Lemon Cheesecake Bars

Lemon bars meet cheesecake in this heavenly dessert. Lemon Cheesecake Bars have a vanilla wafer crust layered with lemon cookie dough and cheesecake filling. You won’t be able to eat just one!

If you like lemon desserts as much as I do, make sure to try my classic Lemon Cheesecake Recipe. These Lemon Crunch Cookies are always delicious too!

Why this Recipe Works

Can’t decide between No Bake Lemon Cheesecake and Lemon Bars? Lemon Cheesecake Cookie Bars combine the best of all worlds!

• This recipe starts with a simple crust made from Nilla wafers.
• The cheesecake filling is creamy, sweet and easy to make.
• The lemon cookie layer is full of white chocolate chips to add even more sweetness and texture.

Everyone is impressed by these lemon cheesecake bars!

If you love layered cheesecake bars I’ve got some other fun flavors too, like these Snickerdoodle Cheesecake Bars and of course traditional Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars! Our peanut butter cheesecake bars are perfect for the peanut butter lover!

Ingredient Notes

• Lemon extract. This is the secret to amazing, bright lemon flavor without having to squeeze a ton of lemons. Use pure lemon extract (not artificial flavoring) for best results.
• Lemon zest. The zest is the yellow part of a lemon’s rind. Remove it from the lemon with a zesting tool or microplane grater. Use our guide on how to zest a lemon for best tips and tricks.
• Cream Cheese. Use full fat and make sure it’s softened before blending into cheesecake filling.
• Nilla wafers. If you can’t get these where you live, you can use any vanilla wafer style cookie to make the crust instead, or use our graham cracker crust recipe.

Easy Instructions

For the crust:

Pulverize the wafer cookies in your food processor with sugar. When the cookies have become fine crumbs, add melted butter and combine.

Press the cookie crust into the bottom of a baking dish.

For the cheesecake filling:

Use the whisk attachment to beat all filling ingredients together in a stand mixer. Pour it over the cookie crust.

For the lemon cookie dough:

Beat butter and sugar together until well combined. Add in eggs, lemon zest and vanilla extract. Then add the dry ingredients and beat until blended.

Scoop the dough on top of the cheesecake layer. Use your hands to spread the dough out so it’s fully covering the cheesecake.

Bake the bars until the tops are lightly browned. Refrigerate for at least four hours and serve cold!

Tips and Tricks

• Do not overbake. The center of the Lemon Cheesecake Bars will be a little jiggly when you take them out of the oven. It’ll continue firming up as it cools.
• Store in the refrigerator. These taste best when they’ve had several hours to get nice and cold. I like to make them the day before and let them chill overnight.
• Line your pan. Place a sheet of parchment paper in the bottom of your baking dish. It prevents the bars from getting stuck and makes clean up easier!
• Cutting bars. Use a clean sharp knife to cut these. Between cuts, wipe the knife with a paper towel.
• Freezing. For perfect edges, you can even freeze the bars and cut them while they’re still frozen. Let them thaw in the fridge before serving.

Recipe FAQs

More Easy Desserts

• Lemon Poke Cake
• Lemon Biscotti
• Coconut Lemon Cake
• Lemon Lush
• No Bake Cheesecake bars
• Lemon Cake Bars
• Lemon Bundt cake

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Lemon Cheesecake Bars

4.67 from 109 votes

By: Aimee

Sweet Lemon Cheesecake Bars have a cookie crust, lemon cheesecake filling, and white chocolate chip cookie topping!

Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes

Chill Time: 4 hours hours

Total Time: 5 hours hours

Servings: 24 large bars

Ingredients 

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For the Crust:

• ▢ 2 cups Nilla Wafers crumbs (about 60 cookies)
• ▢ ¼ cup granulated sugar
• ▢ ½ cup unsalted butter melted

For the Cheesecake Filling:

• ▢ 2 packages cream cheese, softened 8 ounce each
• ▢ ¾ cup granulated sugar
• ▢ 2 large eggs
• ▢ 1 teaspoon lemon extract
• ▢ 1 lemon zested

For the Cookie layer:

• ▢ ¾ cup unsalted butter softened
• ▢ 1 ½ cup granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 large egg
• ▢ ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• ▢ 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ▢ 1 lemon zested
• ▢ 11 ounce white chocolate morsels I use Ghirardelli

Instructions 

• Line a 13×9 baking dish with parchment paper. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• In a food processor, pulse Nilla Wafer cookies with sugar until fine crumbs. Add in melted butter and pulse until combined.
• Press crumbs into the bottom of prepared baking dish. Using the palm of your hand, press crumbs firmly until they are pressed into the bottom of the dish.
• For the filling, beat cream cheese with sugar, eggs, lemon extract and lemon zest using the whisk attachment of your electric mixer. Beat until fluffy and smooth (about 3-4 minutes). Pour over cookie crust.
• For the cookie dough, beat butter and sugar for 2 minutes. Add egg, vanilla and lemon zest and beat until combined. Add in baking powder, salt and flour, beating until fully blended. Fold in white chocolate morsels. Scoop dough by large spoonfuls onto the top of the cheesecake layer. Use your fingertips to spread gently until covered.
• Bake for 30-35 minutes until lightly browned. The center will still be jiggly, that’s okay. Allow to cool completely. Refrigerate for 4 hours (or overnight). Slice and serve COLD. Enjoy!

Notes

• Do not overbake. The center of the Lemon Cheesecake Bars will be a little jiggly when you take them out of the oven. It’ll continue firming up as it cools.
• Store in the refrigerator. These taste best when they’ve had several hours to get nice and cold. I like to make them the day before and let them chill overnight.
• Line your pan. Place a sheet of parchment paper in the bottom of your baking dish. It prevents the bars from getting stuck and makes clean up easier!
• Cutting bars. Use a clean sharp knife to cut these. Between cuts, wipe the knife with a paper towel.
• Freezing. For perfect edges, you can even freeze the bars and cut them while they’re still frozen. Let them thaw in the fridge before serving.

Video

Nutrition

Serving: 1cookie bar, Calories: 339kcal, Carbohydrates: 42g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 18g, Saturated Fat: 11g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g, Cholesterol: 59mg, Sodium: 126mg, Sugar: 31g

Course: Brownies and Bars

Cuisine: American

Did you make this recipe?Mention @shugarysweets or tag #shugarysweets!

Cold, creamy and sweet Lemon Cheesecake Bars make everyone happy!