Chocolate Cream Cheese Cake Bars —Rich chocolate cake with chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, and filled with cream cheese. These bars are always a hit at parties and are fast, easy and foolproof!
Chocolate Cream Cheese Cake Bars
Happy April Fool’s Day. These chocolate cake bars with cream cheese filling are not a joke. They are 100% real. Really sinful and easy. Just the way I like my desserts.
What we’re working with here is a base layer of Devil’s Food Cake chocolate cake. Topped with white chocolate chips and dark chocolate chips.
A can of sweetened condensed milk is mixed with cream cheese and poured over the top. While baking, the sweetened condensed milk and cream cheese turns into an ooey, gooey hot mess.
The top layer resembles cream cheese frosting in that it doesn’t fully set up, which helps to keep these so chewy and velvety. As an added bonus, that layer creates built-in frosting, so you don’t have to bother with that step because to serve unfrosted bars would be a cruel April Fool’s joke.
The cake rises a bit while baking, pushing up from the bottom of the pan. The layers stay separated yet combine just enough to make each bite full of chocolate cake and chocolate chips and sweetened cream cheese.
The cake is chewy, some chocolate chips remain crunchy while others melt, and the cream cheese is smooth. I love lots of different textures in each bite.
These taste like chocolate cake, not brownies, and are an extremely moist and rich cake at that.
I despise dry baked goods and two kinds of melted chocolate, a stick of butter, a can of sweetened condensed milk, and a slab of cream cheese tend to keep things moist and full of flavor.
These bars are not over-the-top sweet. Over the top rich and decadent? Yes.
What’s in Chocolate Cream Cheese Cake Bars?
To make these chocolate cake bars with cream cheese filling, you’ll need:
- Devil’s Food cake mix
- Unsalted butter
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- Brewed coffee
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips
- White chocolate chips
- Sweetened condensed milk
- Cream cheese
How to Make Chocolate Cream Cheese Cake Bars
Make the chocolate cake layer part by mixing cake mix, an egg, and a stick of butter. Press it firmly into the pan. It will be sticky and a little tricky to work with, but just keep pressing and finessing it.
Make sure to wash your hands afterward so no one thinks you were playing in the dirt. No, silly, you were playing in the chocolate cake. Again.
Top the cake layer with the white and dark chocolate chips.
And then flood it with sweetened condensed milk and cream cheese.
It looks soupy and like there is perhaps too much liquid and how could that all bake off and get soaked up, but it does, and it all works out. Very well.
The top layer of cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk remains just a little soft and gooey, a bit loose and unset.
The inside of the bars definitely remain soft and gooey.
Can I Use Another Kind of Cake Mix?
Yes, you can use any chocolate cake mix you like.
Can I Omit the Brewed Coffee?
Yes, you may substitute it with water. However, the coffee doesn’t make these bars taste at all like coffee. It simply enhances the chocolate flavor.
Can I Make the Cake Layer From Scratch?
Most likely, yes. You could make the chocolate cake batter and then incorporate the white chocolate chips, etc. after you’ve made the cake batter. This is my favorite scratch chocolate cake.
Being that I haven’t tried this recipe with a from-scratch cake base, I can’t give particulars on baking time and so on, but it’s a jumping off place.
How to Store Chocolate Cake Bars
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week or freeze for up to three months.
Tips for Making Chocolate Cream Cheese Cake Bars
Note that this recipe calls for sweetened condensed milk, NOT evaporated milk. They’re two totally different products.
A few readers have added peppermint extract to the cream cheese mixture, which sounds divine. Add a small splash if you’re feeling adventurous!
If you plan on serving these at a party later, then I don’t recommend freezing them beforehand. But if you’ll just be enjoying them yourself, then freezing leftovers is fine.
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White and Dark Chocolate Cream Cheese Chocolate Cake Bars
Ingredients
Cake Bars
- 1 box devil’s food cake chocolate cake mix, or your favorite boxed chocolate cake mix
- ½ cup unsalted butter, 1 stick, softened
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, bourbon vanilla is especially nice
- 1 to 2 tablespoons cold brewed coffee or water, optional if necessary
- ¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- ¾ cup white chocolate chips
Cream Cheese Layer
- 1 can, 14-ounces sweetened condensed milk
- ½ cup 4 ounces cream cheese, softened (I use whipped cream cheese)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract, clear imitation vanilla extract will keep this layer whiter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and prepare a 9-by-13 inch pan by lining it with aluminum foil and then spraying it with cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, butter, egg, vanilla and mix either with a mixer, with a spoon, or with your hands, kneading it together. The batter will be extremely thick and will be difficult to combine, but keep stirring or use your fingers and knead it together, adding the coffee (will deepen the flavor and does not make them taste like coffee) or water if necessary.
- Press the dough it into the prepared pan. It will be tacky, sticky, and a bit tricky to work with, but keep pressing, spreading, and finessing it.
- Sprinkle the white and dark chocolate chips evenly over the top.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the sweetened condensed milk, cream cheese, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, and stir until well combined, and pour mixture evenly over dough, using a spatula to gently spread and even it if necessary.
- Bake for 24 to 27 minutes, or until edges of bars begin to barely brown and pull away slightly from the sides of the pan, or until the middle has barely set, taking care not to overbake. Note that the middle will not seem very well set and will be jiggly upon removing from oven and that is okay, you want to keep these gooey. They will continue to set up more after they have cooled.
