PUMPKIN CARAMEL CHEESECAKE BARS WITH A STREUSEL TOPPING

I had been craving a good cheesecake bar for some time when I saw these apple crisp cheesecake bars. I instantly wanted to make them and eat the entire pan.

HOWEVER. With no apples in the house, and absolutely zero desire to go to the grocery store, I had to figure out a way to adapt these magical bars and get some cheesecake ASAP.

And with the nearly 800 cans of pumpkin in my pantry for the ridiculous amount of testing and pumpkin baking, pumpkin was the first thing to come to mind. And gosh I’m glad it did — if you like pumpkin and cheesecake, these are going to be your new favorite dessert!These bars are super decadent, but not overly rich. They are thick and have all the best components of a cheesecake. Especially a pumpkin cheesecake!

P.S. I’m so sorry for the lack of photos. I had some step-by-step photos and some photos of different angles of these awesome cheesecake bars but accidentally deleted all the photos on my SD card before I had downloaded them to my computer. *FacePALM* Luckily I had a few photos on another SD card, but only a few…so those are the ones in this post! 🙂

Ingredients

• Crust
• 1 and 1/2 cups (~10-11 full sheets) cinnamon graham cracker crumbs
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 6 tablespoons butter melted
• Cheesecake
• 2 packages (8 ounces each) full fat cream cheese at room temperature
• 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling and not entire can)
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• Streusel and Topping
• 1/2 cup brown sugar packed
• 1/2 cup white flour
• 1/4 cup quick cooking oats
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 cup butter softened (not melted)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Salted or plain caramel to top bars with

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8 x 8 baking pan with parchment paper (leave an overhang to be able to pull out these bars easily) and set aside.
2. In a bowl, combine the crust ingredients and mix until a thick dough forms. Press evenly into the bottom of the 8 x 8 baking pan.
3. In another bowl, combine the cream cheese, (VERY important it is at room temperature for a smooth texture. Leave out for at least an hour before baking. Microwaving the cream cheese will give it a bumpy texture) sugar, and vanilla. Beat with hand mixers until completely smooth and creamy. Add in the eggs, one at a time, and beat until each is combined.
4. .............................

for full instruction please see : www.chelseasmessyapron.com

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