Gluten Free Apple Cheesecake Bars

The ultimate Apple Season Dessert - Gluten Free Apple Cheesecake Bars. A gluten free, buttery shortbread crust topped with a creamy cheesecake layer, cinnamon-spiced apples and finished with brown sugar streusel.

This recipe is made in a 8x8 pan (or 9x9 if that's what you have on hand) and will give you 9 generous pieces.

If you love Apple Desserts, make sure to check out my Gluten Free Apple Sauce Cake and my Gluten Free Cinnamon Apple Streusel Panna Cotta.

Recipe Ingredient Notes

Gluten Free Flour: For the shortbread crust and the streusel, I used my own gluten free flour blend. This recipe works great Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1, King Arthur Measure for Measure or Cup4Cup or any gluten free flour blend you may have on your hands. Shortbread and Streusel are both very forgiving. Therefore use a flour you enjoy the taste of and is not overwhelming in taste. (Personally, I am not a fan of bean flours)

Cream Cheese: For the cream cheese layer in this recipe for Apple Cheesecake bars I use full fat cream cheese. I have not tested this recipe with reduced-fat cream cheese.

Apples: I use Honeycrisp apples in this recipe. They are crisp and juicy, with a honey-sweet and tart flavor. Other apple varieties that work great here are Gala, Fuji, and Braeburns. Feel free to use whatever you have on hand as long as your apples are not bruised and on their way out.

Apple Pie Spice: If you don't have Apple Pie Spice in your cabinet, you can easily make your own. Combine the following ingredients and store them in an airtight container at room temperature. You may also use Pumpkin Pie Spice.

• 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon ground nutmeg
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground allspice
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground cardamom
  

How to make Gluten Free Shortbread Crust

Traditionally cheesecakes are made with a graham cracker crust. Since gluten free graham crackers can be expensive, I opted for a simple shortbread crust instead. A shortbread crust is also firmer and can hold all the weight from the cheesecake filling, apples and streusel topping.

• Preheat the oven to 350F
• Line an 8x8 (or 9x9 pan) with parchment paper and set aside. Make sure to leave some overhang on the sides to remove the cheesecake easily from the pan.
• Whisk together the gluten free flour, brown sugar and salt in a medium sized bowl. Cut your butter in small pieces and add to the flour mixture. You can use your clean hands or two forks to work the butter into the flour until it is crumbly.
• Press the mixture in an even layer into the prepared pan. I like to use an offset knife for this or the back of a spoon.
• Bake the crust at 350F for 12 to 14 minutes or until light golden brown.
• When your crust is done baking, do NOT turn off the oven.

How to make the Apple Filling for Apple Cheesecake Bars

To make the Apple Filling, peel and chop your apples in small pieces. You want them evenly sized so they all cook at a same time. Toss your apples with brown sugar and the apple pie spices and set aside. Depending on how long the apples are sitting in the sugar mixture, it's possible that they release some juices. Do NOT add that liquid when topping your cheesecake filling.

How to make Streusel Topping

For this recipe I am using a simple brown sugar streusel recipe. If you happen to have some leftover streusel in the freeze from my Gluten Free Carrot Zucchini Muffins or Gluten Free Blueberry Buckle, please feel free to use that instead.

Combine dry ingredients in a small bowl, add butter, and with a fork or your hands crumble together until it resembles a streusel topping. Store in the fridge until ready to use

How to make the Cheesecake Filling

The cheesecake filling for Apple Cheesecake bars is a very simple. In the bowl of your stand mixer (fitted with the paddle attachment), mix together the cream cheese, the granulated white sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy. This should take around 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of your bowl with a spatula. Beat in the eggs and the egg yolk one at a time, just until combined; do not overmix once you've added the eggs.

How to assamble and bake Gluten Free Apple Cheesecake Bars

• Pour the cheesecake filling over your prebaked gluten free shortbread crust and smooth out with a small offset knife or the back of a spoon. It's okay if the crust is still warm when you do this.
• Top the cheesecake filling with your sugar stossed apples. Do not add any of the liquid the apples may released.
• Sprinkle the streusel evenly over the apples.
• Bake your cheesecake bars at 350F for 35-40 minutes until the streusel is golden brown and the filling looks set (this might be tricky to see because of the apples and the streusel topping)
• Carefully remove the cheesecake from the oven and allow to cool at room temperature.
• Once fully cooled, move them to the refrigerator and allow them to cool completely for at least 4hrs, preferably overnight.
• When ready to serve, cut them cheesecake bars with a clean knife in pieces and serve. They are fabulous topped with some caramel sauce (easy recipe can be found here: Caramel Meringue Cookies).

Frequently asked questions

Can you freeze Gluten Free Apple Cheesecake bars?
Yes. Allow for the bars to cool down completely and chilled, remove them from the pan and cut them into smaller pieces. Carefully wrap them into plastic wrap and place them in an airtight container. Freeze them up to 3 months. Defrost them in your refridgerator when ready to eat. DO NOT microwave.

Do Apple Cheesecake bars need to refridgerated?
Yes. I highly recommend storing them in an airtight container in your fridge for up to 5 days. They can be kept at room temperature for up to 4 hours.

Can I make this dessert ahead of time?
This is the perfect make-ahead dessert for Thanksgiving or any get together. Bake the cheesecake bars as directed and place them in your fridge. Make sure to wrap the pan with plastic wrap. You can keep them in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. The streusel may turn a bit soft but still delicious.

Can I use different fruit for the topping?
Yes! One of my favorite combos are pears, apples and fresh cranberries with Asian Five Spice. Peel and chop the pear and apple as directed and add a handful of fresh cranberries to the mix. No need to chop the fresh cranberries. They will burst in the oven. This makes for a great variation of those Gluten Free Apple Cheesecake Bars.

I am not gluten free - can I make this recipe for Cheesecake Bars with "regular" flour?
Yes. Please use 135g of regular flour for the shortbread crust and 70 grams for the Streusel Topping.