Strawberry Shortcake Cheesecake Bars

These Strawberry Shortcake Cheesecake Bars are a delicious summer dessert perfect for BBQs or summer parties. They’re packed with fresh strawberries and have a Strawberry Shortcake Oreo crust and crumble on top. 

OK, I will be the first to admit that Oreo is getting a little out of control with the amount of new flavors they’re dishing out lately. But I’ll also be the first to the admit that I’ve been buying every single one. Because each sounds even more delicious than the last and I just cannot resist at least trying them. And when I realized Strawberry Shortcake Oreo Cookies were a thing, I bought four packages. Yes, four. Because they’re based off those Good Humor strawberry shortcake ice cream bars, which are pretty much my favorite thing ever. And that’s coming from someone who would almost never choose ice cream with fruit over chocolate, peanut butter, etc. I’m happy to report back to my faithful readers that these Oreo Cookies taste exactly like the ice cream bars and I’m pretty sure they just made their way up to my #1 most favorite Oreo flavor ever.

Cue the parades and celebration. These babies are freaking delicious.

Since I had four packages of them just sitting in my cabinet, I knew I better make some sort of dessert with them and decided cheesecake bars would be just the thing. I had to do a little testing with these bars, but landed on these delicious strawberry shortcake cheesecake bars that are packed with both strawberry and cookie flavor. I’m in love and about to start a petition urging Oreo to never discontinue this flavor. I can only stockpile so many packages in my house.

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE CHEESECAKE BARS RECIPE

These bars are a great summer treat and are perfect for bringing to summer BBQs or parties. Or making at home on a rainy Sunday because you’re craving something sweet and the Oreos are burning a hole in your pantry. If you can’t find Strawberry Shortcake Oreo Cookies (or God forbid, they actually do discontinue them wahhh), you can use the Golden variety, but just won’t have as much strawberry flavor in the crust and crumble. If you want all that strawberry flavor, try crumbling up freeze dried strawberries and mixing them with the crumbled Golden Oreo Cookies for the crust and the crumble.

You’ll start by making the crust, which is simply Strawberry Shortcake Oreo Cookies and butter.

Then comes the filling. It’s a pretty basic cheesecake filling with strawberry puree added in, plus some flour for a bit of stabilization. I almost just ate that strawberry puree with a spoon because, for whatever reason, it tasted even more delicious than whole fresh strawberries!

Once the filling is poured over the crust and you top the whole thing off with more crumbled Oreo, bake until the filling is just set and then let the cheesecake cool. It will also need to sit in the fridge for a few hours before you can serve it. I know… It’s pure torture waiting. I recommend baking this before bed, so you can pop it in the fridge and go to bed with very sweet dreams of your morning treat.

I meannn, you could kind of pull this off as a breakfast bar, right?? A strawberry shortcake cheesecake BREAKFAST bar. I’m in. Not that I’m recommending you start your day with this kind of sugar rush.

 

I’m also not recommending you feed these to your dog, but I have to let you know that my pup stole TWO of these bars (the two large ones in front of this photo) plus ONE Oreo Cookie, while I had my back turned doing dishes. Um, excuse me?? I couldn’t be too mad because she was clearly in serious heaven after eating these. Also, she didn’t get sick. And? Her breath smelled amazing for the rest of the night. So, dog-approved, I guess? Most of you might say, “pshh who cares??” but my dog is super picky, so I’m giving myself points for the fact she ate two and would probably have finished them off if she could reach the others.

But seriously, friends, these strawberry shortcake cheesecake bars taste a whole lot like the ice cream treat. Which made me really, really happy. My husband got the bright idea to put these in the freezer (he tends to do this with all my cheesecake and dessert bar treats) and with that, they were even more ice cream-y. They’re also pretty rich and satisfying, which means you’ll likely feel totally happy after one (unless you’re my dog).

Of course, you can cut them into smaller bars if you want. I kept them pretty large for 16 total bars.

In some ways, it feels like summer is rapidly coming to an end… But really, there’s still plenty of time left. I am horrified for any teachers or students who have to go back to school in July. That sounds like pure torture. Growing up, I never went back to school before Labor Day, so even August seems just wrong to me. Not that it really matters anymore since most of us are just plain working and don’t get summers off. Sooo, in that case, let’s all live in summer mode until it’s officially over in mid-September. Who’s with me??

What’s your all-time favorite Oreo flavor??

If you’re looking for more fabulous summer bar recipes, check out these Lemon Cookie Dough Bars or these Sweet Tea Vodka Cupcakes!