Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars

Please welcome back Melanie from Garnish and Glaze as she shares this Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars recipe! Please visit her lovely blog!

I have a major sweet tooth.  Homemade desserts that have chocolate somewhere involved are my weakness.  At the top of my list of favorite desserts is ice cream but brownies, cookies, and cheesecake follow close behind.  I sometimes have a hard time deciding what dessert to make because I really want all of them.  I’m sure you’ve been in the same predicament.

So I’ve made my favorite chocolate chip cookies a lot lately and decided to take them up a notch (more like 589 notches) and mash them together with a cream cheese layer to create these Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars.  OH MY!  They divine!!!  When cutting them up to take to a party I cut a little piece off a bar to try… and then lost all control and gave in to eating the whole piece.  It’s okay though.  Dessert should always be before (and after) dinner, right?

These bars were gobbled right up at the party so it’s a good thing I left a few pieces at home. Yeah, I’m a little selfish when it comes to sharing ALL of my dessert.  

How to make

Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars

Yield: 24

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 42 minutes

Inactive Time 3 hours

Total Time: 4 hours 12 minutes

Enjoy two desserts in one with Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars!

Ingredients

For the Cookie Layer:

• 3 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup butter, room temperature
• 1 Tablespoon molasses
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips, divided

For the Cheesecake Layer:

• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions

For the Cookie Layer:

1. In bowl, mix flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder together.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream sugars and butter together for 3 minutes. Mix in molasses and vanilla. Beat in the eggs until smooth and creamy. Add in the dry ingredients while mixing on low. Mix until almost combined. Fold in 1 1/4 cup chocolate chips. Place cookie dough in fridge while you make the cheesecake layer.

For the Cheesecake Layer:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9x13 pan with heavy duty foil and grease with cooking spray.
2. With an electric mixer (standing or hand), beat cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla together until smooth. Add the eggs and beat until fully combined. Set aside.

Assembling:

1. Use your hands to press half the dough (maybe slightly more) into the bottom of the pan. Pour the cheesecake batter on top. With the remaining cookie dough, dot the top with tablespoon size scoops. Sprinkle the top with the remaining 1/4 cup chocolate chips and then bake for 40-42 minutes until cookie dough is golden. Remove from oven and let it cool to room temperature. Refrigerate for 3 hours or overnight before cutting and serving.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

If you make this recipe, be sure to snap a picture and share it on Instagram with #handletheheat so we can all see!

Recipe by Melanie Dueck