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The richest brownies I’ve ever tasted. The EASIEST brownies I’ve ever made.
Brownies that taste like straight-up FUDGE.
Many of you have told me that you’ve made the original version and loved ‘em. I don’t blame you! Skinny Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies are what dreams are made of.
And I don’t ever want to wake up!
Just like the original version, today’s skinny brownies are made with no oil and no butter.
That’s right.
Zip. Zero. Zilch.
Oh, and no beans either. I cannot get on board with beans in my brownies.
My regular full-fat fudge brownies call for melted chocolate, 3 eggs, and a stick of butter. Hence, their wonderful decadence and fudgy consistency.
To achieve the same rich & dense texture but cut the calories & fat, I used unsweetened cocoa powder and vanilla low-fat yogurt. Fat-free yogurt is a little too thin for this recipe, so reach for something a little thicker. Do not use fat free.
Instead of white flour, I used whole grain oats in today’s brownies.
A brownie’s fudgy texture is directly related to the amount of flour in the recipe. And with only 1/2 cup ground up oats in the entire recipe, you can imagine the density and fudginess of these!
…moving on to that gorgeous pumpkin cheesecake swirl. The best kind of swirl.
I took a bit of pumpkin puree, a dollop of low fat cream cheese, and a lot of cinnamon spice to make what I can only describe as pumpkin cheesecake bliss. Something about pumpkin and cream cheese just works. Love the two slathered over a toasted bagel.
But when they are infused with autumn spices and swirled into deep, dark chocolate… it’s heaven on a plate.
The brownies are a cinch to bake up, too. The ingredients are mixed together in a blender (yes, a blender) and poured into a baking pan. Swirl the pumpkin bliss around and pop in the oven. Easy peasy.
The hardest part is waiting for them to cool and set up. If you cut into them too early, they will crumble and fall apart. They have to look cute, right?!
I rushed the process and cooled mine in the refrigerator for 1 hour. For what felt like an eternity, it was finally time to dig in. 
These brownies are like pumpkin pie, cheesecake, and brownies all getting together for a date with my skinny jeans.
Thank heavens.
Skinny Pumpkin Cheesecake Brownies
- 6 oz. low-fat vanilla yogurt (or greek yogurt – do not use fat free)
- 1/4 cup skim milk (or almond milk, coconut milk, soy milk)
- 1 egg
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 and 1/4 cup sugar, divided (no substitutions)
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
- 2 Tbsp reduced fat cream cheese, softened (no substitutions)
- 3/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 8×8 inch pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
Place yogurt, milk, egg, salt, baking powder, 1 cup sugar, cocoa powder, and oats into a blender. (Yes, a blender!) For easier blending, place the liquid ingredients into the blender first. Blend until mix is smooth and oats are ground up. You will have to stop the blender and scrape down the sides a few times. Batter will be thin.
Pour batter into prepared baking dish. Prepare the pumpkin filling by mixing together pumpkin puree, 1/4 cup sugar, cream cheese, and spices. Drop filling by spoonfuls onto the batter, swirling gently with a knife to create a marbled effect. (Try not to overmix!)
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until brownies begin to pull away from the sides of the pan. Brownies will be extra fudgy, so be sure to wait until COMPLETELY cooled – I stuck mine in the refrigerator for 1 hour, which allowed them to be cut very easily.
Cut into 12 squares. I enjoy mine cold and suggest storing in the refrigerator.
© Sally’s Baking Addiction 2012 recipe & photos
More skinny-jeans friendly recipes:
Skinny Frozen Mint Chocolate Chip Pie
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars
Skinny Snickerdoodle Cookie Dough Dip
Healthy Peanut Butter Chocolate Energy Bites
Skinny Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies
{ 60 comments… read them below or add one }
These look lovely. Chocolate and pumpkin is a great combo….add in skinny and I’m all over it!
Aimee @ ShugarySweets recently posted..Apple Stuffed Pork Chops with Herbed Gravy
And I didn’t think it could get any better than your Skinny Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies! Drooooooool.
Elaine recently posted..Black Cherry Chocolate Smoothie
i know, i think i like these better than the PB! lol
LOVE the look of these! Oh my.
Colleen @ What’s Baking in the Barbershop?! recently posted..Apple Cinnamon Yogurt Muffins
These remind me of those No-Pudge Fudge Brownies they used to have at Trader Joe’s. Or maybe they still do carry them. I stopped buying it because it was way too easy to eat, like, six brownies in one sitting. Or so I would assume. Because I would *never* do that. Ahem.
These look divine and so perfect, of course, for fall. I’ll just need to make them, grab *one*, and usher my guy out the door with the rest for his coworkers.
Kare @ Kitchen Treaty recently posted..Baked Spaghetti & Spaghetti Squash with Optional Ground Beef
haha, well i’ve actually never had no-pudge brownies before! and these brownies were too dang good for me to give away
It’s official. You are my hero. You had me at first bite with your delicious skinny peanut butter fudge brownies, but now THESE?! You are truly sent from above.
