This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our privacy policy<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Raise your hand if you love cheesecake and chocolate chip cookies! Then these cookie dough cheesecake bars are a dream come true for you. With a buttery graham cracker crust, a layer of dreamy, creamy cheesecake, and chocolate chip cookie dough baked right into the top, you\u2019ll totally flip over this dessert!<\/em><\/p>\n Sometimes I sit and ponder delicious baked goods to make for the blog and jot them into the notes app on my phone. And sometimes I think my ideas are utterly genius \u2013 well, momentarily genius, that is.<\/p>\n As soon as I google my brilliant idea, I usually find that someone else had the same amazing idea long before I did.<\/p>\n That was the exact scenario with these cookie dough cheesecake bars. It\u2019s no wonder someone came up with this deliciousness before me!<\/p>\n I mean, can you think of a more amazing combination than the love child of cheesecake and\u00a0chocolate chip cookies<\/a>? I think not!<\/p>\n Now granted, I\u2019ve made plenty of\u00a0cheesecake recipes<\/a>\u00a0before. What can I say? I\u2019m a big fan! But these cheesecake bars are something special and they\u2019re definitely different from most of the other cookie bar recipes you\u2019ll find out there.<\/p>\n The buttery graham cracker crust is the perfect foundation for layers of creamy cheesecake and chewy chocolate chip cookie dough. How could you NOT fall in love with a dessert like this one??<\/p>\n <\/p>\n As you can see from the layers of flavor in these bars, there\u2019s a lot going on here.<\/p>\n Working from the bottom up, we\u2019ve graham cracker crumbs and melted butter for the crust.<\/p>\n This is a slight variation on the classic\u00a0graham cracker crust<\/a>\u00a0since this one doesn\u2019t have any added sugar in it. It\u2019s a simple piece of this cheesecake bar puzzle to throw together and it makes these bars a close relative to a full-size cheesecake.<\/p>\n I say this because some of the other recipes for cookie dough cheesecake bars you see out there have a base layer of cookie dough. While I\u2019m sure that\u2019s amazing \u2013 I mean, it\u2019s cookie dough! \u2013 it doesn\u2019t scream \u201ccheesecake bar\u201d to me, ya know?<\/p>\n Moving on, the middle layer is allll about the cheesecake. And I\u2019ve made a classic one here with cream cheese, sugar, an egg, and vanilla. It\u2019s a lot like my\u00a0vanilla cheesecake<\/a>\u00a0in fact, but there\u2019s no heavy cream in this filling.<\/p>\n For the cookie dough layer on top, I made my own cookie dough to marry with this cheesecake batter.\u00a0<\/p>\n Yes, there are recipes out there for bars like these that use pre-made cookie dough. And you could totally go that route for these bars!<\/p>\n But if you\u2019ve been around MBA for long enough, you\u2019ll know that I know my way around a cookie. I would never steer you wrong on a cookie dough recipe. So make your own \u2013 it\u2019s easy enough!<\/p>\n When you get all three layers together, you get the slight tanginess from the cheesecake, the gooey chocolate, the buttery graham cracker crust\u2014it\u2019s one decadent bite.<\/p>\n Serve these cheesecake bars up with a glass of ice-cold milk and like magic, everything will seem a little bit better!\u00a0<\/p>\n Okay, so I can\u2019t really guarantee these will brighten your mood, but trust me \u2013 if there\u2019s a food that can, it\u2019s these cookie dough cheesecake bars.<\/p>\n And if you\u2019ve got cheesecake bar recipes on the mind (you\u2019re not alone!), I think you might also really love\u00a0blueberry cheesecake bars<\/a>,\u00a0oreo cheesecake bars<\/a>, and\u00a0pumpkin cheesecake bars<\/a>.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t make me choose which one I like best!<\/p>\n Even though this is a multi-step recipe, it\u2019s simple to prep and it\u2019s pretty much the perfect comfort food.<\/p>\n For the crust, you only need 2 ingredients:<\/p>\n You can crush your own graham cracker crumbs using a food processor, but you can also buy boxes of graham cracker crumbs. It\u2019s up to you!<\/p>\n Next up is the chocolate chip cookie dough. For that, you will need:<\/p>\n Make sure you know\u00a0how to measure flour<\/a>\u00a0before you get started on this. It will help your bars to come out perfect every time.<\/p>\n I love the richness that brown sugar gives to the cookie dough here. If you are out of brown sugar, whip up a quick\u00a0brown sugar substitute<\/a>\u00a0to use instead.<\/p>\n If your brown sugar hardened in the pantry, check out my tips for\u00a0softening brown sugar<\/a>.<\/p>\n This wouldn\u2019t be cookie dough cheesecake without a cheesecake filling! For that you will need:<\/p>\n Using room temperature cream cheese and egg really does make a difference in the texture of the final cheesecake layer. If you forget to set yours out, I have some tips for\u00a0softening cream cheese<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0bringing eggs to room temperature<\/a>\u00a0quickly.<\/p>\n Grab your favorite 9\u00d79-inch baking pan and line it with parchment or foil. Make sure you leave an overhang so you can lift the bars out later. Spray with nonstick spray and set the pan aside.<\/p>\n Make the crust by mixing the melted butter and graham cracker crumbs. Press this mixture into the bottom of the pan and bake at\u00a0325\u00b0F for 6 minutes.\u00a0<\/p>\n Set the crust aside to cool but don\u2019t turn the oven off yet.<\/p>\n Now make the cookie dough layer. Using a mixer, cream the butter, sugars, salt, and vanilla until well combined. Mix in the flower on low speed until just combined, then stir in the chocolate chips.\u00a0<\/p>\n For the cheesecake layer, use a mixer to beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add the egg and vanilla until just combined.<\/p>\n Pour the cheesecake filling onto the crust.\u00a0<\/p>\n Use your hands to form the cookie dough into clumps, then flatten the clumps a bit with your palms. Place the cookie dough on top of the cheesecake filling, making sure to use all of the dough.