Apple Cheesecake Crumb Bars for a Playdate {Webisode}
The Occasion: Taking treats to a friend for an afternoon playdate and some to my neighbor to celebrate her daughter’s christening.
Menu: Everyone to bring apple-themed treats to the playdate for a fun fall afternoon.
Attendees: Party of 8 (at playdate!)
Naptime Goals: Bake bars so they have time to cool, finish laundry, wrap up articles and pack snack for pick-up.
When I agreed to bring an apple-y treat to a playdate recently I knew exactly what I wanted to make. I experimented with this Apple Crumb Cheesecake bar recipe a lot last year but never posted about it. Now I’ve think I’ve got it fine-tuned and am finally ready to share! They were originally inspired by my husband’s love of cheesecake and my love of apples. I make a lot of apple breads and muffins during apple season, which are great, of course, but I really wanted to try combining cheesecake and apples to make one stellar bar we all would love. 
As you can see in this webisode, the bars came together very easily while my daughter was in school. I popped them in the oven and spent time finishing up laundry, wrapping up some articles and preparing for school pick-up. Once I was ready to go fetch her I fastened the lid over my portable pan and cut them fresh when we got there. One of my friends suggested drizzling them with caramel sauce to make them into caramel apple cheesecake bars, but I just ate mine as it was. I loved how the soft baked apples melted into the creamy cheesecake base which was sandwiched between the sweet, buttery oat crust and topping. In short, they are our new favorite apple-y fall snack and they’ve come about just in time, the season is just beginning for us to enjoy them all fall.
Recipe
Apple Crumb Cheesecake Bars
Ingredients
Crust & Topping:
| 3 | cups all-purpose flour |
| 1 ½ | cups light brown sugar |
| 1 | cup quick-cooking oats |
| 3 | sticks unsalted butter |
| 1 | teaspoon Kosher salt |
Filling:
| 1 | 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk |
| 8 | ounces cream cheese, softened |
| 2 | teaspoons vanilla extract |
| 2 | eggs |
| 2 | tablespoons flour |
| 4 | apples, peeled, cored and chopped |
| ½ | teaspoon cinnamon |
| ¼ | teaspoon ground nutmeg |
| ¼ | teaspoon ground ginger |
| 2 | tablespoons sugar |
Instructions
1.Preheat the oven to 350F.
2. Pour the flour, sugar, oats and salt into a food processor and pulse until crumbs form. Add the butter in large chunks to the food processor until the mixture becomes pebbly and holds shape when pinched.
3. Press 2/3 of the crumb mixture into the bottom of a 9×13 pan and bake for about 15 minutes, or until golden.
4. Meanwhile, beat the cream cheese until soft and pour in the milk until completely smooth. With the mixer on low add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Then add the vanilla and flour. Set aside.
5. Toss the chopped apples with the cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and sugar and set aside.
6. Once the crust is cooled pour the cream cheese mixture evenly on top, followed by the chopped apples. Spread the remaining 1/3 of the crumb mixture on top and bake for about 35 minutes, or until the bars are set and the crumb is lightly golden. Allow to cool completely before serving.
Naptime Notes
Naptime Recipe Serving ideas
These are great for a casual treat or it can be dressed up with ice cream and caramel topping for a special treat!
Naptime Stopwatch
20 minutes prep time, 35 minutes bake time
Naptime Reviews
These were a huge hit all around!
Great video Kelsey! What delicious fun!
Thanks, Sommer, glad you enjoyed!
I have a ton of apples and I will have to try this, it looks so good!
They are really good, enjoy those apples!
Great video – love the background music 🙂
Haha, thanks!
How many ounces of sweetened condensed milk? Thanks. Looks fun.
Hi! 1 14 ounce can! Thanks, kelsey
Hi! 14 ounces – I added it to the ingredients!
Thanks! While at an average store, I saw there are 14-oz. and perhaps 8-oz. cans. I guessed 14 before and am glad to see it’s the correct measurement.
I am glad it worked out!
This blog is so wonderful. Thanks again!
So many delicious things in one dessert bar!
Thanks, Lauren!
Can’t go wrong with this combo! I’ve already made my own version of these earlier this fall – and they were a major hit!
[…] Apple Cheesecake Crumb Bars (The Naptime Chef) I love cheesecake bars and don’t make them nearly enough. These are definitely going to get made sooner rather than later. […]
Love the cheese cake, crumb bar combo!
I love this combo too! Love seeing apple recipes, really looking forward to fall. 🙂
Send me a batch & make my day!?
xo
http://allykayler.blogspot.com
Just took these out of my oven for tomorrow’s PTO meeting. The house smells so good, cannot wait to give them a try! Made your apple spice cookies for today’s Brownie meeting, huge hit!!
Thanks! I am so glad you like the bars and cookies!
hi from New Zealand! my 12 yr old daughter has just made these and they are cooling. can’t wait to eat them as they smell so good and her anticipation is high after licking the beaters of the cream cheese condensed milk mixture! I am watching your video now and you say you add cornstarch to the apples. This isn’t in the written recipe! Please confirm that is what you said, and how much. Also in the written you didn’t say the pan should be greased, but in the video you mention the prepared pan. Luckily she did spray the pan beforehand in case, but for future bakers maybe you could add this to your written recipe. thx so much Ruth
Making these next week for our PTO meeting. They have become a first meeting tradition!