Good Monday morning! I hope that you had a great weekend! Mine was a mixture of a little work, a little fun and a lot of grey weather. Thankfully not the rain that they predicted. Between the rain, the fires and the flooding and the scorching heat this has been a crazy summer for many weather wise.
As I typically do on the weekend, I test out new recipes and this weekend was no exception. In fact I made one of the most delicious desserts and now my current new favorite. I personally love cheesecakes but sometimes do not want the hassle of a spring-form pan, a water bath and all of the rest. This was one of those times, so I decided to make a bar recipe as they are quick and easy. In addition I wanted to use up a batch of blueberries and some leftover crumbled topping from a coffeecake that I will share with you later. The combination of all three is so good. The buttery topping compliments the creamy cheesecake and the tart berries and lemon are refreshing, especially on a summer day.
Blueberry Cheesecake Bars with Crumb Topping
Recipe Adapted from Tyler Florence Food Network
Filling:
16 oz. cream cheese, ROOM TEMPERATURE
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs, ROOM TEMPERATURE
2 lemons zested and juiced
1 tablespoon Nielsen-Massey vanilla extract
Blueberries:
2 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 cup fresh blueberries
Graham cracker/Cookie crust:
2 tablespoons of sugar
dash of cinnamon
10 graham crackers
1/2 stick butter melted
Topping:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
7 tablespoons of cold butter
DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line an 9 X 9 square baking pan with parchment paper, this will allow for easy removal and cutting.
2. In a medium size mixing bowl combine crust ingredients, then spread into the pan. Use the back of a cup to press crumbs evenly. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool.
3. In a small mixing bowl, combine all blueberry ingredients, mix gently and set aside.
4. In a medium size mixing bowl, combine all ingredients for topping. Cut the butter in with a pastry blender, fork or hands until the mixture resembles small crumbs. Set this aside.
5. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together ROOM TEMPERATURE cream cheese, and sugar until smooth. Then add vanilla and eggs one at a time. Mix until incorporated.
6. Pour the cheesecake batter over the baked and cooled crust. Spread evenly with a spatula. Spread blueberry mixture over top, evenly covering the cheesecake. Add crumb topping and spread so mixture is even.
6. Bake for 435-40 minutes or until the cheesecake is slightly jiggly and the crumble is golden brown. Cool to room temperature then refrigerator at least 3 hours, preferably overnight. Remove bars from pan then cut, serve and enjoy!
NOTE: I used a combination of sugar cookies and graham crackers for my crust. Also for this recipe I made a half a batch in a smaller pan. That is why my bars seem thin. Also, I made two cheesecakes, the first using this recipe, the second one I used my Blueberry Compote Recipe and it was excellent too!
Do tell, what did you make, read, bake or cook this weekend? I am all ears and would love to hear!
I hope that you have a fabulous day!
Linking to:
I Should be Mopping Up the Floors
Friday Favorites No. 505 From Cup of Jo, Aberdeen’s Kitchen, Baker by Nature, Make Mine a Spritzer and More
My Favorite Cranberry Recipes
Friday Favorites No. 504 from What’s Gabby Cooking, Love and Olive Oil, Bev Cooks and More
5 Homemade Mother’s Day Gift Ideas
And a happy (early) Monday to you too, dear Elizabeth!! These look amazing…I love the combination of blueberries and lemon…
We are having hot days again, but there has been a strong breeze…
Enjoyed a lovely Japanese Festival on Sunday…will post on it very soon…
I wish your a great week, my friend, and I am off to catch up on your posts…
Hugs,
– Irina
Good morning beautiful! Blueberries are FOREVER! No matter where you put them, they are the best.
Enjoy your Monday! Anita
As always your baking creation looks divine. I am buried under school preparations at present. I am hoping to be finished in time to have a relaxing few days before the actual first day of school. Have a marvelous Monday.
Oh, yum yum yum….
These look SO good, Elizabeth! I bought a huge container of blueberries so I will definitely try them.
Enjoy your day! xoxo
OMG. My mouth is watering. I just downloaded this recipe and as soon as life gets back to normal I'm making these! Thanks for sharing this. 🙂
i am soooooo making this for my friends. i will have to share it since it sounds fattening, but oooh la la, what a treat!
have a lovely week.
michele
Oh my gosh, I seriously want those! We just finished dinner, and I'm now catching up on my favorite blog reads. Was going to skip dessert tonight. Now I need to run out and find something sweet!!
x Loi
PS – I had the best blueberries in Maine this summer.
Those look amazing! This weekend I made a zucchini soup and bruschetta. I realize what was missing…dessert! Thanks for another great recipe!
This is downright mean. OMG this is sooooooo up my alley, I may just have to oblige and make these. Plus I know my kids would love them you know thats the ONLY reason I would be making them (wink)…..
Mmmm these bars look wonderful! I've been wanting to make some cheesecake bars too, I just couldn't decide what kind! These blueberry ones sound so delicious!
I made these DELICIOUS Blueberry Cheesecake Bars Yesterday with one twist on it. I used fresh Key limes instead of Lemons, OMG ….YUMMY !!! Sweet/ tart was great!!! THANK YOU FOR THIS RECIPE!!!!!!
Michele, what a great idea! I have to try it with key limes the next time I make them! It is one of my favorites. Thanks for the tip and I am happy that you liked the bars.