Banana Liqueur Cheesecake Bars

We had some bananas that were perfectly ripe and I had 2 bricks of cream cheese in the fridge for no particular reason, so I decided to do a cross between my Banana Cream Pie Bars, my Cranberry Cheese Squares and my Peppermint Mocha Kahlua Chocolate Chip Cheesecake (man, that was a long, dumb title, but a delicious cheesecake!)  These came out bomb... as I knew they would, because all three of those recipes are bomb!

It also helps that we live a block from a corner store... so it's quite easy to run down there and get some of those mini bottles of liqueur! 

This song was on in the car the other day.  I always feel like I need to smoke a pack of cloves before I attempt to sing it... heheh.  Alkaline Trio - Sleepyhead.  -jen
 

BANANA LIQUEUR CHEESECAKE BARS
Prep Time:  20 minutes
Cook Time:  45 minutes to cook, 1 hour to cool
Difficulty:  Medium
Makes: 18-24 squares

Crust:

• 3/4 cup old fashioned oats
• 2/3 cup flour
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 6 tablespoons of butter, softened

Filling:

• 2 large bananas, sliced into 1/4"-thick rounds
• 1 pound (two 8oz bricks) cream cheese, softened
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3 eggs, room temp
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup banana liqueur (or 2 of the small 50ml "airplane" bottles) 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Coat a 9"x13" baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.

In a food processor, combine all of the crust ingredients and pulse several times until all flour is incorporated and mix is lumpy.  Spread evenly into prepared baking dish and then press it firmly into the pan and about 1" to 1.5" up the sides with your hand.  Bake at 375 degrees F for 15 minutes.  Remove and set aside.  (This is called "blind baking".)  Leave oven on!

While crust is baking, place softened cream cheese in a mixing bowl and beat until creamy using a stand mixer or hand mixer.  Add sugar and beat until combined.  Add eggs 1 at a time until combined.  Then add vanilla and banana liqueur, mix until smooth and creamy.

Layer sliced bananas over crust that's been blind baked, then pour batter evenly over the top.  Bake at 375 for 45 minutes until top is lightly browned and center is springy to the touch.  Let cool for 1 hour, then store in the refrigerator.

Option:  If you knew they were all going to be eaten right away, you could always make some homemade whipped cream (or Cool Whip, but I say go with the former!) and spread it over the entire top of the cooled dish.  I knew we'd have a bunch leftover to store in the fridge and I didn't want the whipped cream to melt over them all, so I just did it per serving.
 

Cranberry Cheese Squares

I've had a huge bag of cranberries in my freezer since Christmas (and it's April), so I decided it was about time I used them in something.  I'd considered doing cranberry cheesecake, but decided to cross cheesecake with bars instead.  (I like bars!)  They came out so good, that I made another batch with the remaining cranberries to send with Justin to work so he could share (and double-checking my recipe writing!)

The topping and crust is a little salty, the cream cheese filling is lemony and the cranberry sauce is tart with a cinnamon and vanilla warmth.  All three layers just seem to compliment each other so nicely, I was way pleased with this recipe!  It's a little time consuming but I've made them twice now and they're really not that hard - you just have to dedicate some time to them.

Justin was feeling like something early from The Offspring.  "Jennifer Lost The War" from their 1989 self titled album.  This was actually the first time I've heard this song, I think.  -jen

CRANBERRY CHEESE SQUARES
Prep Time:  45 minutes
Cook Time:  40 minutes
Cooling Time:  minimum 2 hours
Difficulty:  Medium
Makes:  20 bars

Cranberry Sauce:

• 3/4 cup water
• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
• 2 tablespoons corn starch

 Crust:

• 2 cups flour
• 1.5 cups rolled oats (also known as old fashioned oats)
• 1 cup pecans, chopped
• 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted

 Cheese Filling:

• 8oz cream cheese, softened
• 3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
• zest of 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  

Make the cranberry sauce first by bringing water, brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon and salt to a boil in a large sauce pan.  Add cranberries and bring back to a boil, then lower to a steady simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring intermittently - cranberries will pop and begin to break down.  (Careful not to let it boil over!)  Remove from heat and refrigerate to cool while you continue with the other steps.  

Grease a 13"x 9" baking dish with nonstick cooking spray, butter or coconut oil.  Set aside.

For the crust, combine the flour, oats, pecans, brown sugar and salt in a mixing bowl.  Stir in melted butter and coconut oil until combined and all flour is absorbed.  Mixture should be slightly clumpy but break up easily.  Set aside 1.5 cups for topping but spread the remaining mixture into your prepared baking dish, pressing it evenly into the bottom of the pan.  Bake at 350 F for 15 minutes.  Set aside.

While crust is baking and sauce is cooling, make the cheese filling.  Using a hand mixer or the whipping attachment on your stand mixer, whip the softened cream cheese on high for 2-3 minutes until very smooth.  Add remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly on high until smooth (remember to scrape the bottom).

Spread the cream cheese mixture evenly over your baked crust.  Stir in corn starch to cooled cranberry sauce, then gently dollop  over the top of the filling and gently spread it evenly with the back of a spoon, trying not to mix it into the cheese filling.  Sprinkle the remaining flour and oat mixture evenly over the top.  Bake at 350 F for 40 minutes.  Let cool completely before serving.  I like to refrigerate them overnight.