Caramel apple bars are the perfect way to indulge your fall cravings. This easy apple dessert has a sweet gingersnap crust, a rich and creamy apple cider and cinnamon cheesecake filling, and is finished with a drizzle of caramel sauce. 

If you love nostalgic caramel apples and classic creamy cheesecake, you will love this easy recipe for caramel apple bars. A spiced gingersnap crust forms the bottom layer of this apple dessert, while the middle is a rich and creamy apple cider and cinnamon infused cheesecake. As if that wasn’t enough, a light drizzle of thick caramel sauce on top makes this one of the season’s best desserts.

The steps in this recipe couldn’t be easier. Making the homemade apple cider cheesecake filling takes just minutes, and with the help of a food processor, the gingersnap crust comes together quickly.

Square bars are perfect for holiday parties or special occasions where you’re entertaining a crowd. Arrange the bars on a dessert tray for an easy to handle, guest-friendly treat. 

What are dessert bars?

Dessert bars were created in the Midwestern part of the United States, with best guesses placing their creation sometime around the 1930s. These baked layered desserts have the same texture as their conventional counterparts (whole cheesecakes, pies, cookies, or coffee cake), but are baked in a square pan so they can be cut into individual squares or small rectangular bars. 

Dessert bars come in all sorts of varieties, from pie bars to cookie bars, from lemon bars to crumble bars, Chocolate Coconut Magic Bars and peanut butter bars. There’s a dessert bar for every season, and every occasion.

How to Make Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.

2. Make the syrup. Boil cider, sugar, and cinnamon stick until the mixture is thick and syrupy. Remove from the heat and let cool completely. 

3. Prep the baking pan. Line with parchment and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray.

4. Make the crust. Pulse the gingersnap cookies in a food processor, and then stir in ground cinnamon, and salt. Fold in the melted butter. Press the crumb crust in the bottom of the pan.

5. Make the filling. Use a food processor to combine the cream cheese and cider syrup, followed by the eggs. 

6. Assemble the bars. Pour the filling over the crust and bake for 20-25 minutes.

7. Drizzle with ribbons of caramel syrup when cool; slice and serve!

Ingredients

For the topping:

• Apple Cider – Apple cider is naturally sweet and a little tart, and almost tastes like a slightly sweet Granny Smith apple. Pick up a jug of apple cider from your local orchard for maximum tree-to-the-bottle freshness.
• Light Brown Sugar – Adds a deep molasses flavor to the cheesecake.
• Cinnamon Stick – To infuse the cider syrup with cinnamon spice. 
• Cream Cheese – The main ingredient in the cheesecake mixture. Use block cream cheese for a thicker, richer filling. Tub cream cheese is produced using a different method than block cream cheese, and will result in a slightly watery mixture. 
• Eggs – Eggs give the cheesecake filling a smooth, rich texture.
• Caramel Syrup – A totally optional (but delicious) topping. Store-bought or homemade both work. 

For the crust:

• Gingersnap Cookie Crumbs – Gingersnap cookies give the crust a lightly spiced flavor that works so well with the apple-cinnamon flavors. You don’t need to bake the cookies from scratch, store-bought gingersnap cookies work just fine. You could also swap for graham crackers, or buy pre-made graham cracker crumbs in your grocer’s baking aisle.
• Ground Cinnamon – For a hint of warm spice.
• Kosher Salt – Basic kitchen ingredient to enhance flavor.
• Unsalted Butter – Melted, unsalted butter binds the cookie crust together. If you use salted butter, adjust the amount of salt added.

How to Store Them

To store the apple bars, cover tightly with plastic wrap or foil, and place in the refrigerator. You can either keep the bars in the original baking pan, or transfer them to an airtight container. Because the main ingredient in caramel apple bars is dairy rich cream cheese, these bars should be stored in the refrigerator, rather than on the kitchen counter. Enjoy within 3-4 days. 

Tips

• Use apple cider in this recipe, rather than sweetened apple juice. Apple cider has a naturally sweet-tart taste, while traditional apple juice has added sugar, which makes it a little too sweet for baking.

• Freeze individual pieces for school lunches, fall picnics, or on-the-go snacks.

• Save leftover caramel sauce for dipping apple slices.

Variations

• Change toppings – Whipped cream is never a bad dessert topping idea, especially on cheesecake. You could also use chocolate chips, or add a crumbly streusel topping.
• Make a different crust – Nothing says ‘cheesecake’ like a graham cracker crust. Swap gingersnaps for this classic cheesecake cookie, or go with buttery shortbread cookies. 

FAQs

More Dessert Bar Recipes

• Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
• Fourth of July Cookie Bars
• Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookie Bars
• Pink Lemonade Bars
• Dark Chocolate, Raspberry, and Oat Cookie Bars

Favorite Tools

• Saucepan
• 8×8 Baking Pan
• Parchment paper
• Food processor