Description

These Christmas Cheesecake Bars combine a buttery sugar cookie crust with a creamy cheesecake layer, topped with festive cherry pie filling and crunchy almond crumble. Perfect for holiday celebrations, these bars are easy to make and deliver a delightful balance of flavors and textures.

Ingredients

Scale

Crust & Topping

1 (8.5 oz) Sugar Cookie Mix
4 tbsp Butter, Cold and Cubed
1/3 cup Almonds, Sliced

Cheesecake Filling

1 (8 oz) Cream Cheese, Softened
1/4 cup Sugar
1 tbsp Flour
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 Egg

Additional

3/4 can Cherry Pie Filling (approx. 12 oz)

Instructions

Preheat and Prep Pan: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Spray an 8 x 8 inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray and set aside to prepare the crust.
Make the Crust Mixture: In a small bowl, combine the sugar cookie mix and cold, cubed butter. Use a fork to blend until the mixture becomes crumbly. Reserve 3/4 cup of the crumble mixture for the topping.
Form and Bake Crust: Press the remaining crumb mixture evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake for 10 minutes until lightly golden. Remove from the oven and place in the refrigerator to cool quickly.
Prepare Cheesecake Filling: While the crust cools, beat together softened cream cheese, sugar, flour, vanilla extract, and egg until the mixture is smooth and creamy without lumps.
Assemble Bars: Spread the cheesecake mixture evenly over the cooled crust, ensuring full coverage. Then spoon the cherry pie filling evenly over the cheesecake layer.
Add Almond Topping: Stir the sliced almonds into the reserved crumble mixture, then sprinkle this almond crumble evenly over the cherry pie filling.
Bake the Bars: Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes, or until the cheesecake layer is set and the topping is golden and crisp.
Cool and Chill: Remove from oven and let the bars cool for 30 minutes at room temperature. Then refrigerate until fully chilled and firm, about 2 hours or overnight before serving.

Notes

For easier slicing, chill the bars thoroughly before cutting.
You can substitute cherry pie filling with other fruit pie fillings like blueberry or strawberry to vary flavors.
Use cold butter to achieve a crumbly topping and crust texture.
If cream cheese is not fully softened, microwave briefly in 10-second increments to avoid lumps in the filling.
The almond crumble topping adds a nice crunch but can be omitted or substituted with chopped pecans or walnuts if preferred.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes
Category: Dessert
Method: Baking
Cuisine: American

Keywords: Christmas Cheesecake Bars, Holiday Dessert, Cherry Cheesecake Bars, Sugar Cookie Crust, Almond Topping, Festive Dessert