Chocolate & Peanut Butter Cheesecake Bars
44 comments » 
There’s not much in the world of desserts that I love more than the combination of peanut butter, chocolate and cheesecake. Give me any of those three on their own and I’d grab a spoon or fork and go to town. Mix two of them together and you enter the land of pure sweets bliss. But all three? Put them together and you have dessert nirvana. I have always had a huge weakness for the combination of chocolate and peanut butter, as well as for cheesecake, but it wasn’t until a couple of years ago that I finally put them all together in a peanut butter-fudge cheesecake. Since then I have been ALL OVER anything that includes that amazing trifecta. Enter these cheesecake bars. A chocolate graham cracker crust holds a peanut butter cheesecake filling, which is topped with a chocolate glaze. Come to mama.
For as much as I love cheesecake, you just can’t beat the ease and simplicity of cheesecake bars. No worrying about a springform pan, water baths, long bake times or long chill times. The bake time is much shorter, which means you can get one of these into your mouth in record time. Plus, I feel much less guilty about grabbing three or four of these rich and creamy squares than downing a slice of cheesecake. A trick of the mind, for sure 
One year ago: Cinnamon-Sugar Pull-Apart Bread
Three years ago: Potato-Bacon Torte
Four years ago: Cheddar Ale Spread
Chocolate & Peanut Butter Cheesecake Bars
Yield: 24 bars
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Ingredients:
For the Crust:
2½ cups chocolate graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
½ cup unsalted butter, meltedFor the Peanut Butter Cheesecake:
16 ounces cream cheese
1 cup granulated sugar
½ cup creamy peanut butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 eggs
½ cup whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extractFor the Chocolate Glaze:
6 ounces milk or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
1½ teaspoons vegetable shortening (can substitute coconut oil)Directions:
1. Make the Crust: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Whisk together the graham cracker crumbs and sugar. Add the melted butter and toss together with a fork until the crumbs are all evenly moistened. Press the crumbs into the bottom of an ungreased 9x13-inch baking pan. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes; remove to a wire rack and cool.
2. Make the Cheesecake Layer: Beat together the cream cheese, sugar, peanut butter and flour on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well and scraping the sides of the bowl after each addition. Slowly pour in the milk and then the vanilla extract and beat until combined.
3. Pour the cheesecake batter over the crust and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until the cheesecake layer is set around the edges and still appears slightly soft when the pan is wiggled. Allow the cheesecake to cool completely in the pan set on a wire rack.
4. Make the Chocolate Glaze: Combine the chopped chocolate and vegetable shortening in a small bowl and microwave on 50% power in 30-second increments, stirring after each, until completely melted. Spread the melted chocolate evenly over the cheesecake layer. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, then cut into squares and serve. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
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I made cheesecake once and it was a bit daunting. These look a lot easier but just as tasty!
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Oh man. This looks amazing!
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they’ve got all my fave things & flavors rolled into one!
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What a coincidence. A friend of mine and I were just talking about your favorite candy bars, comparing our lists, and we agreed chocolate and peanut butter is one of our favorites.
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These bars look soooo freaking delicious!
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These bars look awesome! I have a lot of peanut butter and chocolate lovers in my family, so I will have to give these a try.
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I just love cheesecake and chocolate peanut butter cheesecake sounds amazing!!!
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My favorite dessert ever!!
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These look amazing!
Any tips for turning your other cheesecake recipes into cheesecake bars? Is it essentially the same recipe (or perhaps less filling) but following these steps?
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Michelle on August 31st, 2012 at 8:08 pm
Hi Nicole, They are not exactly the same. Much less volume, for sure. But yes, same steps.
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Yes, these will do just fine. I’ll just take the whole pan….
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I can feel the inches being added to my thighs, but you know what? These would be totally worth it! YUM!
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The best combination ever. These look incredible! xo
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This is an amazing trifecta!
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I have a weakness for all things peanut butter and chocolate.
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yum yum
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OMG, I am drooling over here. I need this in my life right now! Your recipes this week are killing me!! YUM!
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OH! MY Word!! Chocolate, PB AND cheesecake. How well you know me!! This is going to be dangerous, I can see that now. Just how BIG of a mini can I make of this and not feel completely guilty?
