Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: Sweet yet tangy and rich!
Texture: Each bite has the perfect contrast of the buttery crunchy crust with the luscious creamy filling.
Ease: Much easier than a full-sized cheesecake!
Pros: Quick, easy, and perfect for entertaining. These also travel easily, for a great potluck dessert.
Cons: Absolutely none.
Would I make this again? I make these all the time!
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Meet your new favorite cheesecake bars recipe!
Thick and creamy cream cheese filling with the perfect amount of tang. Buttery, crunchy graham cracker crust. Toppings of your choosing.
As much as I love a big, impressive full-sized cheesecake, they are a pain to bake! You’re fighting cracks and sinking if you don’t take the steps to set up a water bath. Plus, it takes some experience to know when a full-size cheesecake is actually done baking.
They take a while to bake and even longer to cool down and chill before you even get a bite of cheesecake.
Delayed gratification like that is sometimes just too much to bear. This is where cheesecake BARS come onto the scene!
They’re faster and easier to prep, bake, and chill. They’re easier to slice and serve so they make the perfect treat for a potluck, party, or event. And because they’re so simple, you can get creative with fun topping ideas!
How to Make Classic Cheesecake Bars
How do I Make a Cheesecake Crust That Won’t Crumble?
- Use a food processor to finely grind your graham crackers for best results.
- Once combined, press the crust ingredients into the pan very firmly.
- I like to use the bottom of a measuring cup or glass, to ensure the crust is well-pressed into the pan.
What Can I Use Instead of Graham Crackers?
You can use the same amount by weight of digestive biscuits, vanilla wafers, Biscoff cookies, or any crunchy cookie you’d like! Please note that Biscoff cookies are a little richer than graham crackers (which are drier), so add just enough butter until it holds together when pressed.
What Kind of Cream Cheese Should I Use for Cheesecake Bars?
- Be sure to use blocks of full-fat, high-quality cream cheese.
- Do not use reduced fat or your cheesecake bars may be watery, rubbery, or otherwise lackluster.
- Definitely don’t use whipped cream cheese or cream cheese for spreading on a bagel.
- Opt for the best brand you can find as some generic brands have too much water content!
How to get Smooth and Creamy Cheesecake Bars
- Be sure your cream cheese is COMPLETELY softened to room temperature.
- Beat it very well with the sugar.
- Once you add eggs, only beat until combined to prevent sinking or cracking (though the risk of that happening is far smaller with bars!).
- Also, be sure to scrape down the sides and bottom of your bowl as well as your mixer attachment often to prevent lumps.
How to Cut Cheesecake Bars for Clean Slices
- Use the parchment overhang to lift the entire tray of cheesecake up and out of the pan and onto a cutting board.
- A big sharp knife is the best tool
- For ultraclean slices, run the knife under hot water and wipe off between cuts.
Cheesecake Bar Topping Ideas
Get creative here! You can serve the bars plain, but they’re so much more fun with toppings!
- Chocolate ganache (use 1:1 ratio)
- Salted caramel
- Butterscotch sauce
- Prepared dulce de leche
- Fruit preserves
- Whipped cream
- Fresh fruit
How to Store Cheesecake Bars
These bars can be made and refrigerated 2 days ahead of time or frozen in an airtight container for up to 2 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge or on the counter for a couple of hours before serving.
More Cheesecake Bar Recipes You’ll Love:
- Nutella Cheesecake Bars
- Creme Brulee Cheesecake Bars
- No-Bake Strawberry Cheesecake Bars
- Bailey’s Cheesecake Bars
- Brownie Bottom Cookie Dough Cheesecake Bars
- Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars
Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
Cheesecake Bars
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 18 (270 grams) graham crackers
- 12 tablespoons (170 grams) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
For the filling:
- 32 ounces cream cheese, completely softened to room temperature
- 2 cups (400 grams) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (114 grams) sour cream, at room temperature
- 6 large eggs, at room temperature
- 4 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
Topping options:
Chocolate ganache (use 1:1 ratio) Salted caramel sauce Butterscotch sauce - Fruit preserves
- Whipped cream
- Fresh fruit
Instructions
Make the crust:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9 by 13-inch baking pan with parchment, leaving an overhang.
