Caramel Apple Cheesecake

Looking for a delicious, creamy, and flavorful dessert with fresh apples and a crunchy streusel? These Caramel Apple Cheesecake bars are served with a caramel drizzle, making them the ultimate fall dessert!

Caramel Apple Cheesecake bars combine several holiday favorite elements into one extremely delicious dessert. These bars are sure to curb those holiday dessert cravings and be a crowd favorite wherever you serve them! Based on a reader’s favorite (these Pumpkin Cheesecake Streusel Bars), these bars are every bit as amazing!

How to make these Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars:

There are four main components to this dessert – the crust, the cheesecake, the apple layer, and the streusel. While it may sound like a lot, each part is quick and easy to prepare and you’ll have a dessert that’s sure to impress in no time at all! Here are a few tips for each of the layers:

1. Crust – With only three ingredients (cinnamon graham crackers, butter, and sugar), this is one of the easiest, fastest, and most delicious-to-make crusts!  Just pulse the cinnamon graham crackers until they are crumbs and mix with the sugar and butter. Be sure to first line your pan with parchment paper, then spread the crust mixture evenly into the pan, and firmly press it down. If you don’t have any cinnamon graham crackers available, you could also use regular graham crackers and add 1 teaspoon of cinnamon to the mix.
2. Cheesecake – The most important thing to ensure the success of your cheesecake layer is having the cream cheese at room temperature before you begin making this layer. If not, you will not be able to achieve the smooth silky cheesecake texture. It is also important to use full-fat, high-quality cream cheese. Beat the cream cheese and sugar together until smooth, then gently beat in the eggs, vanilla, and salt, being careful to not overbeat the mix.
3. Apple layer – The secret to this layer is high-quality Granny Smith apples. All you need to do to prepare this layer is peel, core, and finely chop the apples, mix with lemon juice, and then toss with cinnamon, nutmeg, and brown sugar.
4. Streusel – This layer pulls everything together to create the perfect dessert, and again, it is super simple to make! All you need to do is mix the dry ingredients together (brown sugar, flour, quick oats, and finely chopped baking pecans) and then knead in the softened butter with your hands or a pastry blender. Whenever I have a dessert with a streusel, I like A LOT of it. If you prefer a light topping of streusel, you can halve the amounts.
5. Assembling the Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars – Smooth the cheesecake layer over the slightly cooled crust (it should still be warm but not hot). Spoon the apples over the cheesecake layer and then evenly sprinkle the streusel over the apples! Cook for 30 minutes at 350 degrees F or until the filling has set. After that, you just need to wait for the bars to properly be cool before you can cut and serve them with caramel sauce!

QUICK TIP

If you don’t have any cinnamon graham crackers available for the crust, you could also use regular graham crackers and add 1 teaspoon of cinnamon to the mix.

How to serve these Apple Cheesecake Bars:

1. The bars need to cool and set completely before you serve them. I recommend making these the night before you plan to serve them so they can set up overnight. If you plan to make them the day of, be sure to bake them early enough so they can set completely – at the very least, they need to cool for an hour and then be placed in the fridge for at least two hours. This dessert tastes good cold, but it is best at room temperature. I recommend leaving 30 minutes to let them sit out and get to room temperature.
2. These cheesecake bars are rich so I recommend cutting smaller rather than larger pieces – this recipe should make 24 bars! The parchment paper makes it easy to remove them from the pan and cut them into sharp, beautiful-looking pieces. Another trick I use to cut perfect cheesecake bars: Use a HOT sharp knife. I run a sharp knife under hot water, quickly dry it off, and then make one slice into the bars. Run it under hot water again, dry, and repeat!
3. When you are ready to serve them, warm up some caramel sauce to drizzle over them. I recommend doing a thin drizzle of a high-quality caramel sauce. You can pick up some ready-made caramel sauce or grab the ingredients to make one from scratch. Here is my favorite from-scratch caramel sauce recipe.

So what’s the difference between streusel and strudel?

