Cheesecake Bars

My husband thinks this is the best cheesecake he's ever had.  What he doesn't realize is that it's probably the easiest cheesecake ever to make!  It's so cakey, thick and yet so creamy!  The kind of cheesecake I love! I loove, loove, loove cheesecake! So, I was very pleased to find such an easy, yummy recipe!  I found it on this wonderful blog I follow Mel's Kitchen Cafe, you'll probably be seeing lots more recipes in the future from her blog!  I would definitely have to rate this one a 5!!!!

Make the crust, place at the bottom of a lined and greased 9x9 pan and bake.

Make the cream cheese mixture.

And pour on top of baked crust. Bake for another 35-40 minutes.

 

Let cool for 2 hours then refrigerated for 3 hours.  Pull out by the sides of the aluminium foil and slice.

Serve plain or...

top with fresh sliced stawberries mixed w/ a little sugar and vanilla, to bring out the natural juices.  Or you can top it with frozed stawberries in a tub that have been thawed (shown in the first picture) or canned pie toppings.

Cheesecake Bars

Makes an 8 or 9-inch Square Dish of Bars

*Plan Ahead: The bars need to cool completely (about 2 hours) and chill in the fridge (about 3 hours) before serving.

Crust: (I halfed this crust recipe b/c I like a thinner crust, but you test it out and see what you like.  The first time I made it, I followed it, but it was just too thick, but still tasted oh so good!)
2 cups crushed graham crackers
8 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt

Filling:
2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
2/3 cup (4 2/3 ounces) granulated sugar
2 large eggs
¼ cup sour cream
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line an 8-inch square baking dish with foil, letting edges hang over the side, and grease foil.

Combine the graham cracker crumbs with the butter, brown sugar, flour and salt and mix well. Sprinkle the mixture into the prepared pan and press into an even layer. Bake the crust until beginning to brown, 12 to 15 minutes.

Beat the cream cheese until smooth in a large bowl, scraping down bowl and beaters as needed. Gradually beat the sugar until incorporated, about 1 minute. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until completely combined. Beat in the sour cream, lemon juice and vanilla until combined.

Pour the filling over the crust. Bake the bars until the edges are set but the center still jiggles slightly, 35 to 40 minutes.

Let the bars cool completely in the pan, set on a wire rack, about 2 hours, then cover with foil and refrigerate until chilled, at least 3 hours or up to 24 hours. Remove bars from pan using foil and cut into squares and serve w/ your favorite fruit topping!  Mine just so happens to be strawberries! I've used fresh strawberries mixed w/ a little sugar and vanilla (which was great) and also frozen strawberries thawed (shown above, which was also great, especially b/c it already has sauce.)  Enjoy, so yummy!