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Easy Lemon Cheesecake Bars with a sugar cookie crust! The perfect combination of creamy, sweet, and tart. These lemon squares are a fuss-free recipe that pretty much anyone can make. Get the kids involved- they’re really good at squeezing the juice out of the lemons:) The texture and flavor of these lemon bars are unlike any other you’ve had before, they’re just perfect!
Lemon Cheesecake Bars
If you’ve followed my blog, Smart School House, for a while, then you know that we LOVE easy recipes. Our recipes need to be fun, quick, and simple enough for anybody to make them. These Lemon Cheesecake bars fit that bill. They’re pretty enough to serve at a party, yet easy enough for kids to help make. The soft and buttery sugar cookie crust is something you won’t see anywhere else and you’ll be asking why you hadn’t made them sooner!
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Lemon Cheesecake Bars Ingredients:
- Refrigerated sugar cookie dough
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- Fresh-squeezed lemon juice (or more if you love lemon desserts!)
- Powdered sugar
- Cream cheese
Lemon Cheesecake Bars Recipe
1. In a mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, vanilla extract, powdered sugar, lemon juice, and egg.
2. Cut the roll of sugar cookie dough in 1/2
3. Press half of the sugar cookie dough to the bottom of the baking dish for the “curst”
4. Pour the lemon cheesecake mixture over the sugar cookie crust
5. Using the remaining 1/2 roll of sugar cookie dough, create flattened “chunks” of dough and place them evenly over the top of the cheesecake mixture.
6. Bake for 30 minutes at 350° or just until the sugar cookie shows a golden color
7. Let cool and refrigerate for at least an hour.
8. Cut into squares and dust with powdered sugar.
If you know you LOVE lemon desserts, consider adding a couple more tablespoons of fresh-squeezed lemon juice! This recipe has a gentle taste of lemon in each creamy sweet bite. It’s excellent if you’re new to lemon recipes! But, if you know you like a bold lemon flavor in your desserts, have fun and add more!
Storage Instructions
In the Refrigerator
These Lemon Bars can be stored in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.
In the Freezer
To make them last even longer, store them in an airtight container in the freezer. Place wax paper between the layers. Freeze for up to 3 months.
More Dessert Bars
Lemon Cheesecake Bars Recipe
Lemon Cheesecake Bars
Equipment
- Non-stick spray (Pam)
- Electric handheld mixer, or whisk
- Mixing bowl
- Spatula
- 8×8 inch square baking dish
Ingredients
- 16.5 oz tube of sugar cookie dough, at almost room temperature (found in the refrigerated cookie area of any grocery store)
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 4 tbsps fresh-squeezed lemon juice
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
- 8 oz box of cream cheese at room temperature
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°
- In a mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, vanilla extract, powdered sugar, lemon juice, and egg. *Note: The cream cheese mixture will be chunky if the cream cheese is too cold. If this happens, fill your sink with a couple of inches of hot water and place the bowl in the bath of hot water. This warm water should help bring the cream cheese chunks to room temperature to make a creamy mixture
- Cut the roll of sugar cookie dough in 1/2
- Press half of the sugar cookie dough to the bottom of the baking dish for the “curst”
- Pour the lemon cheesecake mixture over the sugar cookie crust
- Using the remaining 1/2 roll of sugar cookie dough, create flattened “chunks” of dough and place them evenly over the top of the cheesecake mixture.
- Bake for 30 minutes or just until the sugar cookie shows a golden color
- Let cool and refrigerate for at least an hour.
- Cut into squares and dust with powdered sugar.
