Around the time I turned five years old, my mom offered me strawberries for the first time. She arranged a few plump, freshly washed berries onto a faded pink plastic plate, one of our “kid-friendly” square options with a tall rim around the edge, and set it down in front of my place at the table, where I had clambered up onto my chair.
I peered down at the place, closely inspecting the bright red fruit, while Mom explained how to eat it. “Pick it up by the green leaves and take a bite!” I hesitantly followed her directions, opening my mouth for an itty bitty mouse-sized nibble.
Because my teeth barely grazed through the skin, I ended up with very little of the juicy insides and a mouthful of crunchy seeds instead. I dropped the strawberry back on the plate and shook my head. “No, thank you. I don’t like it,” I replied.
Mom glanced at the missing miniscule bite, then came up with a Plan B. After reaching into the cupboard, she pulled out the pink sugar carton and poured some on the plate next to the fruit. “Try dipping the strawberries in a little bit of that first,” she suggested.
Although skeptical, I grabbed the green leaves and tried again. This time, the sugar masked the flavor of those crunchy seeds, and I actually took a big enough bite to taste the ripe, juicy flesh underneath. “Much better!” I announced, and I happily snacked on the rest of the berries, generously coating each in sugar before popping it in my mouth.
For a while, I refused to eat strawberries any other way… I always needed to dip them in sugar, even in the middle of summer when the fruit was at its ripest. My sweet tooth definitely started at a very early age!
And now, I’ve outgrown that and enjoy big bowls of fresh, juicy strawberries all by themselves, but…
I still can’t resist when they’re mixed with something else sweet for dessert, like these Skinny Strawberry Cheesecake Bars! Thankfully, they’re much healthier than those piles of granulated sugar I used to dip my strawberries in… These rich, creamy bars contain absolutely no refined flour or sugar, and they’ve packed with 5g+ of protein too!
To make these healthier cheesecake bars, you’ll start with the crust. I know it sounds strange, but you’ll use brown rice cereal as the base. I promise it works! Just grind the cereal really finely a food processor or blender, the same as you would with graham crackers. This is the kind that I buy, and I love that it only contains brown rice cereal and salt. No strange, funky, or artificial ingredients!
After combining those crumbs with a little butter, milk, and powdered stevia, you’ll press that into the bottom of your pan. Bake the crust until it feels fairly firm to the touch, and let it cool completely before spreading the cheesecake filling on top.
That filling begins with two healthy ingredients: Greek yogurt and Greek yogurt cream cheese. If you’ve been around Amy’s Healthy Baking for a while, you already know how much I love Greek yogurt! It has around 21g of protein per cup, whereas regular yogurt only contains around 10g, so it gives these cheesecake bars a big protein punch.
The Greek yogurt cream cheese helps add that smooth creaminess you’d expect in cheesecake. I found mine at Safeway (their own Lucerne brand), and many Walmart stores stock this brand as well. You can easily substitute Neufchâtel (⅓-less fat) cream cheese in a pinch.
To sweeten the cheesecake bars, you’ll use another one of my favorite ingredients: vanilla crème stevia. Stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener that’s clean eating friendly. It’s very concentrated—a little goes a long way! You only need 1 ½ teaspoons to sweeten the entire filling. This is the kind that I buy because I love its warm vanilla flavor, and you can find it at many health-oriented grocery stores, as well as online. (And you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!)
And of course, the star of the show… The strawberries! I used fresh berries because I had a million pounds in my fridge, and if at all possible, I highly recommend that you do the same. Frozen and completely thawed should also work, but their flavor usually isn’t quite as bright.
The hardest part is the waiting… Once they’ve completely cooled to room temperature, you must chill the cheesecake bars for at least 8 hours before slicing into squares. This allows the cheesecake bars to fully set and reach that smooth, creamy texture. It feels like torture to wait that long, but I promise they’re worth it!
