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A sale on cream cheese at my local grocery store last week can only mean one thing. A TON of cheesecake-y recipes coming your way.
I’ve had the urge to remake my Oatmeal Lemon Creme Bars for quite some time now. The light, creamy lemon filling paired with a buttery oatmeal cookie crust is just too good to pass up. They easily trump any chocolate/peanut butter dessert I’ve ever made. And if you know me at all, that says A LOT!
But today’s bars are a little different than those gems. Rather than using sweetened condensed milk as the base for the filling, I made up a quick cheesecake filling using the plethora of cream cheese hoarding my fridge.
The cheesecake filling is actually quite simple. I creamed together sugar, reduced fat cream cheese, eggs, and the zest + juice of two lemons. I studded the cheesecake filling with fresh blueberries to give each bite a sweet burst of flavor. I suggest sticking to fresh berries in this recipe. Frozen berries will not stay intact and may leak into the cheesecake layer.
I made sure to make EXTRA of the cheesecake layer. It is quite thick because I prefer a looooot of cheesecake with my crust, thankyouverymuch. 
The thick cheesecake filling sits on an oatmeal cookie crust. A perfectly buttery oatmeal cookie crust made from a pouch of Betty Crocker premade oatmeal cookie mix. I was short on time, so Betty came to the rescue. If you can’t find this oatmeal cookie mix anywhere in stores or prefer to make your own, you may certainly whip up the oatmeal cookie crust from scratch. I’ve included that recipe below.
And those streusel crumbs on top? That’s actually pieces of the oatmeal cookie crust layer. What I loved most about these bars… other than the taste… is that I didn’t have to make a separate crust and a separate streusel topping. It’s all the same oatmeal cookie dough– pressed at the bottom of the pan and sprinkled on top. An oatmeal cookie sandwich, if you will.
You’ll find it hard to resist picking off the little oatmeal cookie crumbs on top. I know I did…
So go ahead, make something a little different to wow your friends and family. I know these would be the first thing I pick out on a dessert table. 
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Makes 25 bars
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold
- 1 pouch Betty Crocker Oatmeal Cookie mix*
- 2 large eggs
- 2 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened (I used reduced fat)
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 Tbsp grated lemon zest (about 2 large lemons)
- 1/4 cup lemon juice (about 2 large lemons)
- 1.5 cups fresh blueberries, not frozen
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Line 8x8 or 9x9 baking pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Generously spray parchment paper/foil with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, cut butter into cookie mix using a fork or electric mixer. Stir in 1 egg until mixture is crumbly.
- Press half of oatmeal cookie dough into bottom of prepared baking pan. Bake for 15 minutes. Reserve the other half of the dough for topping.
- While cookie crust is baking, prepare cheesecake filling. With an electric handheld or stand mixer, beat the cream cheese, 1 egg, sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest together until creamy. Make sure there are no cream cheese chunks hiding, you want the mixture nice and smooth. Remove cookie crust from oven and reduce heat to 325F. Pour the lemon cheesecake filling over the hot cookie crust. Sprinkle the blueberries overtop and gently press them down. Crumble the reserved oatmeal cookie dough over the blueberries.
- Bake for 35 minutes until the top is lightly browned. The cheesecake filling will slightly jiggle in the center. Allow bars to cool completely and chill for at least 3 hours before cutting. I chilled mine in the refrigerator overnight. I highly suggest chilling them for up to 12 hours, which allows the bars to be cut easily.
Notes
*See recipe below for homemade oatmeal crust recipe.
Recipe source: sallysbakingaddiction.com
© Sally’s Baking Addiction. All images & content are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If you want to republish this recipe, please re-write the recipe in your own words, or link back to this post for the recipe.
If you can’t find the Betty Crocker oatmeal cookie mix, use this from-scratch oatmeal cookie base recipe instead.
Omit 1 of the eggs and the butter in the recipe above.
- 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold
- 1 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
In a large bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or using a handheld mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar until combined. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, salt, baking powder, and oats. Add dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix to combine. Continue with step three in the recipe above.
Or a new muffin recipe: Gingerbread Muffins with Sweet Lemon Glaze. Delish.
{ 48 comments… read them below or add one }
Wow, I love the added crunch on the top of these bars. They look wonderful and I’m not usually a huge cheesecake fan. But, I do love me some oatmeal cookies! Awesome idea to pair that with cheesecake!
