Recipe—Cherry Cheesecake Bars

My name is Rebecca and I am a cheesecakeaholic. There I said it and boy does it feel good to get it off my chest. I love the stuff. Cherry cheesecake is my kryptonite. I could sit there and eat filling by the spoonful before it even hits the crust. One of the many reasons I LOVE this recipe is that it is quick and effortless to make. There is no need to wait for cooking and cooling for hours like a traditional cheesecake. This takes less than 20 minutes to make and just an hour to cool. It just doesn’t get any easier. The Cool Whip makes it incredibly light and fluffy unlike some of those dense baked cheesecakes. Hope you enjoy this as much as I do! I have a feeling you just wont be able to get enough.

INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 c graham cracker crumbs
½ c sugar
½ c butter (1 stick), melted
8 oz package cream cheese, softened
8 oz tub Cool Whip
3 c powdered sugar
2-21 oz cans cherry pie filling (I like the ones with more fruit)

STEPS

• Preheat oven to 350º.
• In a medium sized mixing bowl combine graham crumbs, sugar, and melted butter and stir until well mixed.
• Pour the crumb mixture into a greased 9” x 13” baking dish.
• Using the backside of a spatula press the mixture down to pack it into a thin crust.
• Bake crust in the oven for 15 minutes.
• Remove crust from oven and allow to cool.
• While crust is cooling use a hand mixer and beat together the cream cheese, cool whip, and powdered sugar until smooth.
• Spread the cool whip mixture over the crust.
• Next, spread the cherry pie filling over the cream cheese base.
• Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.
• Devourer!