Molten Vegan Peanut Butter Cheesecake Cookie Bars
This is for my cheesecake and peanut butter lovers ONLY!! The easiest peanut butter cheesecake cookie bars are layered with a simple eggless dairy free peanut butter cookie dough with a thick layer of vanilla bean cheesecake rippled through the middle. Loaded with dairy free peanut butter cups, these easy cheesecake cookie bars are made with just a bowl and a whisk, and entirely vegan!
Why you’re going to LOVE these easy peanut butter cookie cheesecake bars:
What happens when we take the best of peanut butter blondies and cheesecake bars, and combine them into one?!
We get the ultimate: peanut butter cheesecake cookie bars.
And oh, are they decadent. I’ve made hundreds of cookies, bars, and cheesecakes, and all vegan I might add, in my time (even wrote a whole cookbook about it). And I have to say, these peanut butter cookie cheesecake bars are one of the best things I’ve ever had.
These cheesecake cookie bars are:
- Ridiculously easy: You only need a bowl and a whisk for both the cookie dough and the cheesecake portion. Plus we’re using just pantry staple ingredients- what’s more pantry friendly than a jar of peanut butter?!
- Deliciously molten & chewy: The peanut butter blondie stays soft yet structured enough so that when you slice into the bars, the cheesecake stays put!! The result? A thick layer of creamy vanilla bean cheesecake between two soft, chewy layers of sweet peanut butter cookie with molten chocolate chips in every bite!!
- Unbelievably eggless & dairy free: Yep, these peanut butter cookie cheesecake bars are entirely vegan, and you’d never know. We’re using the easiest swaps with the right ratios that yield an incredibly perfect texture, flavor, and look that would have you thinking these bars deserve a spot in any bakery.
How are these bars eggless & dairy free:
If you’re new here, then you know, I have an obsession with making every classic dessert entirely without eggs and dairy. And unbelievably so, I might add. So these peanut butter cookie cheesecake bars of course had to be next.
But we don’t even need any complicated swaps. Here’s why:
Egg replacement: So in lieu, of eggs, we’re actually using- peanut butter. I’m serious, that’s the egg replacement (see my whole blog post on different egg substitutes for why this works!). With a little bit of dairy free milk, that’s really all you need to bind the peanut butter cookie bar portion of the cheesecake cookie bars together.
Dairy replacement: Now, this gets a bit more complicated in that we’re using vegan butter and vegan cream cheese as our dairy replacements. It’s only complicated because a non-vegan household may not have these readily available in your fridge. However, they are found super common now. My favorite vegan butter is Miyoko’s. For cream cheese, I use my homemade vegan cream cheese, but have made these with Tofutti and Kite Hill with great success!
Overview: how to make cheesecake cookie bars:
For the full written instructions and ingredient measurements, see the bottom of this post in the recipe card. You can also hit the “jump to recipe” button at the top of this post! Here, we’ll go over a brief overview of the steps, along with providing visuals for a better understanding of the recipe.
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Molten Vegan Peanut Butter Cheesecake Cookie Bars
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 50
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 9 large bars or 16 smaller bars 1x
- Category: Bars
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This is for my cheesecake and peanut butter lovers ONLY!! The easiest peanut butter cheesecake cookie bars are layered with a simple eggless dairy free peanut butter cookie dough with a thick layer of vanilla bean cheesecake rippled through the middle. Loaded with dairy free peanut butter cups, these easy cheesecake cookie bars are made with just a bowl and a whisk, and entirely vegan!
Ingredients
Cheesecake Layer:
- 1 1/2 cups (12 ounces) vegan cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 4 tbsp cornstarch or arrowroot starch
- 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Peanut Butter Cookie Dough:
- 2 cups (250 g) all purpose flour*
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1 cup (200 g) light brown sugar
- 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (250 g) smooth creamy unsalted peanut butter
- 1/2 cup (113 g) vegan butter, melted and cooled
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup (80 mL) dairy free milk*
- 1 cup dairy free chocolate chips
- 7–8 Vegan peanut butter cup candies*
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 350F, and line a 9×9 baking pan with parchment paper. Measure out all ingredients.
- Make the cream cheese layer: In a small bowl, whisk the vegan cream cheese, sugar, cornstarch, flour, and vanilla extract together until completely combined. Set aside.
- Make the batter: In a large bowl, whisk together the melted vegan butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Add in the peanut butter, vanilla, baking powder, baking soda, and sea salt, and whisk until combined. Then add in the flour and dairy free milk, and use a rubber spatula to fold just until the dry ingredients are incorporated into the wet. Then add in the chocolate chips, and fold just until evenly distributed.
- Bake: Press half of the dough into the 9×9 pan until the dough reaches the sides of the pan. Spread the cream cheese layer on top to the edges. Then take the remaining half of the cookie dough and press into large rounds to evenly coat the top of the cream cheese (see video). Bake for 45-50 minutes, or top of the cookie bars is lightly golden. Remove from the oven and press in the vegan peanut butter cups, sliced in half into the top of the bars.
- Cool: Allow the cheesecake cookie bars to cool at room temperature for 1 hour before slicing. You can also refrigerate to firm up the middle even more before serving!
- Slice and serve! You can slice and serve these right after cooling for an hour or chill them longer for a colder bar. Enjoy!
Notes
Gluten free: I recommend King Arthur measure for measure gluten free flour
Vegan peanut butter cups: Justin’s dark chocolate mini peanut butter cups are vegan-friendly (though not made in a certified vegan factory).