Luv What You Do recently posted..Fig, Date, Nut Energy Bars
Ok. These look like breakfast to me. Right?! These are totally acceptable to eat in the morning?!?
Ashton recently posted..Lemon White Chocolate Cheesecakes & "Desserts In Jars" Review
They look awesome, Sally! The tang from the lemon in the filling with the cream cheese and then balanced with the blueberries – yum!
Love that you used an oatmeal base rather than a more basic sugar/shortbread type base. The texture from the oats against the smoothness of the filling….very nice! + crumble topping.
Averie @ Averie Cooks recently posted..Barbeque Tofu with Pineapple and Mango
Thank you Averie! I was going to go with a graham cracker base but figured what the heck.. i love oatmeal cookies and it would sure be a yummy combo!
Sally, I am freaking.out. over these bars! I am *still* salivating over those oatmeal bars, but now you had to throw cheesecake and blueberries and lemon into the mix? Even more droolworthy, if you ask me. All those bricks of cream cheese are going to a lucky home!
seriously, I don’t even know how you managed NOT to eat all those oatmeal cookie chunks off the top. I totally would have been guilty and would have taken pictures of gross, half-eaten bars–nothing like your gorgeous photos or those stacked cheesecake bars! Plus, you had me at cookie mix 
Hayley recently posted..Lemon Pound Cake
I knew you loved those oatmeal lemon creme bars Hayley! And I knew you’d like these too. The oatmeal cookie chunks on top are tottttttttttttally the best part. Esp with a smidge of cheesecake stuck to them.
Oh, my! I adore the colour of the blueberries. Love that they work with low-fat cream cheese, too. Tweeted and pinned- Can’t wait to try these!
thanks Nicky! Yep, low fat CC works wonders in this recipe.
Save where you can, right?!
Holy snap noms!
We recently made a lemon blueberry oat bar with cream cheese and I loved how those flavors blended together. You are so right — the fresh blueberries are the best and do really take a recipe like this over the top.
the oats + blueberries + lemon is a divine combination, I agree. Thank you!
Love the pop of color from the blueberries. You’re just a step or two away from making an actual cheesecake
Laura Dembowski recently posted..Homemade Peanut Butter
oh my heavens! These look sooooo good!
Carrie @ Bakeaholic Mama recently posted..Fried Cherry Cheesecake Bites
I think those would be the first thing I go for, as well!! I love that they are made with a cookie mix..so perfect!
Ashley @ Wishes and Dishes recently posted..Baked Beef Empanadas
I absolutely love how you use such simple ingredients to make the best creations. Cheesecake stuffed between oatmeal cookies? I just wanna sit down with the casserole dish and spoon that stuff out.
Jacqueline recently posted..Quadruple-Layer Rice Krispie Treats
I’m not sure HOW I managed to cut them into squares before digging in.. perhaps it was because I had to photograph them
But if not, I would’ve grabbed a spoon with ya! Thanks Jacqueline!
Eeeekk!! I was assigned “dessert”duty for our family vacation next week and I’m definitely going to make these. I have such a weakness for dessert recipes that use cream cheese.
Looks soooooooo delish!
Amanda recently posted..10 ways to wear a maxi skirt
I hope you make and enjoy them Amanda, let me know how they turn out!
These are gorgeous, Sally! Pretty sure I would be eating these straight from the pan!
Jessica@AKitchenAddiction recently posted..Cheesy Salsa and Chicken Pasta Skillet
If I didn’t have to cut them into bars to photograph them, I’m pretty sure I’d eat them straight out of the pan with ya, Jessica!
Oh yes. These are gorg! Love the blueberries. And I LOVE the crust!
Dorothy @ Crazy for Crust recently posted..Deep Dish Peanut Butter Cookie Ice Cream Sundaes
You know how much I love my summer fruits – especially in baking! Wrap cheesecake around blueberries – throw in an oatmeal crust and you have one super happy girl! These are delectable!
