Even if you've never met me, you're likely aware that my favorite dessert is carrot cake. Like, it's the thing I want every year on my birthday. So, for the past few years, I have tried to come up with new desserts featuring classic carrot cake flavors. This year, I decided to combine carrot cake basically with the cream cheese frosting to create these carrot cheesecake bars.

By combining the rich, creamy texture of cheesecake with a simple spiced carrot cake, this dessert is the perfect make-ahead treat! Perfect for Easter, potlucks, BBQs, or a weekend treat!

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Why You'll Love

• Carrot cake!!! Need I say more?
• Moist and tender cake!
• The swirls look impressive, but super simple to create!
• Perfect for Easter, a backyard BBQ, a birthday treat, or any occasion!

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Ingredients in Gluten Free Carrot Cheesecake Bars

• Cream Cheese
• Butter
• Eggs
• Vanilla
• Applesauce
• Milk
• Carrots, grated
• Brown Sugar
• Sugar
• Maple Syrup
• Baking Soda
• Cinnamon
• Pumpkin Pie Spice
• Salt
• Gluten Free Flour Blend

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How to Make Carrot Cheesecake Bars

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Then, beat in the vanilla, 1/4 cup of sugar, and 1 egg. Set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk the butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, vanilla, applesauce, carrots, and milk. Then, whisk in the eggs, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, salt, baking soda, and the gluten free flour blend.
4. Spread about 2/3 of the carrot cake batter into a greased 9x13 baking dish. Then, add spoonfuls of the cream cheese mixture on top. Use a spatula or knife to lightly swirl. Then, spoon in the remaining cake batter and lightly swirl. You can leave larger dollops of cream cheese or swirl a lot for thin bits of cheesecake throughout.
5. Bake for 28-30 minutes, until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

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Is carrot cake healthy?

Unfortunately, cake is not a health food. Carrot cake is a delicious dessert that should be enjoyed in moderation. This recipe calls for much less sugar and is considerably healthier than other available versions.

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Can you add nuts?

You bet! Nuts would make a wonderful addition to these cheesecake bars. Simply mix into the cake batter or sprinkle on top before making. Pecans, walnuts, cashews, or almonds would all work well!

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To Glaze or Not to Glaze...

This is purely a matter of preference. Since there is a light cheesecake mixture swirled throughout, I chose to leave the bars as is. You could also create a thin cream cheese glaze to drizzle over the top or spread with a cream cheese icing.

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Can I use already grated carrots?

No, freshly grated carrots will work best in this recipe. Already grated ones will lack some of the moisture. I prefer to use a food processor for grating, but you could also use a box cheese grater.

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Storage

Store these gluten free carrot cheesecake bars in the fridge for up to one week. They can also be tightly wrapped and frozen for up to 3 months.

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Craving more???

Gluten Free Lemon Brownies

Gluten Free Espresso Chocolate Chip  Cookies

Gluten Free Carrot Cake Cookies