You guys, these eggnog bars are so delicious and actually really easy to make. The eggnog cheesecake filling is a fairly standard one, but what sets these apart is the crust! It was a very happy accident that led me to using some failed cookie dough as the crust!

You see, I was making my husband some of his favorite chocolate chip cookies, when I messed up the order of adding the ingredients. I added the flour mixture too soon to the sugar-egg mixture, which I know from experience will make the cookie dough spread on the baking sheet and I’d end up with really flat cookies. Not what I was going for.

So what was I supposed to do with all this messed up cookie dough? (And yes, eating it all crossed my mind haha!) Well, I knew I was going to try to make these eggnog cheesecake bars and hadn’t settled on a crust yet so I thought I’d give it a try.

I would love to say it turned out amazing the first time I made it. Well it did, kind of. The crust stuck to the bottom of the pan and wouldn’t come out no matter how hard I tried prying at it. However, I still took the eggnog cheese cake bars to a get-together and people loved it, even if they had to just scoop out the cheesecake part.

Well, I wasn’t to be deterred. I had a great idea for this eggnog cheesecake recipe and I was going to see it through! I remade the crust, adding nutmeg this time to give more of a holiday flare and not only did I butter the baking dish really well, but lined the bottom with parchment paper. And guess what?! It worked! Cut’s nicely and comes out crust and all! Victory!

I will say, having to experiment and make this several times was delicious! The second time I made it, I took it for Thanksgiving dinner along with my easy dinner rolls! It was a nice alternative to the pies, even though let be honest, I ate this eggnog cheesecake and pie! It’s Thanksgiving after all!

Enjoy my happy accident for a delicious cookie-ish crust with this yummy eggnog cheesecake recipe! If you are looking for other desserts, try these gluten free sweet potato cupcakes or this pumpkin ricotta cheesecake!

Please visit my blog, https://www.ATableFullofJoy.com for more yummy recipes! See you there!

Eggnog Cheesecake Bars Recipe

Lisa

These delicious eggnog cheesecake bars are not only east to make but will be a hit at any get together! Whip these up as a yummy festive treat!

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Ingredients

Crust

8 tbs butter divided plus more for greasing dish
¾ c brown sugar
½ tsp salt
¾ tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
¾ cup + 2tbs bread flour*
¼ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp nutmeg

Filling

16 oz or 2 packages cream cheese at room temperature
½ cup white sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
¾ cup full fat eggnog
2 eggs

Instructions

Crust

Preheat oven to 375°F
Prepare your 9x9 baking dish, butter the bottom and sides, then cut out parchment paper to fit the bottom of the dish and place on top of the buttered bottom
Put 3tbs butter in a medium sized mixing bowl and set aside.
In a medium sauce pan, brown remaining 5tbs of butter. Melt the butter over medium heat, stirring constantly. It will get bubbly and the color will change to a darker golden brown and the smell will become slightly nutty. Make sure to stir constantly so it doesn’t burn. Once browned pour over the remaining 3tbs in the mixing bowl and stir until the butter is completely melted.
Add brown sugar, salt and vanilla extract to butter and whisk until combined.
Add egg and whisk until smooth, 20-30 seconds. Let mixture rest for 3 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and nutmeg.
Once 3 minutes is up add flour mixture to butter mixture and mix until combined.
Pour into prepared baking dish and bake for 18 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
10. While the crust is baking, prepare the filling.

Filing

Beat cream cheese, sugar eggnog and vanilla in mixer until well blended, about 5 minutes.
Add eggs one at a time, making sure each egg is fully incorporated before adding the next.
Pour into prepared crust.
Bake at 300°F for 45-50 minutes or until completely set. You may need to let the oven cool down a bit if it was just baking the crust at 375°F.
After it is done baking, let it come to room temperature and then refrigerate for at least 2 hours for eating.
Enjoy!

Notes

Notes: *I like to use bread flour because it makes baked goods more chewy, but you can use regular white flour too!

Eggnog Cheesecake Bars Recipe