Favorite Cheesecake Squares Recipes

CHEESECAKE BARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F(175 degrees C).
• To make Pastry: Cream together the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add in the flour and chopped nuts and stir until mixture becomes crumbly. Set aside 1/4 cup to use as a topping.
• Press pastry mixture into 8-inch square pan and bake for 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool on rack.
• To make Filling: Beat together the white sugar, and cream cheese until smooth. Stir in the egg, milk, lemon juice, and vanilla and mix well. Spread filling mixture over baked crust. Sprinkle reserved mixture on as a topping.
• Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool on wire rack and refrigerate. Serve with fruit.

CHEESECAKE BARS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Line an 8-inch baking dish with heavy-duty aluminum foil (so that there is an overhang on at least 2 sides) and spray lightly with nonstick cooking spray.
• Make the crust: In a medium bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, brown sugar, and salt. Stir until well combined, using your fingertips if necessary to be sure no lumps of brown sugar remain. Press into the bottom and 1 inch up the sides of the prepared pan. Bake the crust for 10 minutes, until set. Remove the crust from the oven and set aside. Reduce the oven temperature to 325°F.
• Make the batter: In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with beaters or the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese, granulated sugar, and flour together on medium speed until just smooth, about 1 minute. Add the sour cream, eggs, vanilla, lemon zest, lemon juice, and salt; beat on low speed until just combined, about 1 minute. Do not over-mix.
• Pour the batter into the slightly cooled crust. Check to make sure your oven has cooled to 325°F, then bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until the filling is set but still a little jiggly in the center. (An instant-read thermometer, inserted into the filling about 1" in from the edge, should read between 180°-190°F.) The cheesecake will continue to cook as it cools. Remove the bars from the oven, and cool at room temperature for 30 minutes. Refrigerate until cold, at least 6 hours but preferably overnight.
• Use the foil overhang to lift the cheesecake out of the pan and onto a cutting board. Cut into squares, wiping the knife clean with a damp cloth between slices. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
• Note: The cheesecake bars can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
• Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cheesecake bars can be frozen for up to 3 months. To freeze, place the cooled cheesecake (cut or uncut) on a plate and freeze, uncovered, until firm. Remove the cheesecake from the freezer, wrap it in heavy-duty aluminum foil and place in a freezer bag. Seal and return to freezer for up to 3 months. Remove the foil before defrosting.

BAKED CHEESECAKE SQUARES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 8 inch square baking pan.
• To make the crust: In a large bowl, cream shortening and brown sugar. Gradually blend in flour and walnuts. Mixture will be crumbly.
• Set aside one cup of crust mixture. Press the rest of the mixture into the bottom of baking pan. Bake for 15 minutes.
• To make filling: in a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar. Add in egg, milk, lemon juice and vanilla until well blended.
• Spread the filling over warm crust. Sprinkle top with remaining crust mixture. Bake for another 25 to 28 minutes. Let cool on wire racks before cutting.

LEMON CHEESECAKE SQUARES

Steps:

• For the crust: Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9-by-13-inch cake pan with the baking spray and line with parchment paper, allowing at least 2 inches of overhang on the two long sides. Lightly coat the parchment with the baking spray.
• Combine the cookie crumbs, sugar, lemon zest and salt in a food processor or gallon-size resealable plastic bag. Add the melted butter and pulse until evenly moistened. Press the mixture about 1 inch up the sides of the prepared cake pan, then press to cover the bottom evenly. Bake until the edges just become golden and the crust is fragrant, 8 to 9 minutes.
• Meanwhile, prepare the filling.
• For the filling: Beat the cream cheese in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium speed until smooth, about 2 minutes, scraping the bowl as needed.
• Use your fingers to rub together the sugar, lemon zest and salt in a small bowl until the mixture is fragrant. Gradually add the sugar mixture to the cream cheese on low speed, then raise the speed to medium and beat until smooth, about 30 seconds. Scrape the bowl, then beat for another few seconds to combine.
• Mix in the lemon juice and vanilla on low speed until combined. Mix in half of the beaten eggs and until combined, about 30 seconds. Scrape the bowl and paddle well and then mix in the remaining half of the beaten eggs on low speed just until combined.
• Pour the batter over the freshly baked warm crust and spread smooth. Place the lemon curd in a resealable plastic bag and snip a corner. Pipe lines of the lemon curd across the batter (alternately, spoon small dollops of curd across the batter.) Use a toothpick to swirl the curd and batter together slightly.
• Place the baking pan in a slightly larger baking pan or roasting pan. Place in the center of the oven. Very carefully pour about 1 inch of steaming hot water into the larger pan to create a water bath. Gently slide the oven rack back in place and close the door. Lower the oven temperature to 325 degrees F and bake until the center barely jiggles, 42 to 45 minutes. The temperature at the center of the cheesecake should be about 150 degrees F.
• Once baked, turn off the oven, prop open the door and allow the cheesecake to cool down inside the oven for 45 minutes. Remove to a cooling rack to cool completely before refrigerating for at least 4 hours or overnight.
• To serve, use the parchment overhang to pull the cheesecake out of the pan. Peel down the sides of the parchment and cut into 24 bars. Serve immediately or store tightly covered for up to 3 days.

CHEESECAKE BROWNIE SQUARES

Steps:

• Prepare brownie mix batter according to package directions. Spread 2 cups into a greased 13x9-in. baking dish; set aside., In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter, sugar, flour and vanilla until smooth. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until combined. Spread evenly over brownie batter. Top with remaining brownie batter. Cut through batter with a knife to swirl., Bake at 350° for 28-32 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs (brownies may appear moist). Cool completely on a wire rack. Spread frosting over brownies.

FAVORITE CHEESECAKE SQUARES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Beat margarine and brown sugar till light and fluffy.
• Add flour and walnuts; mix well.
• Reserve 1/2 cup crumb mixture; press remaining crumb mixture into bottom of 8" sqaure pan.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.
• Combine cream cheese (nuke for 15 seconds to soften), garnulated sugar and vanilla; mixing at medium speed and electric mixer till well blended.
• Add egg; mix well.
• Layer 1/2 cup Smarties or M&Ms over crust; top with cream cheese mixture.
• Combine remaining candy, chopped and reserve crumb mixture; mix well.
• Sprinkle crumb mixture over cream cheese mixture.
• Bake at 350 degrees, 20 minutes.
• Cool.

CREAMY CHEESECAKE SQUARES

Steps:

• In a bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar. Add eggs, yogurt, vanilla, lemon juice and biscuit mix; mix just until smooth. Pour into a greased 9-in. square baking dish. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until center is nearly set. Place on a wire rack while preparing topping. In a bowl, combine sour cream, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Carefully spread over cheesecake. Bake for 4 minutes (topping will not brown or set). Cool on a wire rack for 1 hour. Refrigerate until completely cooled. Garnish with fruit if desired.

CHEESECAKE SQUARES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, ricotta and sugar until smooth. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Beat in the butter, cornstarch, flour and vanilla until smooth. Fold in sour cream. , Pour into a greased 13x9-in. baking pan. Bake, uncovered, at 325° for 1 hour or until almost set. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer. , Chill several hours or overnight. Top each serving with fruit if desired.