<\/p>\n Bake the bars for 30 minutes. They are done when the top feels dry and the cookie dough feels firm. The entire pan should look set if given a gentle shake.<\/p>\n Let the bars cool completely on a rack before cutting and enjoying cold or at room temperature.<\/p>\n Assuming there are any of these cookie dough cheesecake bars left after you serve them, you\u2019ll want to keep the leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container or on a plate that is tightly wrapped with plastic wrap.<\/p>\n In the fridge, the bars will last about 2 days. After 2 days, the crust will start to soften a bit.<\/p>\n Cheesecake bars do not need a water bath! Yay!!<\/p>\n I pretty much use a\u00a0water bath<\/a>\u00a0whenever I make a full-size cheesecake, but there\u2019s no need to use one when you make\u00a0cheesecake bars<\/a>. The reason is that the cheesecake layer is so much thinner in the bars that it will cook quicker and more evenly than the filling in a full-size cheesecake, even without a water bath.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n You\u2019ll know when these bars are done when the cookie dough layer is firm to the touch and golden brown. It will look just like baked cookies!<\/p>\n And when you jiggle the pan, the center of the bars should be set without much movement at all.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n The age-old trick for cutting cheesecake into neat slices is to use a hot, sharp knife.<\/p>\n Now, because the cheesecake layer in these bars isn\u2019t extremely thick, you shouldn\u2019t have any trouble cutting through it neatly but you\u2019ll definitely need a sharp knife to cut through the top cookie layer.<\/p>\n Before you cut the fully cooled bars, be sure to pull them out of the pan and place them on a cutting board. Then, using a long, sharp knife or a stainless steel dough scraper (this works great!), cut firmly down from the top of the bars to the bottom in a swift motion.<\/p>\n Try not to saw through the bars because that will pull at the cheesecake and cookie layers, making sloppy squares.<\/p>\n Depending on how many servings you want, you can easily cut these bars into 9 large or 12 smaller squares.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n![\"Three](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/3-210x315.jpg\")
<\/div>\n![\"Two](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/2-210x315.jpg\")
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![\"Three](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/stacked-cookie-dough-cheesecake-bars.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n![\"Sliced](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/sliced-cookie-dough-cheesecake-bars.jpg\"\/)
![\"Sliced](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/sliced-cookie-dough-cheesecake-bars.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nWhy I love these cookie dough cheesecake bars<\/h2>\n
![\"Two](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/bite-from-cookie-dough-cheesecake.jpg\"\/)
![\"Two](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/bite-from-cookie-dough-cheesecake.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nHow to make my cookie dough cheesecake bars<\/h2>\n
Ingredients you\u2019ll need<\/h3>\n
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![\"Ingredients](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/cookie-dough-cheesecake-bar-ingredients.jpg\"\/)
![\"Ingredients](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/cookie-dough-cheesecake-bar-ingredients.jpg\")
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Making this recipe<\/h3>\n
![\"Graham](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/graham-cracker-crust.jpg\"\/)
![\"Graham](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/graham-cracker-crust.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n![\"Butter](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/mixed-wet-ingredients.jpg\"\/)
![\"Butter](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/mixed-wet-ingredients.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n![\"Cookie](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/cookie-dough-base.jpg\"\/)
![\"Cookie](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/cookie-dough-base.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n![\"Chocolate](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/chocolate-chip-cookie-dough.jpg\"\/)
![\"Chocolate](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/chocolate-chip-cookie-dough.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n![\"Cheesecake](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/mixed-cream-cheese-filling.jpg\"\/)
![\"Cheesecake](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/mixed-cream-cheese-filling.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n![\"Assembled](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/assembled-cookie-dough-cheesecake-bars.jpg\"\/)
![\"Assembled](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/assembled-cookie-dough-cheesecake-bars.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n![\"Baked](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/cooling-cookie-dough-cheesecake-bars.jpg\"\/)
![\"Baked](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/cooling-cookie-dough-cheesecake-bars.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n![\"Close](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/side-view-cookie-dough-cheesecake.jpg\"\/)
![\"Close](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/side-view-cookie-dough-cheesecake.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nHelpful tips<\/h2>\n
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Storage<\/h2>\n
![\"Cake](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/serving-cookie-dough-cheesecake-bars.jpg\"\/)
![\"Cake](\"https:\/\/www.mybakingaddiction.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/serving-cookie-dough-cheesecake-bars.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nFrequently asked questions<\/h2>\n