1cupwhite chocolate chips (or 4 oz white chocolate baking bar)melted
Instructions
Preheat oven to 325℉ and grease 9x13 baking dish.
Cookie Layer:
In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together butter and sugar for a couple of minutes.
Add egg, vanilla, lemon zest and beat until mixed.
Bring the speed to low, and sift in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix all ingredients until just combined.
Spread the cookie batter evenly in the baking dish. You will need to gently press it as you spread it. Set aside.
Cheesecake Layer:
Beat cream cheese in a bowl in an electric mixer, on medium-high speed, until smooth and fluffy, for a couple of minutes, Scrape sides and bottom of the bowl and beat for another minute.
Add egg and sugar and beat until incorporated.
Add sour cream, vanilla extract, and heavy whipping cream. Beat until fully incorporated and lower the speed to "stir." Add in cornstarch and lemon zest. Beat until all incorporated. Scrape sides and bottom of the bowl and mix a little more.
Spread cheesecake batter evenly over the cookie layer evenly.
Bake for about 35 minutes. Turn off the oven and open oven door half way. Let cheesecake bars rest in the oven for 10 minutes.
Take the pan out of the oven, run a greased butter knife along the edges to help separate the bars from the pan, and let it cool to room temperature on the counter.
I highly recommend that you use a double boiler to melt your white chocolate baking bar (or white chocolate chips). It’s too easy to scald the chocolate in the microwave and waste it.
Melt white chocolate until smooth. You can use a whisk to drizzle the bars with melted white chocolate or a piping bag.
Make sure to chill the cheesecake in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before cutting.
Notes
Storing: Store the cheesecake bars in an airtight container (or wrap the dish they were baked in with plastic wrap) in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Freezing:Cool the bars first to room temperature. Once the cheesecake bars have completely cooled, use a greased knife to cut the bars into 9 or 12 squares depending on how large you would like them. Place the cutting board with cheesecake bars in the freezer and freeze for about an hour. Set a timer! Then, wrap each frozen bar into a couple of layers of plastic wrap and then into a freezer friendly zip-top bag. Get as much air out as you can, label, and freeze for up to 2 months.
More lemon flavor: You can double the amount of lemon zest but do not add lemon juice. Juice won’t help with additional flavor and it will mess with the texture. Another way to definitely increase the lemon flavor is to add some lemon extract. Be careful and don’t add too much because it’s quite strong. You will only need about 1/2-1 tsp of lemon extract to make a big difference.