Delicious homemade apple cheesecake bars
Anything with the † symbol has notes in their respective places in the recipe.
It is fall, which means it’s baking season! My first bake of the year is this delicious dessert/snack. It’s by no means super healthy, however it’s not full of preservatives and such.
Ingredients;
For apple filling ::
* 3-4 cups diced apples †
* 1/4 cup sugar
* 1/4 cup brown sugar (NOT PACKED)
* 1 tablespoon butter
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* cinnamon (to taste)
* 1/4 cup water
For cheesecake filling
* 1 pkg/brick cream cheese - softened / room temp.
* 1 cup powdered sugar
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* 1 egg yolk † †
For “crust”
*pillsbury crescent roll sheets
* 1 tablespoon butter, cut into small slices
* cinnamon sugar/ apple pie spice
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✨recipepe✨ <— spelled wrong on purpose 😂
1.) in a medium size pot with a lid, put in butter, sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and water. Heat on medium until everything is melted.
2.) add apples to the pan, stir together, and place the lid on. Lower heat to medium low. Stir occasionally.
† diced apples can be any size, but the cooking time will be longer with larger pieces. I diced mine into a size between brunoise & small dice (1/8 inch-1/2 inch cubes), but I have culinary training so do what works for you!
✨ while your apples are cooking, make your cheesecake :) ✨
3.) Add cream cheese, vanilla, and powdered sugar to cream cheese. Mix until smooth and blended. Place in refrigerator.
† † Egg yolk is optional, I didn’t use it for this recipe, but egg yolk makes it richer. Since it’s being baked, it’s completely safe to add egg yolk. I didn’t have a use for the egg whites and am not a fan of food waste.
4.) continue occasionally stirring apples to ensure they don’t burn. When they are cooked to your liking, take the lid off and let the excess moisture evaporate until you’ve got something that reminds you of cinnamon apples from a certain restaurant. Remove from heat and place into a heat-safe container and into the fridge to cool down.
✨ I left them in the fridge for 24 hours, but you can definitely keep it in until the apples are cool enough to handle. I think it helps lock in flavors the longer it sits.
✨✨✨ preparation && baking ✨✨✨
Remove cheesecake & apples beforehand so they are room temp / softened. It’s not fun dealing with cold cheesecake.
5.) preheat oven to 375° Fahrenheit. 190° Celsius.
spray a square 9x9 baking dish with baking spray. Place slices of butter on bottom of dish.
6.) Take your crescent roll sheet out of the canister and cut it in half (hamburger style). Roll out the dough so it’s thin enough that it’ll bake through. My dough ended up going up the sides of the dish, which is beneficial in multiple ways.
7.) Line bottom of dish with first half of crescent sheet.
8.) spread entire amount of cheesecake mix evenly on the dough. I found using baking spray on the spatula I was using was very helpful with smoothing it out.
9.) repeat step 8 but with apple mixture. Baking spray and all.
10.) place second piece of dough on top of apples. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar & or apple pie spice on top. I had to cut a decent amount of dough off, but everything was connected into one piece. Very helpful for removal from pan.
11.) bake for 45 minutes, checking occasionally to make sure it’s not over baking. Specifically check the bottom (this is why it’s done in a glass pan versus metal. If the top is getting too brown, place some foil over the pan to prevent burning / over baking.
12.) remove from oven, checking the bottom to make sure it’s fully baked. Let cool to room temp, and place in the fridge over night, covered.
13.) remove from fridge, run a butter knife along the edges of the pan, and then flip it onto a cutting board or plate. Cut as you wish and enjoy!
