Apple Pie Cheesecake bars

So it's back to school and back to baking again for me.  Over the summer, I'm too busy on the farm to really bake.  We work from early in the morning to late at night and by the time I get home, I'm lucky if I have enough energy to pour a bowl of cereal.  When I'm home I really miss baking and cooking, so the minute I come back to school it is tempting to go crazy and make EVERYTHING.  My guy friend out in Washington state requested peanut butter cookies, so I made Chocolate Peanut Butter cookies and Peanut Butter cookies with mini chocolate chips.  Those recipes will be posted in the coming days.    So this recipe was the combination of a recipe I found and what I had on hand.  The original recipe is for Pear Custard Bars, but I didn't have an pears.  What I had instead was homemade apple pie filling (that hadn't sealed and needed to be used quickly).  This recipe is quick, easy, and tastes AMAZING!  It might even be better than apple pie (and I love apple pie) .  I imagine that you could try this recipe with raspberries, blackberries, or any other fruit you wanted.  Definitely try this recipe, it is one of the best!

Ingredients:  
Crust:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract 
Filling: 

• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened (I used neufchatel) 
 

• 1/2 cup sugar
 

• 1 egg
 

• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
 

• 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon (or less depending on your taste) 

Topping: 

• 1 can apple pie filling (or whatever fruit filling) 

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    1/2 to 1/4 cup sliced almonds (brown them gently on the stove first) 
Assembly:In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Gradually add flour to creamed mixture. Press into a greased 8-in. square baking pan. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.In a small bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Beat in the sugar, egg, cinnamon and vanilla. Pour over crust.On top of the cream cheese mixture place giant spoonfuls of apple pie filling.  Take a knife and swirl the apple pie filling into the cream cheese mixture (kind of like you make a marbled cake).  

Sprinkle the browned almonds on top of the pie and cream cheese mixture. Bake at 375° for 28-30 minutes (center will be soft-set and will become firmer upon cooling). Cool on a wire rack for 45 minutes.

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