They sound pretty similar, but these two sweet treats are quite different! Strudel is a pastry made up of a lot of thin layers wrapped around a filling. The most traditional filling is apple, but you can use all types of fruit fillings. You can also find or make savory strudels. Streusel, on the other hand, is a sweet crumble topping that is often placed on top pies, cobblers, and other desserts.

Other Delicious Holiday Desserts:

• The BEST Pumpkin Bread
• Pecan Streusel Pumpkin Pie
• Pumpkin Cheesecake Ball
• Vanilla Cheesecake Bars
• Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars

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Caramel Apple Cheesecake

4.75 from 4 votes

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A delicious, creamy, and flavorful dessert with fresh apples and a crunchy streusel. These caramel apple cheesecake bars are the BEST!

SAVE TO RECIPE BOX

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Caramel Apple Cheesecake

4.75 from 4 votes

- Review this recipe

SAVE TO RECIPE BOX

Print Recipe

A delicious, creamy, and flavorful dessert with fresh apples and a crunchy streusel. These caramel apple cheesecake bars are the BEST!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword caramel apple cheesecake

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Resting Time 3 hours

Total Time 50 minutes

Servings 24 bars

Calories 251kcal

Author Chelsea

Ingredients

Crust

• ▢ 12 full sheets cinnamon graham crackers
• ▢ 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• ▢ 3 tablespoons white sugar

Cheesecake Filling

• ▢ 3 packages (8 ounces EACH) full fat Kroger Cream Cheese, softened
• ▢ 3/4 cup white sugar
• ▢ 3 large Simple Truth Pasture Raised Eggs
• ▢ 1 and 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

Apple Layer

• ▢ 3 large Simple Truth Organic Granny Smith Apples, peeled, cored, and finely chopped
• ▢ 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• ▢ 2 tablespoons light or dark brown sugar
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Streusel

• ▢ 1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• ▢ 1 cup flour
• ▢ 1/2 cup quick cooking oats*
• ▢ 1/4 cup Kroger Baking Pecans, finely chopped
• ▢ 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter at room temperature, cut into small cubes
• ▢ Caramel Sauce, homemade or store-bought

Instructions

Crust

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9 x 13 pan with parchment paper.
• Begin by placing the graham crackers into a blender. Pulse until all the crackers are crumbs. Add in the sugar and melted stick of butter and mix until combined.
• Press the graham cracker mix into the pan until even and firm. Bake for 8 minutes. 

Cheesecake filling

• While the crust is baking, prepare your cheesecake filling. Begin by beating the three packages of SOFTENED cream cheese and 3/4 cup white sugar together. Beat on low and even speeds. Once smooth, add the eggs, vanilla, and salt. Beat until incorporated and smooth, being careful not to over beat the mix. 
• Let the mix sit until the crust has baked and slightly cooled (it should still be warm but not hot). Pour the cheesecake mixture evenly over the slightly cooled crust.

Apple filling

• Mixed the peeled, cored, and finely chopped apples with the lemon juice. Toss with brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. 

Streusel

• Mix the brown sugar, flour, quick oats, and finely chopped pecans together. 
• Add the cubed butter to the dry ingredients. Incorporate by gently mixing the ingredients together with your hands until the butter holds all the dry ingredients together. 

Assembling, Cooking, and Serving the Apple Cheesecake Bars

• Spoon the apples evenly over the cheesecake layer. Sprinkle the streusel topping evenly over the bars.
• Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees F or until filling is set. Remove from oven and let stand at room temperature for 1 hour. Transfer to the fridge for 2 hours.
• When ready to serve, use the parchment paper to pull the cheesecake bars out of the pan. Cut into bars. Drizzle with caramel sauce and enjoy! 

Video

Recipe Notes

*The video shows old fashioned oats, but quick oats are the best to use for the streusel!

Nutrition Facts

Calories: 251kcal

We do our best to provide accurate nutritional analysis for our recipes. Our nutritional data is calculated using a third-party algorithm and may vary, based on individual cooking styles, measurements, and ingredient sizes. Please use this information for comparison purposes and consult a health professional for nutrition guidance as needed.

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