (I used sunflower oil)
50g unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 medium eggs, lightly beaten
1 tspn vanilla extract
75g plain chocolate melted

For the cheesecake mixture
160g pack of Cadbury Philadelphia
55g caster sugar
1 medium egg, lightly beaten
1/8 tspn vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 170 fan / 190 conventional / 375 farenheit / gas 5. Line a 12 cup muffin pan.

Make the cheesecake mixture by combining the ingredients on a small bowl, mixing until smooth.

Mix the dry muffin ingredients in a large bowl. In a jug, mix the egg, buttermilk, vegetable oil, melted butter, vanilla, and melted chocolate. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until just combined (the mix should look lumpy, and there will be some bits of flour still showing - this is OK, as it's what helps to give the muffins their lighter texture).

Spoon the batter into the prepared cases, dividing it evenly.

Spoon a little of the cheesecake mixture over the top of the batter, again dividing it equally between the cases.

Using a knife, swirl the mixture slightly so it mixes a little.

Bake in the oven for 20 - 25 minutes until risen and firm to the touch. Cool for 5 minutes in the tin and then turn out to a wire rack to continue cooling.

As this recipe includes chocolate and cheese, which is the theme of this month's We Should Cocoa challenge hosted by Choclette of the Chocolate Log Blog, I am going to make this my first time entry (yay!). We Should Cocoa is a monthly bloggers challenge hosted alternately by Choclette and Chele of Chocolate Teapot, and each month is centered on a particular theme but which always involves chocolate. Can't wait to see all the other chocolatey cheese creations for this month! Why don't you pop over to Choclette's blog and have a look?

In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy these with my favourite afternoon treat, a home made cappucino courtesy of Mike. 

And what did the boys think? They who don't like cheesecake? They wolfed them. Couldn't get enough. Typical. Hope you enjoy them, too.

Susie