Go Back
Print

Chocolate Almond Cheesecake Bars

Ingredients

For the crust

  • ¾ cup all-purpose flour
  • ¼ cup toasted almonds finely ground
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ cup unsalted and O' Lakes Butter chilled
  • Baking spray with flour

For the filling

  • 6 oz low fat or neufchâtel found by regular cream cheese cream cheese, softened
  • 4 oz regular cream cheese softened
  • ⅔ cup sugar
  • ½ cup plain fat-free Greek yogurt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • dash of salt
  • 1 egg
  • 3 oz semisweet chocolate chips
  • 1 TBS 2% milk whole or 1% would work as well
  • 2 TBS almonds chopped

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°.

For the crust

  1. 1. Combine flour, ¼ cup ground almonds, and ¼ teaspoon salt in a medium bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender, two knives, or a fork until mixture resembles coarse meal.
  2. 2. Coat a 8-inch square baking dish with baking spray. Sprinkle mixture into the dish and lightly press mixture into bottom of pan until firm.
  3. 3. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until golden. Cool crust completely on a wire rack.
  4. Reduce oven temperature to 325°.

For the rest

  1. 1. Place cream cheeses in a medium bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until smooth. Add sugar, yogurt, vanilla, and dash of salt; beat at low speed until combined. Add egg; beat 1 minute or until well combined.
  2. 2. Pour mixture over cooled crust.
  3. 3. Place chocolate chips and milk in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds or until melted, stirring after every 15 seconds; stir mixture until smooth.
  4. 4. Dollop chocolate mixture by the spoonful over cheesecake mixture; swirl together using the tip of a knife. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons chopped almonds.
  5. 5. Bake at 325° for 30 minutes or until almost set in the middle. Cool completely on a wire rack. Cover and refrigerate 6 hours or up to overnight. Cut and serve as bars.
  6. Enjoy!

Recipe Notes

By using lower fat cream cheese and milk in this recipe, it reduces the calories and fat. If you prefer the full fat version, go ahead and use regular cream cheese and whole milk. Using the lower fat versions did not change the taste what-so-ever in my opinion.