Snickerdoodle-Apple Cream Cheese Bars
Prep Time: 25 min
Total Time: 3 hr 45 min
Servings: 16
Calling all snickerdoodle lovers! Your family is going to beg you to make these Snickerdoodle-Apple Cream Cheese Bars again and again—and lucky for you, they're a breeze to make! These cookie bars are baked with cinnamon-swirled Pillsbury™ Sugar Cookie Dough, a sweetened cream cheese mixture and fresh apples. Inspired by fall, snickerdoodle cheesecake bars are a combination of apple pie, cheesecake, and snickerdoodle cookies in one dessert, what could be better?
Ingredients
Cinnamon-Sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Bars
- 2 cups peeled, cored, coarsely chopped apples (2 medium)
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 roll (468 g) refrigerated Pillsbury™ Sugar Cookie Dough
- 1 package (250 g) cream cheese, softened
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 egg
Method
- Heat oven to 350°F (180°C). Line 8-inch square pan with foil, allowing some to hang over edges of pan.
- In small bowl, mix 1/2 teaspoon sugar and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon until well blended. Set aside.
- In 10-inch nonstick skillet, cook apples, 2 tablespoons sugar and 1 teaspoon of the cinnamon over medium-high heat 4 to 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until apples are crisp-tender. Remove from heat; cool 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in medium bowl, break up cookie dough. Add remaining 1 teaspoon cinnamon; mix with spoon, or knead with hands until well blended. Reserve 1/2 cup of the cookie dough. Press remaining dough in pan.
- In medium bowl, beat cream cheese, remaining 1/2 cup sugar, the flour and egg with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Pour evenly over cookie dough.
- Spoon cooled apple mixture evenly over cream cheese mixture. Crumble and sprinkle reserved 1/2 cup dough over apples. Sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar mixture.
- Bake 45 to 50 minutes or until deep golden brown and firm to the touch. Cool on cooling rack 30 minutes. Refrigerate at least 2 hours until well chilled. Using foil to lift, remove bars from pan, and peel foil away. Cut into 4 rows by 4 rows. Store covered in refrigerator.
Expert Tips
- Use your favourite variety of baking apple in this recipe, including Braeburn, Granny Smith or Honeycrisp.
- Line the pan with foil to remove and cut bars more easily.
- You can use a glass or metal baking pan for this recipe, though we prefer one with straight sides so every bar bakes into a similar shape.
- Store leftover bars covered in refrigerator.