- In a food processor, pulse the crackers until finely ground. Add the butter and pulse until moistened. Press the crumb mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan using the bottom of a measuring cup or glass. Bake until fragrant, about 10 minutes (longer if using a glass dish). Place on a cooling rack to cool completely. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F.
Make the filling:
- In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth and creamy, scraping down the sides of the bowl often, for at least 1 minute. Add the sour cream, then the eggs one at a time, blending after each addition until combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add in vanilla, lemon juice, and salt, and blend until just combined. Don’t over-mix.
- Spread batter evenly over cooled crust. Tap against the counter a few times to release air bubbles. Bake at 325°F until just set in center and edges are puffed and slightly cracked, about 40 to 45 minutes (longer if using a glass dish). Transfer to rack to let cool completely.
- Cover with foil and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight before slicing into squares.
- The cheesecake can be made and refrigerated 2 days ahead of time or frozen in an airtight container for up to 2 months.
I’ve never made cheesecake before. I made these especially for my son in law. He loved them. Theses are better than original cheesecake Easy to make and DELICIOUS
The cheesecake bars were fabulous! Everyone loved them. I’d love to know how to adjust to make as mini cheesecakes instead.
100% Everyone was asking for the recipe the day after Christmas Eve dinner! I say it was more than a hit!
There are literally no words for this recipe. Could not be more perfect.
absolutely delicious! Chopped up snickers bar to put on top, rave reviews from the company.
If I want to use boxed, pre-crushed graham crackers how many cups and grams should I use?
Hi Beverley! You can use the same grams measurement listed in the recipe – 270 grams of graham crackers or the same of graham cracker crumbs 🙂 Happy baking!
This cheesecake is amazing! Delicious. Easy to make. I brought it to a party and everyone loved it. I was careful to follow directions. Room temperature ingredients. Didn’t over mix. Pressed graham cracker mixture onto parchment paper in dish. The instructions say to bake crust until it’s fragrant- which was a great instruction. At 10 minutes it had no fragrance, but at 12 minutes it smelled wonderful! I was careful to press the graham cracker mixture firmly and evenly and it came out perfect. I used a glass dish and cooked the cheesecake for an extra 10 minutes. I made it about a week before I needed it, so I refrigerated it over night, then I froze it. I took it out the morning I was going to serve it and I cut it while frozen, which made perfect squares. Everyone asked for the recipe!
Hi Ellen! Such great feedback! I’m so excited you and your friends enjoyed these bars so much, and I’m glad Tessa’s instructions were so helpful! Thanks for the comment 🙂
I have made this recipe several times and it always turns out great! It’s a new family favorite.
So happy to hear that! Thanks for letting us know! 🙂
I haven’t cut into this baby yet but I needed maybe 8 additional minutes past the 45. So much goodness! But I went by your instructions for slightly cracked outside and slightly loose inside so I think we’ve got a winner! I have a few bubbles. Maybe over mixing. Nothing a few cherries can’t take care of. No sinking or surface cracks!
Yay! So happy to hear that 🙂 Can’t wait for you to enjoy, they’re a favorite of mine for sure!
These look lovely! What can be substituted for eggs to make an eggless version?
Hi Max! We don’t bake egg-free recipes, so I can’t say for sure!
Rather than trying to substitute for the eggs, look for an egg-less recipe; there are plenty online, and I’m sure you can find one that you like. Typically, cornstarch and/sweetened condensed milk is used to help the cheesecake set. Eggs do a lot of different things in different recipes, so finding an appropriate substitute is often a lot harder than finding a recipe that’s already been formulated and tested without using eggs.
So simple, yet absolutely delicous! The cheesecake is pure perfection. I will not be using any other recipe if I want to make cheesecake again because this is just bomb!
So happy you enjoyed them!
I’ve been trying out different cheesecake bar recipes lately & this one was so far above the rest. Seriously so delicious. It was a complete hit with the family.
So happy everyone enjoyed them! Thanks for the comment!