Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars
I love baking from scratch. But you know what else I love? Quick & easy desserts. Enter these Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars.
The base is refrigerated cookie dough which makes this dessert easy. No need to make your own cookie dough from scratch, though you absolutely can! Just open a roll & press into the baking dish.
The first few times I made this dish, I planned ahead so the ingredients had time to come to room temperature, let the dish cool completely before placing it in the fridge to fully set up and chill.
Now, I tend to make these Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars about 1.5 hours before we want to eat them so I take all the shortcuts. Don’t worry! I’m going to give them all to you in this blog post.
Two Main Ingredients
- Cookie dough: one roll goes into the bottom of the dish, a portion of the other goes on top. This means you’ll have plenty leftover to bake cookies later or to use the next time you make these bars. I ended up using about a ¼ of the second roll.
- Cream Cheese: do NOT use the cream cheese spread. It won’t work. You need the block cream cheese like in the photo. Also…the cream cheese needs to be soft/room temperature to mix well.
Room Temperature Ingredients
Here’s my thoughts on room temp ingredients in this recipe: ehhh. There’s a part of me shriveling up and dying on the inside because I just said that I’m not really concerned about room temp ingredients because I’m usually pretty strict about that when baking. Rest assured, it’s just for these bars. Hear me out: once these bars bake, you’re not gonna notice that there were still a few lumps in the batter when you poured it in the pan. So if you’re like me & want to bake these at the last minute, go ahead & don’t worry about laying out your ingredients an hour prior to let them come to room temperature. Follow the shortcuts below.
Shortcuts, please!
- Cream Cheese: Place the unwrapped cream cheese on a microwave-safe plate & microwave for 10 seconds. This is a must!
- Egg: Either don’t worry about it (I don’t!) OR you can place the egg in a bowl of warm (NOT hot) water for 10 minutes.
Let me break the recipe down for you:
Cheesecake Filling: beat the cream cheese until it’s smooth. Add sugar & beat until it’s combined & smooth. Add the egg & vanilla & voila! That’s it! So easy!
Press cookie dough into the bottom of the baking dish. You’re gonna want to cover the entire bottom of the pan. It’ll go up the sides a little bit & that’s okay! It’s what you want.
Here’s what each will look like:
Next up: pour the cheesecake filling over the cookie dough. Open the second roll of cookie dough & start breaking up small pieces & laying them on top of the cheesecake like in the photo below. There’s really no method to it. I just slice pieces off the roll and tear it apart in my hands and press it into thin, small pieces.
Time to bake the Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars!
Let them cool completely then place in the fridge to chill & harden. If you’re here for the shortcut, let them cool on the counter for 20 minutes and then place in the freezer for about 30 minutes. Cut then serve!
To make this your own: If you want more cheesecake compared to cookie, only use 1 roll of cookie dough for the entire dish. You’ll have a thinner layer of cookie on the bottom & also less on the top. If you don’t want much of a vanilla taste (though this version is not overpowering at all), use only 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
Here’s the recipe! Happy Baking!
Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars
Ingredients
- 2 rolls (16.5oz) Pillsbury Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
For the Cheesecake Filling:
- 1 block (8oz) Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- 1.5 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°. Line a 9×9 baking dish with parchment paper, leaving some hanging over the sides.
- Open 1 roll of the cookie dough and begin slicing off pieces & pressing them into the baking dish until the entire bottom is covered. Some dough will go up the sides of the dish and that is great; exactly what you're looking for. Set aside.
- Place the block of cream cheese inside a stand mixer or use a hand-held mixer inside a large bowl and beat the cream cheese until smooth and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes on medium-high speed). Scrape down the sides & re-mix if needed.
- Add in the sugar and beat until combined (1-2 minutes). Scrape down the sides & re-mix if needed.
- Add the egg and vanilla & beat until smooth (another 1-2 minutes). If there are a few lumps, it's okay. You won't be able to tell when it bakes.
- Pour the cheesecake filling over the cookie dough base spreading all the way to the edges.
- Open the second roll of cookie dough. Cut off a thin slice and break it up between your fingers to create small pieces (see photo above). Do this until the top is covered to your liking. (I used about a 1/4 of the roll for the top of the dish.)
- Bake for 30-35 minutes. (Mine needed 33 minutes.) It's done when only the center slightly jiggles. If the edges of the cheesecake filling are brown(ing), it's done.
- Let the bars cool completely before serving by letting them rest on the counter and then chilling in the fridge to harden. Cut into pieces & enjoy!
Notes
Love,
Looking for more recipes? Try my Buffalo Ranch Chicken Sliders.
