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Healthy Eggnog Cheesecake Bars are made low calorie with gluten free and real food ingredients. A delicious and healthy holiday dessert recipe!
If you love eggnog, then you will be obsessed these healthy eggnog cheesecake bars. I'm super excited to share this low calorie cheesecake with you. The crust is buttery and the cheesecake filling is incredibly delicious too!
And not to worry. If you're not an eggnog fan like me, I guarantee you will still love these yummy, low calorie dessert bars.
What Makes These Eggnog Bars Better For You
These eggnog bars are not only low in calories, but they're also made with real food ingredients, are gluten free and made less refined ingredients than other holiday baked good recipes out there. Here's a few more reasons why I love them for a healthier holiday dessert!
- Low Calorie - Each bar is only 130 calories which is considered low calorie. You can make them 98 calories to by increasing the servings to 16 bars instead of 12.
- Lower Carbohydrates - Desserts tend to be high in refined carbohydrates and saturated fat making them really challenging for weight loss (that is unless you can just eat one!). This recipe is only 15 grams of carbohydrates per bar which is incredibly lower carb for a dessert bar.
- Higher Protein - If you're going to eat desserts, they should always be higher in protein or enjoyed with a protein. This is important for blood sugar and to manage cravings. This cheesecake bar recipe has 6 grams of protein per bar which is awesome for a holiday dessert. Most recipes are lucky if they have 1 gram.
- Lower Fat - Each bar has 6 grams of fat, 2 of which come from saturated (bad) fat. Most of the fat in this recipe is coming from heart healthy fat and it's still minimal too making it more ideal for weight loss.
Ingredients For Gluten Free Eggnog Cheesecake Bars
- Coconut Sugar
- Butter
- Eggs
- Gluten Free Flour
- Almond Flour
- Ground Flaxseed
- Baking Soda
- Unsweetened Almond Flour
- Vanilla Extract
- Nonfat Greek yogurt
- Neufchatel Cheese (I used Organic Valley)
- Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Cloves
You will also need an 8-inch by 8-inch baking pan, parchment paper and a large mixing bowl to make this recipe.
How To Bake Eggnog Cheesecake Bars
Making eggnog cheesecake bars gluten free is easier than you think! There's two steps, but they're really simple if you follow it step by step.
First step is to make the crust. Mix together the coconut sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl then add the the flour, flaxseed and baking soda. Last mix in the egg and milk until combined. Transfer the batter to a lined baking pan and spread it into an even layer into the bottom and corners of the pan. Bake the crust in the oven then remove and cool.
The second step is making the delicious cheesecake filling! Start by creaming together the Neufatchel cheese, Greek yogurt and coconut sugar. A hand mixer is handy for this! Whisk in the milk and vanilla extract. Add the egg and mix until just combined, then whisk in the egg yolks. Mix in the flour and spices. Pour the cheesecake filling over the cooled crust then bake again. After it bakes, cool a few minutes at room temperature before transferring to the refrigerator to chill. Once it's chilled, cut into bars and serve!
Tips For Making The Best Eggnog Cheesecake Bars
- The Neufatchel cheese must be room temperature when you make the cheesecake filling or you’ll end up with a lumpy filling.
- Let the Greek yogurt, milk and eggs sit out of the fridge so they are room temperature before mixing together so the Neufatchel doesn’t clump up when mixing.
- If you’re okay with a bit of a workout, you can use a whisk to make the filling, but using an immersion blender or hand mixer to cream together the Neufatchel cheese, Greek yogurt and coconut sugar works best. Once you mix these ingredients together, make sure to not overmix the remaining ingredients, and mix until just combined.
- For a slightly less sweet cheesecake, use ¼ cup of coconut sugar in the filling. For a slightly sweeter cheesecake, use ⅓ cup of coconut sugar.
Substitutions For Healthy Eggnog Bars
Here's a few substitutions you can make for these gluten free eggnog bars. Keep in mind that when you substitute ingredients, it can change the nutritional value of the recipe as well as the texture.
