Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars

Holy mother of butter!  I urge you to try to ignore the fact that there are not one, not two, but THREE sticks of butter in this recipe because once you do, you can fully enjoy the ecstasy of this rich dessert.  As I mentioned yesterday, this is a Paula Deen recipe so to contain lots of butter is a pre-requisite.  Oh and don't worry, Paula threw in three APPLES to offset all that butter :P.

I picked this as an option because I wanted something caramel.  Apples are caramel just go together and this recipe is no different.  The flavor was much like the Caramel Apple Cheesecake Pie but way less time intensive in the event presentation is not so important.  With its classic, rich flavors, it's no wonder that Emily voted this her favorite recipe of the bunch.  But, Emily being Emily and not able to practice self control gave THE ENTIRE PAN to me and my husband to take home.  Thank a lot Em.  Way to make Chris and me fat ;).

Tomorrow I'm wrapping up the Apple Extravaganza posts.  I'm saving the boys' favorite recipe for last.  Hint: They're bite sized which makes them extra deadly!

Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars

Photo Credit: My beautiful friend Emily

Ingredients

For the Bars

•  2 cups all-purpose flour 
• 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar 
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened 
• 2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup sugar, plus 2 tablespoons, divided 
• 2 large eggs 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
• 3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and finely chopped 
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg 

For the Streusel Topping

• 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar 
• 1 cup all-purpose flour 
• 1/2 cup quick cooking oats 
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
• 1/2 cup caramel topping

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 
2. To make the streusel topping: In a small bowl, combine all ingredients except the caramel.
3. To make the bars: In a medium bowl, combine flour and brown sugar. Cut in butter with a pastry blender until mixture is crumbly. Press evenly into a 13 by 9 by 2-inch baking pan lined with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Bake 15 minutes or until lightly browned. 
4. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese with 1/2 cup sugar in an electric mixer at medium speed until smooth. Then add eggs, 1 at a time, and vanilla. Stir to combine. Pour over warm crust. 
5. In a small bowl, stir together chopped apples, remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Spoon evenly over cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle evenly with Streusel topping. Bake 30 minutes, or until filling is set. Drizzle with caramel topping. 

Source: Originally from Paula Deen as seen on Delicious Meliscious