Step 1

Preheat oven to 350°. Prepare Crust: Beat first 4 ingredients at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add 1 cup flour, beating at low speed until well blended. Press mixture on bottom of an 8-inch square pan coated with cooking spray.

Step 2

Bake at 350° for 20 minutes.

Step 3

Meanwhile, prepare Filling: Process cottage cheese in a food processor 1 minute or until smooth, stopping to scrape down sides as needed. Add granulated sugar and next 6 ingredients, and process 30 seconds or until well blended. Pour filling over prepared crust.

Step 4

Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until set. (Edges will be lightly browned.) Cool 30 minutes. Cover and chill 8 hours. Cut into bars. Garnish, if desired.

Step 5

Try This Twist!

Step 6

Reduced-Sugar Lemon-Cheesecake Bars: Substitute brown sugar sweetener for brown sugar and granular sweetener for granulated sugar.

Step 7

Note: We tested with Whey Low 100% All Natural Gold Brown Sugar Sweetener and Granular Sweetener.

Step 8

Per bar: Calories 172; Fat 9g (sat 2g, mono 2g, poly 5g); Protein 2g; Carb 8g; Fiber 5g; Chol 1mg; Iron 1mg; Sodium 259mg; Calc 70mg