- Allow bars to cool well before slicing and serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Recipes Using Cake Mix:
Chocolate Turtle Cake— This decadent poke cake is topped with whipped topping, salted caramel sauce, mini chocolate chips, and chopped pecans. It’s so easy to make, and a huge hit at parties!
Coffee Crumb Cake— This coffee crumb cake recipe couldn’t be easier to make! It’s made with boxed yellow cake mix, which is used in both the batter and the crumble topping.
Gooey Strawberry Cake Mix Brownies — An EASY five-ingredient recipe for soft and chewy strawberry bars studded with white chocolate chips and spiked with sweetened condensed milk for the GOOEY win!!
Chocolate Cake Mix Cookies — Foolproof cookies made with just 5 ingredients!! If you’re craving chocolate and want to make super EASY cookies that are soft, FUDGY, and delicious, this is the recipe to make!!
S’mores Cake — Chocolate cake gets poked all over and soaked in a marshmallow creme mixture before being topped with crushed graham crackers, toasted marshmallows, and hot fudge sauce.
Rum Cake – A double dose of rum in this EASY cake that’s supremely moist, buttery, and literally juicy from all the rum!! The perfect make-ahead holiday entertaining cake that everyone will LOVE!!
Triple Chocolate Cherry Cake — Loaded with juicy cherries and topped with an easy homemade chocolate frosting. I used a few shortcuts in this recipe to save time, but this cake tastes completely homemade!
Ooh. These look amazing…the photography and the bars!!!
Thanks for the compliments!
1. These look beyond amazing.
2. Can I just come live with you? I’ll do all the dishes. I promise.
3. I love love LOVE that your photography has such an amazing and unique feel. It’s stunning, but there is something else, the way you work with light – and I love that when I’m on Pinterest or Google Images, when I see your photos, I know they are your work instantly. Kuddos, you have some mad photography skills girlfriend and we all know that is not easy. Keep up the amazing work. :)
4. Have a great week!
Seriously, this comment made my DAY!!! Christi, you are too kind!
You don’t have to do the dishes, just come to San Diego and give me a tutorial on how you frost your cupcakes so PERFECTLY. I need major help with piping bags. Seriously, I am just all thumbs with them!
And your compliments re my photography are seriously too kind. I am glad I have a signature “look”. I don’t know if I always like it…lol. There are a few people who’s “look” I covet and no matter how I try to get their look, I guess I have created my own. I guess I should embrace that…it’s like wanting someone else’s hair. You always want what is elusive!
Love ya hon!
xo
Seriously, these are the most tempting photos Ive seen in a long time, I could barely make it through the end of the post!
Sue I fell in love with your site and recipes and photography today. I added you to my reader so I can keep up with your goodies because you are one to watch! :)
Oh p.s. here’s that event I mentioned in a comment to you. You would have LOVED it!
https://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2012/03/kitchenaid-cook-books-photography-event.html
I’m not a chocolate fan (but I like white chocolate)
I played a “joke” on my husband today but it was harmless I put blue food coloring in his milk (I drink almond he drinks cow) he was like what the ____ and then giggled
Well that’s a pretty harmless joke :)
These bars are making my mouth water! Love them!
Believe it or not, I have no sweet tooth but if I was going to eat chocolate, it would be dark.
My college roommates played a joke on me on April Fools and I was not amused at the time. I did a very harmless prank on my b-f today. We got a chuckle out of it!
wow – so rich and decadent looking!!
so glad i won your giveaway!! :) thanks again for hosting it!
you’re welcome & enjoy! Thanks for sending over your address!
I love nuts by themselves, but not in desserts …
I do not like April Fool’s jokes … just heard my daughter’s friend as they left for spring break thinking to play a real cruel joke on her parents … the only funny thing of the whole story is that the parents present (myself and another dad), yelled in unison … don’t do THAT!
I was never a lover and will never be a lover of jokes … I love laughter that comes spontaneously … no planning needed.
on another note … these bars look amazing … I need to get my act together and hop into the kitchen! Have a great Sunday Averie!
I know a woman who tells her mother every year she’s pregnant! Her justification is that her mom should know it’s coming by now because she does it every year. Whoa.
No joke, for sure. I love all of the different layers!
omg awesome! Just pinned these! Hope you had a good weekend! I worked all weekend UGHHH
your smores bars and these bars…we need to have a chocolate gooey party :)
Averie you come up with THE BEST desserts!! And I love how you use simple, non-intimidating ingredients. I am definitely keeping these bars bookmarked for my next party or social gathering!
Thank you! That is my GOAL. To make it do-able and easy for the average person…most people don’t want to buy exotic ingredients and slave over things. They want mainstream and easy :) These are that!
mMmm. i could use a nice big bite of that cake bar :p cream cheese + chocolate is one of my favorite combos.
I’m right there with ya! – until the day where our skies are not blue, i’m a chocolate lover. the darker the chocolate the better! but i won’t be picky..
I have fallen for them….but I try my hardest not to! These bars look FABULOUS. I don’t like nuts in baked goods at all! I need to get more of those TJs chocolate chips
For baking, they are my go-to chip!
What? No nuts in chocolate or desserts? I actually love nuts in just about anything. One of my fave treats is white chocolate bark with almonds and cranberries. Maybe it’s a texture thing for me.
Nuts in cookies, cake, brownies…no way. In barks, or in certain kind of no-bake truffle balls…it’s a case by case basis.