Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars

These chocolate chip cheesecake bars are filled with a creamy cheesecake filling. Made in just one bowl, this easy keto dessert is sure to impress! 

When it comes to keto cheesecake based recipes, I love blueberry cheesecake, basque cheesecake, and these chocolate chip cheesecake bars. 

It’s no secret that when it comes to desserts, I love dessert bars, chocolate chip cookies, and cheesecakes. I make at least one of those desserts at least once a week, if not more. Recently, I’ve been experimenting with combining desserts and making batch after batch of cheesecake bars. 

I’ve been meaning to share a cheesecake bar recipe for quite some time now. One of my friends is obsessed with unique dessert bars and with her birthday soon, I wanted to do something special and make a batch of these!

Now, these chocolate chip cookie cheesecake bars may look incredibly fancy, but I promise you they are SO easy to make and require simple low carb ingredients. 

No sugar, no grains, and no oil needed, but you’d never tell. The texture is thick, soft, and slightly gooey, bursting with cream cheese. It’s sweet, slightly tangy, and the chocolate chips give it a fabulous touch! 

I surprised my friend with this, and her, along with all her guests, and NO ONE believed me when I said that it was keto and low carb- they thought it tasted like any good cheesecake bar out there, if not better!

Ingredients for chocolate chip cookie cheesecake bars

Here are the ingredients you’ll need to make these bars. Please do not substitute the ingredients, unless stated. This is just an overview and the full recipe card is at the bottom. 

For the bars

• Almond flour– Blanched almond flour, not almond meal.
• Coconut flour– Gives the cheesecake bars some stability and thickness. Do not omit this or substitute it for something else. 
• Baking soda– Gives the bars some rise and leavening. 
• Salt– Brings out the sweetness of the bars. 
• Butter– Room temperature and unsalted butter. Dairy free butter can also be used. 
• Egg– Room temperature egg. See my tips below to make this eggless. 
• Brown sugar substitute– Use a keto brown sugar alternative, like Swerve brown sugar. It mimics the flavor and texture of brown sugar, without the calories and carbs! 
• Vanilla extract– A must for any good baked dessert recipe.
• Chocolate Chips– Sugar free chocolate chips or your favorite chocolate chips. 

For the cheesecake filling

• Cream cheese– softened cream cheese. Dairy free cream cheese can also be used, provided they are from a block (not spreadable or from a tub). 
• Egg– Helps hold the filling together. 
• Granulated sweetener of choice– Either monk fruit sweetener or erythritol can be used. 

How do you make cheesecake bars?

In a large mixing bowl, add your dry ingredients and mix well. Then, in a separate bowl, beat together your butter, egg, brown sugar substitute, and vanilla extract. Gently add in your dry ingredients and mix until combined. Finally, fold through your chocolate chips. Cover the bowl and refrigerate the cookie dough for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, remove from the refrigerator. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F and line an 8 x 8-inch pan with parchment paper. Transfer 3/4 of the cookie dough into the pan and spread out evenly. Bake for 20 minutes. While the cookie layer is baking, prepare your cheesecake filling. Beat together your softened cream cheese with the egg and sweetener until combined. 

Once the bottom layer of the bars has been cooked for 20 minutes, remove from the oven. Pour the cheesecake filling over the top and spread out to cover. With the remaining 1/4 cup of cookie dough, break off small pieces of it and place all over the top of the cheesecake filling. Bake for an additional 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan completely, before refrigerating until chilled. Once chilled, slice into bars. 

Can I make this recipe without eggs or dairy? 

If you’d like to make vegan chocolate chip cookie cheesecake bars, you can make the following substitutions-

• Eggs (in the bars)– Replace the egg with either a flax egg or a formulated egg replacement. 
• Eggs (in the cheesecake filling)– Add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch or cornflour, to thicken.
• Cream cheese– Any dairy free cream cheese can be used. 

Tips to make the best chocolate chip cookie cheesecake bars

• Leave 1-2 inches of parchment paper overhanging from either side of the cheesecake bars. This helps with the easy removal of the bars.
• You must chill your dough for at least 30 minutes so that the cookie layer cooks evenly and doesn’t rise too much. If you chill it longer than 2 hours, let the dough sit at room temperature for 20 minutes before baking it. 
• Once your bars are cooled down, DO refrigerate them. This firms them up even more and makes slicing them into bars seamless. 
• For thinner cheesecake bars, you can use a 9 or 10-inch cake pan. Just reduce the baking time by 10 minutes if you do. 

How to store cheesecake bars

• To store: Cheesecake bars should always be stored in the refrigerator, covered. They will keep well for up to 2 weeks. 
• To freeze: Place individual bars in a shallow container and store in the freezer for up to 6 months. 

More Keto Desserts to try

• Lava Cake
• Blueberry Cheesecake
• Chocolate Tart
• Chocolate Mousse