Snickers Cheesecake Bars

The most incredible gluten-free, no-bake Snickers Cheesecake Bars! It starts with an almond chocolate Khalas date crust, then filled with a light and fluffy peanut butter cheesecake and finished with a salted date caramel sauce, chocolate drizzle and roasted peanuts!

They taste exactly like a Snickers candy bar, but even better. The texture of the cheesecake filling is SO light and fluffy and pairs so well with the amazing gluten-free almond chocolate date crust.

Ingredients:

Crust

• 8.8 oz Bag Khalas Dates (225 g after pitted)
• 1 1/2 Cups (214 g) Almonds
• 3 Tbsp Cocoa Powder
• 2 Tbsp Coconut Oil

Filling

• 16 oz (2 Blocks or 452 g) Full-Fat Cream Cheese, room temp
• 1 1/4 Cup (142 g) Confectioners’ Sugar, sifted
• 1/3 Cup (90 g) Peanut Butter
• 1 Cup (227 g) Heavy Cream, cold

Salted Date Caramel

• 1/2 Cup (160 g) D’vash Organics Date Syrup
• 4 Tbsp (56 g) Unsalted Butter, cubed
• 1 Cup (227 g) Heavy Cream
• 3/4 Tsp Salt
• 1 Tsp Vanilla Paste or Extract

How to:

Crust

1. Line an 8×8 inch (20×20 cm) square pan with parchment paper and set aside.
2. In the bowl of your food processor fitted with an S-blade, add pitted dates, roasted almonds, cocoa powder and coconut oil. Pulse until the mixture is well combined and resembles coarse sand.
3. Transfer the crust to your prepared pan and evenly press into the bottom of the pan. Place in the fridge while you work on the filling.

Filling

1. With a hand-held mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix together the cream cheese, peanut butter and vanilla paste until well combined. Next, sift in powdered sugar and mix until combined. Set aside.
2. In a clean medium sized bowl add your cold heavy cream. With a hand-held mixer, whisk on medium until you get stiff peaks. Be careful not to over whisk as it can turn become lumpy. Be patient, it will take about 8 minutes or so.
3. In 2 additions, gently fold in the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture. Fold just until combined. Overmixing can deflate the whipped cream.
4. Remove the crust from the fridge and transfer the cheesecake mixture into the pan. Using an offset spatula, spread and smooth out the mixture. Cover the pan with cling wrap or foil and allow the cheesecake to chill for at least 6 hours or overnight. 

Salted Date Caramel

*This recipe makes a full batch. Feel free to make a half or full batch and keep for other uses. It will keep well in the fridge for about 2 weeks.

1. Add date syrup and cubed butter to a saucepan. Over medium heat, bring mixture to a boil for 2 minutes.
2. Slowly pour in the heavy cream and whisk until incorporated. Whisking often, cook until the caramel thickens. About 5 minutes. Keep in mind that once the caramel cools, it will thicken a lot more.
3. Turn the heat off and add vanilla and salt. Mix until combined and transfer to a jar and allow to cool.

Assembly 

1. When you’re ready to serve, make your chocolate sauce. Add finely chopped chocolate into a heat proof bowl and place it over a pot of simmering water. Once melted, add 1 teaspoon of coconut oil and mix until combined. Set aside.
2. Remove the cheesecake from the fridge. Drizzle date caramel sauce, melted chocolate and chopped peanuts on top. Cut into squares and enjoy!

Note: Store leftover cheesecake bars in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days

 Recipe from Short Stack Kitchen