Lauren! you are too sweet. this made me smile
I’m kinda sorta speechless right now. These brownies are insane, girl! Love the pumpkin cheesecake swirl and LOVE how fudgy and dense they are! Those are the best kind of brownies for my sporadic but yes, sometimes-brownie cravings
Hayley @ The Domestic Rebel recently posted..Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars with Cookie Dough Frosting
I have a can of pure pumpkin just waiting to baked into a delicious brownie. I love the simple list of ingredients too, I just need to grab some cream cheese and I’m ready to go!
Meghan @ After the Ivy League recently posted..Vanilla Almond Protein Oatmeal
Wow, the consistency of those brownies looks INCREDIBLE! I added it to my list of things to make. The kids might even eat them. They’ve been asking me to put together brownies lately.
Something Undone Daddy Durante recently posted..Comment on Daily Dose – 9/17/2012; This is War, Part 2 by Durante
I am all over these! Love pumpkin and rich chocolate. . .and skinny?! Please!
Jessica@AKitchenAddiction recently posted..White Chocolate-Maple Glazed Pumpkin-Maple Donuts
These look suuuuuper yummy. Perfect for an extra Thanksgiving dessert!
Ari @ Ari’s Menu recently posted..Chocolate Chip Coconut Milk Ice Cream
“extra” thanksgiving dessert is right! since they’re practically guiltfree, they don’t count
I LOVE putting pumpkin in my brownies! I feel pumpking + brownies are the crux of Fall baking
But then you decided to spice things up and invite cheesecake to the party, I can totally get on board with that haha
Nicole @ The Marvelous Misadventures of Foodie recently posted..Cookie Dough Dip
That pumpkin swirl in there is gorgeous! I love all the healthy swaps you made without sacrificing flavor or texture. Also, so cool that it’s made in a blender. I’ve never made a batter of any kind in a blender, but it’s such a great idea!
Laura Dembowski recently posted..Cucumbers, Tomatoes, and Onions
the blender ordeal was strange to me, but it totally works!
Sally they look delish and love that you made a trifecta in one: pumpkin pie, cheesecake, and brownies!
And that you make them skinny. Normally I don’t care what’s in a dessert b/c, well, it’s dessert and I just go for the full-on full-everything thinking it’s dessert and may as well just enjoy it to the max but it’s nice to know that the skinny version looks moist, rich, and every bit as decadent as a ‘trifecta’ should be
Averie @ Averie Cooks recently posted..Thursday Things
desserts are desserts and healthy is healthy. probably shouldn’t go hand-inhand. but with pumpkin, i feel like there are no limits!!
Ooh, I’ve made pumpkin-swirl brownies before + *loved* them! I’ll definitely have to give these a try – I love that they’re both skinny AND involve cheesecake. YUM!
amy @ fearless homemaker recently posted..apple cinnamon bread
A pumpkin-cheesecake-brownie combo?! How have I never thought of that?! And they’re skinny?!!! Okay yes, I am going to eat the entire pan guilt-free then
Chung-Ah | Damn Delicious recently posted..Lemon Pepper Shrimp Scampi with Orzo
…i almost *did* eat the entire pan… lol!
Holy cow Sally. These are….unbelievable. I cannot wait to try them. And I can eat the whole pan…right?
Dorothy @ Crazy for Crust recently posted..Funfetti Cake Batter Pies
Love that you made these skinny! That means I can stuff my face with them and not feel bad
Ashley @ Wishes and Dishes recently posted..Naples Grape Festival
I really like the sound of these skinny jean friendly brownies!
Laurie {Simply Scratch} recently posted..Double-Decker Tacos
Skinny you say? That means I can have two, right!?
Christina @Sweet Pea’s Kitchen recently posted..Biscoff Oatmeal Cookies
haha I like your thinking Christina… two brownies for sure
so i had extra pumpkin that needed using so i felt this was perfect to try! i used 0% fat yogurt and my primary batter was very liquid. so of course after adding the pumpkin batter it was not easily swirled. it did bake up, but i find the pumpkin batter areas didn’t bake as well (baked for 25 minutes). thoughts as to why the batter was so runny? used splenda no calorie granulated sweetener, fat free cream cheese, and 2% milk… those are the only significant ingredients i can think of?
batter is supposed to be thin but it was still easily spreadable and easy to swirl. The pumpkin portion was soft indeed but was still cooked. I would bake them for closer to thirty minutes in this case. I’ll note that in the recipe. Thank you for reporting back!
yeah the batter was basically a liquid, no thickness at all, but they did bake up! the pumpkin part is still pretty soft, but i figured i should stop at 25 minutes because the outer edges were starting to crisp. i cut mine into 9 squares and they came out to 61 cals each! so i’ll need to figure out what happened with mine, since they’re kinda mushy, but yes very fudgey!
This is totally…. TOTALLY. My kind of recipe. I think you’ve been spending too much time on my blog — okay, let’s be real with ourselves (naht really). But I totes forgive you because… This. Post. Is. Amazing.
I knew you’d like these KAtie! And yes, I often do visit oh shine on… you have such great stuff! those nutella granola bars… still thinkin’ about em!!
I am all over a pan of brownies that have pumpkin, cheesecake and are skinny!!!! Love how dense and fudge like these look!
