Blueberry cheesecake bars – Messin’ with Perfection
Cheesecake kick, anyone?
Company’s comin’! Okay, I got dinner down. Bibimbap. Awesome Korean rice bowl (I’ll show you that one later). Need some kind of snacky desserty somethiiing…
Not too sweet, not too involved. I have a lot to do and my weekends are short. Ha! As many recipes as I have and I still agonize over stuff like that. Maybe some…no, not that. Oh! I could make….No, too sweet. I went through so many ideas in a short time, until I remembered this one. Not too sweet, pretty simple, and delicious. It went over quite well the last time I made it, That nutty, coconutty crust with the creamy cheesecake top…throw some good, tart, blueberries in there and you have yourself a winner. And if you don’t have blueberries (or don’t like them??) throw in some raspberries or blackberries. But blueberries hold up well and stay intact.
Anyway, the first time I made these, the original recipe called for some brandy. Huh, I was out. What to do? Limoncello, of course. Lemons and blueberries are a delicious match. That worked so well I did it again. And loved it. If you really want the lemon to pop, add a little grated lemon zest, or you could use lemon juice in place of the limoncello..
I have served these to a number of people at different times and they are always well liked. They’re easy to0. Sort of a lazy cheesecake.
- CRUST:
- ½ cup butter
- ¾ cup finely crushed graham crackers
- ½ cup flour
- ½ cup flaked coconut
- ½ cup ground pecans (food processor works great for this)
- ¼ cup sugar
- FILLING:
- 1½ 8 ounce packages cream cheese, softened (12 ounces - I used light)
- ⅔ cup sugar
- 4 eggs
- 1 Tablespoon Limoncello liquer or brandy or milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 cups blueberries
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a small saucepan, heat butter over med-low heat until the color of light brown sugar. Remove from heat and set aside. In a medium bowl, stir together remaining crust ingredients. Stir in butter until combined. Press firmly and evenly over the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch pan. Bake 8 - 10 minutes or until lightly browned.
- Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl, beach cream cheese with ⅔ cup sugar until combined. Add eggs, limoncello, and vanilla. Beat at medium speed until combined. Just before pouring over hot crust, mix in blueberries. Pour evenly over the crust. (you can pour the cheese mixture over the crust and then sprinkle the blueberries over. This sometimes works better if the berries are frozen).
- Bake18- 20 minutes or until center is set.
- Cool in pan. Cut into bars. Store in refrigerator.
- When the crust is ready, take it out and