Thanks for this one, I think!!!
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I don’t think I’ve ever had peanut butter with cheesecake but you’ve done your job. Now I’m craving it. (Though my new love, Biscoff spread, might be given a shot too!).
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Michelle on August 31st, 2012 at 8:09 pm
I think Biscoff would be a delicious peanut butter alternative!
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Um yes. That’s all I have to say about that.
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Yep, this is truly the trifecta to end all trifectas! Too funny, I wish you had posted this yesterday – I was hosting a French friend who loves cheesecake but never finds it in France! We bought one for him from the store, but these would have been better
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Michelle on August 31st, 2012 at 8:13 pm
Ah, bummer! One day too late!
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My boyfriend and I would LOVE this! Love chocolate and pb. Definitly putting this on my recipe list.
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Oh wow. This is beyond amazing. PB&C is flippin’ awesome. In cheesecake? Perfect!
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Looks delicious. Great classic flavors.
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Chocolate and peanut butter? YES PLEASE! These look so great!
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Could you please tell me how you take your pictures? They look amazing. oh, and btw..I am making these bars today, they look great! Thanks
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Michelle on August 31st, 2012 at 8:14 pm
Hi Andrea, I’m not sure what type of specifics you are looking for, but I take them in my kitchen using natural light. I have a Canon T2i camera and for most of my food photos, I use a 100mm 2.8 macro lens. I hope that helps!
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Wow, you did come up with the trifecta! This looks absolutely perfect (and kind of reminds me of a Klondike bar) – I know I shave have to try this! I’m featuring this post in today’s Food Fetish Friday (with a link-back and attribution). I hope you have no objections and thanks for the inspiration…
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Potluck dessert recipe!!!
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I made these over the weekend and they took a while but were delicious!! All of my coworkers loved them!
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They look awesome ….i’ll hav to try them out before the week runs out!
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These look great!! I just finished making a batch, and found out I won’t be going to the event I planned on bringing them to until next week. Do you think freezing them would be ok?
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Michelle on October 5th, 2012 at 10:58 am
Yes, you could definitely freeze these!
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Given the fact that those are my favorite words in the food language, all I can say is OMG!
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I just made these and am still waiting for them to cool but they seem to have turned out a bit rubbery in texture….or jello like. Any ideas why??? I thought the texture would be the same as a regular cheesecake–is it supposed to be different?? Also, I only baked this for 30 minutes and the edges had already started to burn. I did use slightly less sugar, and crunchy pb instead of smooth, but other than that I followed the recipe to a t…any suggestions from anyone???
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Michelle on October 25th, 2012 at 3:04 pm
Hi Amanda, If you decreased the sugar, that could certainly have an effect on the final outcome. The peanut butter shouldn’t, but that’s not to say it didn’t.
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my favorite sweet treat is chocolate cheesecake but add some peanut butter and you have me on my knees.
Beautiful bars Michelle, thanks for sharing, linked to them in my 100 chocolate recipes from 100 bloggers
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Michelle on October 25th, 2012 at 3:30 pm
Hi Roxana, Thanks so much for sharing these bars in your roundup!
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I just want to clarify, after baking the crust am I to remove the crust and let it cool on a wire rack and then put it back in and pour the cheesecake over it to bake it again? I got confused at that part and want to be sure before I start so that they turn out just as good as they do in the photo!
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Michelle on January 31st, 2013 at 1:02 pm
Hi Rachel, You remove the crust from the oven and allow it to cool. Once you make the cheesecake filling, you pour it over the crust, and put the pan back in the oven.
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Note: Although it says 1 hour and 10 minutes it actually takes a lot longer because you have to let the crust cool and then the cheesecake cool completely before putting on the glaze. Don’t start it at 9pm if you’re tired
Living in Australia I was forced to butcher the recipe because they don’t have Graham crackers (more’s the pity) so I used oreo cookies. Then, they were out of the good smooth peanut butter (and they never have Jif to begin with) so I had to use the cheap kind. Then, I accidentally made too much chocolate and made the top glaze thick so that when I tried to make perfect squares, it cracked and they were left looking more rustic than square.
And after all that, they were AMAZING
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It seems like every time I google a recipe for something I want to make, the best result I find is always on this site. So thanks – again.
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