Jocelyn @BruCrew Life recently posted..Caramel Apple Milky Way Cheesecake Bars and a Hop
thanks jocelyn! we both made cheesecakey things this week. I love it
Wow!! Anything that tastes like pumpkin pie, brownies, and cheesecake in one dessert sounds pretty amazing to me! And even better that they are skinny!
Stephanie @ Eat. Drink. Love. recently posted..Fig Bars
I just ate a bowl of ice cream but even that won’t stop me from wanting about 3 of these brownies right now! They look so awesome and no butter/oil? Even better! Greek yogurt is the key to every awesome recipe, I think you and I prove that.
What a thought that a brownie could look so fudgy and rich but be low fat? I can’t believe it! I will definitely be trying out the chocolate peanut butter kind at some point! Great post!
We don’t appear to have pumpkin puree in the UK, but it is the season for pumpkins
Can I use pumpkin itself, blitzed in the blender do you think? 
Cooked and pureed pumpkin will work in place of the canned pumpkin, yes!
girl, once i get all up in these brownies, i doubt i’ll be the one that’s skinny! haha, these look soo good and i love the cheesecake swirl – loveeee cheesecake in everything!
Julie @ Table for Two recently posted..Fried Green Tomatoes
I love that you used oats and not flour! Oats just taste less healthier than whole wheat flour. I’ve tried something similar before but the texture was all off. But these are like fudge?! I have to try them! I’m really tempted to cut back on the sugar but then they won’t be as fudgy. Darn sugar! Makes everything so delicious and texturally nice.
Erin @ Texanerin Baking recently posted..100% Whole Grain Cinnamon Apple Oatmeal Bread
Yes, exactly like FUDGE! Even boys said they didn’t taste healthy at all! Some thought I was tricking them, lol! But try reducing the sugar a bit if you’d like. Not too much, but I’m sure you could get away with 3/4 cup.
These sound absolutely amazing Sally! Pinning and can’t wait to try
Thanks Nicky!! We finished them last week and I already bought the ingredients to make them again
Thank You (again) for another great looking recipe Sally, looking forward to whipping these up once I re-stock up on Pumpkin for the year!
Rachel (teacher-chef) recently posted..Mexican “Grilled” Corn
thanks Rachel! be sure to report back, i’ve had ltos of readers tell me how much they’ve loved these brownies!
I don’t have a blender
Will an electric hand mixer thing do?
Cecily, use regular flour and omit the oats if you do not have a blender. Simply mix the ingredients together by hand. The oats are ground up into a flour in the blender, so since you do not have one – use regular flour.
I tried these and they didn’t turn out well. I read the other comments and seemed to have similar problems. I like the idea of a healthy brownie, but they seem to not have enough sugar, as they really aren’t sweet. And, as someone else mentioned, the pumpkin didn’t swirl well. I followed the recipe exactly and used Greek yogurt in hopes of helping with a thicker batter. Also, they took 40 minutes even though my oven was preheated. I liked the idea, but something seems to not be working with this recipe. Thanks for the idea though.
Hi Alison! I sincerely appreciate the feedback, thank you! While I have had a lot of readers write in saying they loved these brownies, I’ve had at least three saying that it is not working out. I’m going to retest the recipe and update it as needed. I’m thinking of adding sugar into the pumpkin mixture so that the pmpkin may cook through better and sweeten it up. I appreciate it so much and I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you!
hi, will it be okay if i hand mix the rolled oats instead of using a blender? otherwise, if i substitute it with wholemeal flour, is the amount required still the same i.e. 1/2 cup of flour ?
You may also use a food processor to grind the oats. Or purchase oat flour or all-purpose flour. I’ve never tried these with wholemeal flour before, but let me know how it turns out if you use that instead of AP or oat. Yes, use the same amount – 1/2 cup.
I never had a taste of this kind of brownies, I will look over store if they have skinny pumpkin cheescake. <3
Even after refrigerating overnight, these are still way too gooey–you can’t hold them. Has anyone else had this problem?
Hey Candice! Is the pumpkin mixture gooey or is the chocolate brownie itself gooey? Just trying to figure out what we can fix here for you. Thank you!
Hi Sally! It’s the brownie part that’s still gooey, almost batter like. Pumpkin part seems okay. Knowing me, I will still eat them but this definitely stopped me from bringing them to work, which was the intent. sigh….thanks!
Darn. Ok, Candice – I’m going to suggest making the brownies for longer next time (if you make them again) – I appreciate the feedback a lot!
Thanks! As an FYI, my oven usually cooks very fast and I always bake things for much shorter than recipes call for. I left these in for 25 minutes. Maybe a little more time would help but again, my oven usually takes much less time.
You must think I´m crazy, it´s 2:20 A.M. and they´re baking in the oven and looking GOOD. I must admit I saw this recipe like 3 days ago and haven´t stopped thinking about those fabulous orange and brown pieces, so… I guess I had to try them at some moment, and the moment is now haha XD
Pam I don’t think you are crazy at all! I bake late-night too, it’s all good. Hope you enjoy them.
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