And when you bake your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees that I’ll see the notification from you! ?) I’d love to see your cheesecake bars and feature them in my Sunday Spotlight series!
| Skinny Strawberry Cheesecake Bars | | Print |
- for the crust
- 2 ½ cups (75g) crisp brown rice cereal
- ¾ tsp powdered stevia
- 1 tbsp (14g) unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly
- 5 tbsp (85mL) nonfat milk, room temperature
- for the filling
- 2 cups (480g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 1 (8oz) block Greek yogurt cream cheese, softened
- 1 large egg white, room temperature
- 1 ½ tbsp (12g) cornstarch
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla crème stevia
- ¾ cup (105g) fresh whole strawberries, diced
- Preheat the oven to 300°F, and lightly coat an 8”-square baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- To prepare the crust, add the cereal to a food processor or blender, and pulse until the cereal turns into fine crumbs. Transfer to a bowl, and stir in the powdered stevia. Mix in the butter and milk until all of the cereal mixture is completely incorporated. Gently press the mixture into the prepared pan. Bake at 300°F for 15-18 minutes or until it feels dry to the touch. Cool completely to room temperature.
- To prepare the filling, beat the cream cheese and Greek yogurt in a medium bowl until smooth. Mix in the egg white, stopping when just incorporated. Mix in the cornstarch until completely incorporated. Mix in the vanilla and vanilla crème stevia, stopping when just incorporated. Gently fold in the strawberries.
- Spread the filling on top of the cooled crust. Bake at 300°F for 35-38 minutes or until the center barely jiggles when the pan is gently shaken. Cool completely to room temperature in the pan before covering with plastic wrap, ensuring that the plastic wrap completely touches the tops of the cheesecake bars. Chill for at least 8 hours before slicing.
Any granulated sweetener may be substituted for the powdered stevia in the crust; you’ll need the equivalent of 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar. Any milk may be substituted as well.
If you can’t find Greek yogurt cream cheese, substitute Neufchâtel cream cheese (⅓-less fat).
Powdered stevia (4 ½ teaspoons) may be substituted in place of the vanilla crème stevia, along with an additional 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. If using the powdered stevia, add it along with the cornstarch. I cannot guarantee whether any other substitutions will work, and I do not recommend using any other liquid sweetener (i.e. maple syrup, honey, or agave). The amount of vanilla crème stevia is the equivalent of ¾ cup of granulated sugar, and if substituting another granulated sweetener, the baking time may change.
Frozen and fully thawed strawberries may be substituted for the fresh. If using this substitution, gently pat the strawberries with a paper towel to remove excess moisture from thawing.
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low calorie, lower sugar, higher protein}
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You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♥ Skinny No-Bake Strawberry Cheesecakes
♥ Skinny Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars
♥ Skinny Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
♥ Skinny Raspberry Cheesecake Bars
♥ Skinny Lemon Gingersnap Cheesecake Bars
♥ Fudgy Dark Chocolate Cheesecake Swirled Brownies
♥ Raspberry Cheesecake Oatmeal Cookies
♥ Dark Chocolate Cheesecake Thumbprint Cookies
Hello! I am wondering if you’d have a substitute to recommend in place of the Eremon brown rice cereal, as I am having trouble finding it. Also, could I make bake this recipe in a pie shell (made with graham cracker) instead of using the rice crust? Thank you for your fantastic blog and delicious offerings.
Jude
You’re too kind, Jude! It’s my pleasure. I’m so glad you’re enjoying my blog and recipes! 🙂
Barbara’s brown rice cereal and One° brown rice cereal are the two closest alternatives that I’ve found for Erewhon’s brown rice cereal. I haven’t tried using a premade graham cracker pie shell with this recipe, but if it’s a 9″-round pie shell, I have a feeling it might work! (A 9″-round pie shell has a surface area of 63.6 in2, which is almost exactly the same as the 64 in2 surface area of an 8″-square pan!)
I’d absolutely love to hear what you think of these cheesecake bars if you end up making them, whether as written or in a graham cracker pie shell!
Much obliged! Of course, it did not occur to me that there are other brands of brown rice cereal out there, as I live in a rural area that does not necessarily offer a full range of goodies. Thank you for these tips. I am glad that the pie shell might work in the short term. I am keen to try your lovely recipe–provisionally rated five stars for appeal, readability and detail! I will let you know whether I am successful or not. J.
You’re welcome, Jude! I’m happy to help. 🙂 I completely understand having limited access to ingredients! Some of my family members also live in rural areas, and it’s hard for them to find certain things without driving 2-3 hours to their state’s capitol. It’s a bit of a trek!
In the meantime, if you’d like to give the homemade crust a try, regular rice cereal (such as Rice Krispies) will work! There’s also something very appealing about the ease of a pie shell though… And that classic graham cracker + cheesecake flavor pairing too! 😉
I’m really looking forward to hearing how your cheesecake turns out!