Reeni recently posted..Chorizo, Potato and Avocado Burritos
i LOVE cheesecake in a lot of desserts and i certainly do not mind you sharing them with us at all
love the blueberry and lemon combination. these look simple amazing! you could contend with cheesecake factory, although you’d win by a landslide 
Julie @ Table for Two recently posted..Pancake Party: Biscoff Pancakes
Better than cheesecake factory?? Don’t make me blush, Julie! thank you my dear! xo
Oatmeal cookie crumble with yummy cheesecake and pretty blueberry pops of color…sheesh girl…you have me with oatmeal. And then you kept going…I love every single thing about these!!! True yumminess!!!
Jocelyn @BruCrew Life recently posted..Shaving Cream Battle
Love the combinations you used in this Sally! And I had to chuckle at the “cream cheese was on sale.” I just bought 10 packs of Philly because they were 99cents. I haven’t seen them that low in ages!
Aimee @ ShugarySweets recently posted..Watergate Cake
I have never seen prices for CC that low… I love it Aimee!
I Love lemony cheesecake … Soooo De-Lish! Your pics look tasty! Visiting from Swanky Stuff linkup
Hi Nicole! So nice to meet you. And thank you for stopping by!
These blueberry lemon cheesecake bars look absolutely delicious!
thanks Ryan
Planning on making this delicious recipe this weekend. Quick question – when you say line the baking pan with parchment paper or foil, do you mean cut it to fit just the bottom of the pan or place over the inside and sides (so the parchment paper has to be rolled over the top and sides of the pan)? Also, what is the purpose of the paper – to prevent burning or sticking? Sorry – baking novice here. Thanks for entertaining my series of silly questions.
Hey Dawn! These aren’t silly questions at all! I place it over the inside and over the sides. Because when they are done, I can easily lift them out of the pan by grabbing the two sides of the extra parchment paper. You may always spray the pan with non-stick spray too!
Hi Sally!
Thanks so much for taking the time to respond to my questions (and for being so reassuring about my amateur baker status). I’ll be attempting this recipe tomorrow and will be sure to report back with the results.
One other thing I just wanted to add – a compliment, actually. I love, love, LOVE the fact that your recipes are so detailed and specific. Oftentimes, I’ll come across recipes where certain details are excluded and I’m left go guess at them whereas you are careful to include pretty everything we readers might need to know (e.g. brands of products, the temperature of the butter in the recipe – “cold” – etc.). Personally, as a reader this is something I really, REALLY appreciate.
Thanks again!
-Dawn
Oops! I just realized that my last post was littered with typos. Guess that’s what I get for dashing it off so quickly. Sorry about that!
For the record, I meant “to guess” (not “go guess”) and “pretty MUCH everything” (not “pretty everything”).
-Dawn
Dawn, this means the WORLD to me. Thank you so much! I think it’s important to pay attention to all the little details of a recipe because that is how I personally learned and that is how readers can learn as well. I need good directions or else I feel lost! I hope you make these bars, let me know if you have any other questions!
Hi Sally! Just wanted to let you know that I did make the bars last weekend and they were a HUGE hit! Easy to make, fresh, and delicious! Overall, it was love at first bite! Thanks again for taking the time to share the recipe with your readers.
-Dawn
Hi Dawn! These bars are always a huge hit. I’ve tried them with raspberries too. They are so good! I love how thick the cream cheese filling gets. Thank you for letting me know you liked them
Ms. Sally you are killing my diet daily! This looks amazing though!
Thanks Ashley! And sorry to ruin your diet plans. Ahh!
Ohhh, I can’t say no to these!! Lemon is my number one fruit for desserts!
Yvonne @ bitter baker recently posted..Salted caramel cheesecake
Hi Sally!
I love your site (amazing pictures) and have successfully made several of your recipes! I would love to give this one a try but I am wondering if the bars would work without the blueberries. I live in Brazil and it’s not always that I can find blueberries at the store.
Thanks so much!
Hey Daniela! Thank you for the compliments. I’m glad you love my site! You certainly may leave out the blueberries. Hope you enjoy!
These look amazing. If I need to make a 13 x9 pan would you double the recipe? Or just do 1.5 times the amount?
Thanks!
Hi Barathi – I feared the cheesecake layer would not bake evenly if the recipe is doubled. I would simply make two pans of them.
Thanks so much for the quick reply. I will be making two pans to enter in a “bake off” for medical students.
Sally! I made these over the weekend and they are FABULOUS. Thank you!
http://foodieandfabulous.blogspot.com/2013/05/blueberry-lemon-cheesecake-bars.html#more
can’t wait to check them out!
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