About the Recipe
These bars will complete your holiday trays this season; layers of crunchy streusel topping and then you bite down into the creamy cheesecake mixture and then finally the crust.
Ingredients
For the Crust:
•1 C. Unsalted Butter, cut into small pieces
•2 C. All-Purpose Flour
•1/2 tsp. Kosher Salt
Cheesecake Layer:
•(1) 8 oz. pkg. Cream Cheese
•1/2 C. Granulated Sugar
•1 Large Egg, room temperature
•1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
For the Streusel Topping:
•1 1/2 C. All-Purpose Flour
•1 1/2 C. Confectioner’s Sugar
•3/4 C. Unsalted Butter, cut into pieces
•1/4 tsp. Kosher Salt
•1/4 C. Pecans, chopped
•2 C. Louisburg Cider Apple Butter
Preparation
Preheat oven to 350º. In a large bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the butter and flour until crumbly and combined thoroughly. Transfer the mixture to an ungreased 13x9 inch baking dish and pat the crust firmly and evenly into the dish using your hands. Bake for 15 minutes, remove and allow to cool completely.
In a bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the cream cheese and sugar until smooth on medium speed. Add the egg and vanilla and continue beating until combined. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, using a pastry blender, combine the flour, confectioners’ sugar, butter, pecans and salt until mixture comes together and forms coarse crumbs. Using your hands or a fork, toss until the ingredients are combined and set aside.
Once the crust has cooled, spread the cream cheese mixture evenly over the top of the crust leaving a 1/4 inch edge all the way around.
Spread a thin layer of apple butter over the cream cheese and then sprinkle the streusel topping over the entire top.
Bake for 40 minutes, remove and cool completely. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let it set overnight before cutting into squares. Store in an airtight container.