Cheesecake Bars
This easy recipe for Cheesecake Bars makes a simple dessert bar that is super creamy, so delicious, and is way easier than making a whole cheesecake!
One hugely important lesson I’ve learned in baking is that patience really is a virtue. My goodness, how many times have I wanted to grab a spoon dig into whatever just came out of the oven, but not done it, because I knew I had to let it cool, and then take pictures, before I could have a bite? So, so many. The worst though, is letting things develop. You know, when things don’t taste nearly as good straight out of the oven, or how you have to let a mousse or pudding set before you can go to town? It’s totally the worst. I know, I know. I’m telling you how much it sucks, but in all honesty – once you get through the hunger pains and total exercise of willpower, it’s sooo worth it.
These cheesecake bars are a perfect example. I took them out of the oven, let them cool until the pan was touchable, stuck them in the fridge for an hour, sliced them up, and tried a sliver. I thought they were good, but not great, so I didn’t photograph them immediately, intending to give the recipe another shot. Back into the fridge they went.
A few hours later, my dad grabbed one from the fridge, came over, and declared it one of Bakerita’s Top 10 EVER. For someone who doesn’t love anything not dripping in chocolate and/or peanut butter, that’s a pretty big deal. Clearly, I needed to try them again.
Oh my goodness, did these bars get better. After 4 more hours in the fridge, the crust got crunchier and the filling got so much smoother and creamier. The flavors somehow all melded together to make the bar 10x better than it had been an hour out of the oven. It was remarkable. So, if you’re going to make this recipe – which I highly recommend you do – prepare about 8 hours before you’re going to want your cheesecake. The wait is oh so worth it.
Cheesecake Bars
- Yield: 16 bars 1x
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
- 3 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
- 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
- 1/2 cup 1 stick unsalted butter, melted
For the filling:
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1 pound cream cheese
- 1/4 cup milk
- 2 egg
- 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips (melted)
Instructions
For the crust:
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line an 8″ x 8″ square pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil and grease with butter or non-stick cooking spray.
- Stir together the crumbs, sugar, salt, cinnamon, and melted butter.
- Press into the bottom of an 8″ x 8″ square pan.
- Bake the crust for 8 to 10 minutes, until set; the color won’t change much.
- Remove the crust from the oven and cool for a few minutes while you lower the oven temperature to 300°F.
For the filling:
- Beat together the white sugar, and cream cheese until smooth. Stir in the egg, milk, and vanilla and mix well. Spread filling mixture over baked crust.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes at 300°F or until the middle is no longer jiggly; don’t over bake. Let cool on wire rack until mostly cool.
- Place melted chocolate into a small plastic Ziploc bag. Snip the corner of the bag, and drizzle the chocolate over the bars. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours before cutting and serving.
These bars look SO good, and it sounds like they were definitely a hit! I love that they get better the longer they sit in the fridge – great make ahead dessert for having people over!
Is there anything better than cheesecake and chocolate?! These look incredible!
Such a pretty chocolate drizzle on top!
And yes, patience certainly is a virtue. Especially when something delicious is waiting to be dug into!
Patience is something I lack when cooking!
These definitely look worth the wait!
First, these bars sound wonderful. Love that pretty drizzle on top! And two, it’s so true – some things do get better if you wait – it’s just sooo hard waiting sometimes!!
Thanks Ashley, and it’s so true!!
These look so, so good! I’ve never made cheesecake before because it seems like such a long process, but you’re right. Sometimes you just have to have patience! I forget that a lot as well, but it looks like these cheesecake bars turned out well in the end! :)
Wow, lady – these are SO pretty. So pretty I almost wouldn’t be able to eat them… but then I would. Hehe.
Wow! These look perfect! I feel the same way. Sometimes, its hard to step away and let the baked goods cool.
Ugh I hate to wait when It comes to food.
this look like they’re worth the wait though.
How do you think this would taste with peanut butter drizzled on top Instead..?! I have lots of PB I need to use up :)
Hi Savanna, the PB might be a little bit runnier and may not look as clean, but it’d probably taste delicious!
Hello!
I made these yesterday and followed instructions to the T. The taste was great but I think my texture was off. It was more pudding like just not runny. It wasn’t really firm. I baked for 25 minutes then took it out because the center was not jiggly enough. I’m wondering what could have gone wrong? Any ideas?
Huh, honestly Liz, I wasn’t in the kitchen with you so I don’t know what might have happened. It’s possible you took them out too early or too late, and it’s impossible to know because everyone’s ovens are a little bit different. As I mentioned in the post, the texture definitely improves after some time in the fridge. Did you try that??
Yes it did thicken more after sitting over night. To be honest I don’t eat cheesecake often so maybe the texture was right? Lol either way it tasted fantastic! Thank you for the recipe!
Well I’m glad they ended up turning out well Liz! :)
I made these over the weekend and they were delicious! I decreased the vanilla to 1 TBSP because it tasted like it had enough after 1. Mine did take about 40 minutes to bake before they weren’t jiggly too. I think these would be really good with fresh strawberries on top too.
Thanks for trying them Rachel! I’m glad you liked them. Strawberries on top would be delicious!
I replaced the milk with Kahlua and added Kahlua to the melted chocolate
Sounds delicious!! Hope it turned out good :)
What temp should the cream cheese be at when you beat it with the sugar? Room, or straight from fridge? I’m making these for New Years party.
Room temperature would be best, to get the smoothest filling. Hope you like them!
I replaced the milk with sour cream. Delish !!!
Was looking for an old recipe for cheesecake bars that my mother and I used to use from a magazine. Out of the google hits, this one seemed the closest to what i remembered. LOVE this recipe – the bars turned out great. Had to changes a couple of things due to lack of resources – I crushed cinnamon-flavored graham crackers to get the same effect as buying crumbs and adding cinnamon. Also didn’t have the right sized pan so i increased the recipe and made circular bars in cupcake trays. It effected the bake time slightly, but the end result was still delicious. Will definitely make these again – thank you for the recipe!
Hi Chloe – so happy that this recipe turned out well for you, and it’s good to know it works in cupcake pans as well! Thanks for the trying the recipe and sharing your feedback. I’m so glad you found a recipe to replace the one you lost!
Hello! I’m thinking of trying these out tomorrow, was wondering if this needs to be baked in a water bath? Usually cheesecake recipes call for that so I’m just wondering :-)
Hi Leigh! Nope – no water bath needed here. Hope you like the bars!