- Butter - You can swap for coconut oil instead. Melt the coconut oil first then measure it. Do NOT add hot coconut oil to the batter. Let it cool first so it does not cook the crust.
- Gluten Free Flour - Gluten Free Oat Flour may be substituted, or you can make your own oat flour with oats. I have not tested this recipe with other flours though. I never bake with white or whole wheat sugar due to my gluten allergy and they are highly refined which I never recommend.
- Almond Flour - You can use gluten free flour or oat flour as a substitute. Coconut flour cannot be substituted.
- Coconut Sugar - You can omit the sugar in the crust without affecting the recipe. For the filling, you do need the sweetness. Maple syrup, honey, stevia or monk fruit are what I recommend for substitutes. I have not tested the quantities though.
- Milk - Any milk can be used.
- Dairy Free - Swap the butter for coconut oil, swap the cheese for dairy free cream cheese and swap the yogurt for dairy free yogurt.
- Egg Free - The eggs are necessary for this recipe. This is an eggnog recipe after all!
- Grain Free - I don't have a grain free version of this recipe at this time. You can try using almond flour in place of gluten free flour. I have not tested the quantities, but it would be slightly less than the recipe calls for.
More Healthy Cheesecake Recipes
Healthy Eggnog Cheesecake Bars
Ingredients
For the Crust
- 3 tablespoons coconut sugar
- 2 tablespoons butter no salt added, very soft
- 1/2 cup gluten free flour
- 1/3 cup gluten free flour
- 1/3 cup almond flour
- 2 teaspoons ground flaxseed
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened almond milk
- 1 egg room temperature
For the Filling
- 1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup Neufchatel cheese room temperature
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar
- 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 egg
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 tablespoons gluten free flour
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/8 teaspoon cloves
Instructions
For the Crust
- Preheat your oven to 350 F. Line a 8”x8” baking pan with parchment. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and coconut sugar with a whisk.
- Mix in the gluten-free flour, almond flour, flaxseed and baking soda. Add the almond milk and egg and mix until combined.
- Pour the dough into the pan and spread it out in an even flat layer. It will be soft so you can use a silicone spatula to help spread it out. Poke a few sets of holes halfway through the crust with a fork.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes. When you take the pan out of the oven, gently press down on the crust a little to slightly deflate it. Set it aside while you make the filling.
For the Filling
- In large mixing bowl, cream together the neufatchel cheese, greek yogurt and coconut sugar. You can use a whisk but ideally a hand mixer to get rid of any clumps. Whisk in the milk and vanilla extract. Add the egg and mix until just combined, then whisk in the egg yolks. Mix in the flour and spices.
- Pour the filling on top of the crust. Place the pan on the top rack in your oven and bake for 22 minutes. After 22 minutes, shut the oven off but keep the pan in the oven for an additional 6-8 minutes. Carefully take the pan out when the top of the filling is slightly jiggly but mostly firm to the touch.
- Cool 5 minutes at room temperature. Chill in the refrigerator 15-20 minutes, then cut them into bars. Top them with a spritz of whipped cream and ground or freshly grated nutmeg and enjoy! Store any remaining bars in the refrigerator.
- Store the bars in the refrigerator up to 7 days or in the freezer 60 days.
Notes
- My Amazon shop has more products similar to those used fro this recipe and that I recommend to my weight loss clients.
- If you enjoy this recipe, check out my cookbook for more delicious recipes!
Nutrition
Can I use reg flour? Don’t need them to be gluten free
Check the substitutions section of the blog post - it answers this question.
Hi! These look great, and I’m excited to make them for my daughter, who also has a gluten allergy. I’m confused by the two quantities of GF flour in the crust. Are they added at different times? Is one a typo?
No that is not a typo. 2/5 of a cup doesn't make sense which is why it shows on two lines. Baking is very specific!