Exceptionally quicker and easier than a full cheesecake, these white chocolate raspberry cheesecake bars are luxuriously creamy, perfectly sweet, and swirled with layers of homemade fresh raspberry sauce. Baked in a 9-inch square pan, they sit on a buttery sweet Oreo cookie crust and are filled with real white chocolate.
This recipe started as a full cheesecake that went horribly wrong. I’m chalking it up to poor decisions in the recipe creation process, but it (1) was too thick (2) overflowed and (3) burned around the edges (from the sugar in the white chocolate I believe?). It tasted fine, but I knew I could do better especially since this classic cheesecake recipe is top-notch.
I didn’t really have an occasion for a full cheesecake coming up, nor did I want to waste another 2 lbs of cream cheese and raspberries, so I tossed the whole idea and opted for white chocolate raspberry cheesecake bars instead. I always appreciate cheesecake I can eat with my hands, plus these are easier to serve to a crowd.
Why You’ll Love These White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Bars:
- Easier than a full cheesecake
- No messing with a water bath
- Quicker to bake & chill than a full cheesecake
- Portable
- Hand-held individual servings
- Exceptionally creamy
- Made with real white chocolate & raspberries
- Buttery Oreo cookie crust
Behind the Recipe
The starting point for my white chocolate raspberry cheesecake bars was my lemon blueberry cheesecake bars. To this base, you’ll add real melted white chocolate, an extra egg to help stabilize that white chocolate, and a Tablespoon of flour to help soak up the extra liquid. Pour this on an Oreo cookie crust and swirl with layers of raspberry sauce.
3 Parts to This Recipe:
- Raspberry Swirl
- Oreo Cookie Crust
- White Chocolate Cheesecake Filling
Raspberry Swirl
The raspberry swirl is not quite as thick as our raspberry cake filling. It’s more similar in consistency to our raspberry sauce recipe. I recommend preparing it first. Made from real raspberries, this homemade sauce must cool down completely before swirling into the white chocolate cheesecake filling. I usually stick it in the refrigerator for 1 hour to speed up the cooling process. Or you can make the raspberry sauce the night before.
- Mix some water and cornstarch together.
- Cook fresh or frozen raspberries, sugar, and more water together on the stovetop.
- Add cornstarch mixture.
- Once slightly thickened, remove from heat.
- Press raspberries through a fine mesh strainer to rid the seeds. Discard the seeds.
- Let the seedless sauce cool completely before using.
Oreo Cookie Crust
This is my standard Oreo cookie crust recipe that I use for many other desserts, too. You need 22 Oreo cookies and 5 Tablespoons of melted butter. I’ve gotten away with 18 Oreos and 4 Tablespoons of butter (as seen in my salted caramel chocolate chip cheesecakes), but I like this slightly thicker crust for bars.
- Using a food processor or blender, pulse the Oreos (the whole Oreo—cookie AND filling) into crumbs.
- Mix with melted butter.
- Press into a lined 9-inch square baking pan.
- Pre-bake for 8 minutes as you prepare the filling.
Or you could use a Biscoff pie crust instead if you’d like.
White Chocolate Cheesecake Filling
Let’s make the cheesecake filling, then bring each component of this recipe together before baking.
- Chop and melt pure white chocolate. Don’t use white chocolate chips/morsels. Instead, pick up two 4-ounce white chocolate baking bars from the baking aisle; I prefer Ghirardelli or Baker’s brands sold right next to the chocolate chips. You need 6 ounces for this recipe. Cool the white chocolate as you make the batter.
- As the white chocolate cools, beat 16 ounces of brick-style cream cheese with some sugar.
- Add flour, lemon juice to brighten up the otherwise flat flavor (don’t worry, it won’t taste like lemon cheesecake), vanilla extract, and salt.
- Beat in 2 eggs.
- Add melted/cooled white chocolate.
Bring It All Together
- Pour 1/2 of the cheesecake filling onto warm pre-baked Oreo cookie crust.
- Drizzle with 1/2 of the cooled raspberry sauce.
- Pour remaining 1/2 of the cheesecake filling on top.
- Drizzle with remaining raspberry sauce.
- Swirl everything together with a toothpick.
- Bake! No water bath required. The bars take about 32–36 minutes in the oven. They’ll puff up as they bake, then settle back down as they cool.
After cooling the bars at room temperature, place them in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours until sufficiently chilled. Cold cheesecake bars not only taste better, but they cut much easier too. For neat slices, wipe your sharp knife clean between each cut.
This recipe yields 16 perfect squares. For a 9×13-inch pan of white chocolate raspberry cheesecake bars, see my recipe note below.
3 Success Tips for White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Bars
- Read Through the Recipe: Included in my 10 Best Baking Tips is this crucial piece of baking advice: read the recipe before you begin. Have everything in place so you don’t miss an important ingredient or step.
- Take Your Time: Work on each component one at a time. This isn’t a recipe you can rush because the raspberry sauce and white chocolate must cool down before using.
- Chill the Cheesecake Bars: Like a full cheesecake, these bars must cool down and chill in the refrigerator before slicing. Unlike regular cheesecake, though, you don’t need to cool them in the cooling oven. And since they’re thinner, they take about half the time to cool down as a full cheesecake. That’s always a nice bonus!
PS: You can turn these into individual mini cheesecakes. See my recipe note below.
PPS: If you love these flavors together, try my raspberry cheesecake brownies next.
Print
White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Bars
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 5 hours, 5 minutes (includes chilling)
- Yield: 16 squares
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Exceptionally quicker and easier than a full cheesecake, these white chocolate raspberry cheesecake bars are luxuriously creamy, perfectly sweet, and swirled with layers of homemade fresh raspberry sauce.
Ingredients
Raspberry Sauce
- 2 teaspoons room-temperature water, divided
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 and 1/2 cups (205g) fresh or frozen raspberries (do not thaw)
- 2 Tablespoons (25g) granulated sugar
Crust
- 22 regular Oreo cookies (not Double-Stuf)
- 5 Tablespoons (71g) unsalted butter, melted
Filling
- 6 ounces (170g) white chocolate, finely chopped
- 16 ounces (452g) full-fat brick cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1/3 cup (65g) granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon (8g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
Instructions
- Make & cool the raspberry sauce: The raspberry sauce must cool down completely before using, so I recommend making it first. Mix 1 teaspoon water with 1 teaspoon cornstarch in a very small bowl. Set aside. Combine raspberries, granulated sugar, and remaining 1 teaspoon of water together in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir the mixture as it begins to cook, breaking up some of the raspberries as you stir. Once simmering, add the cornstarch mixture. Continue to stir and allow to simmer for 3 minutes. Remove the pan from heat and press through a fine mesh strainer to remove the seeds. Allow the thin raspberry sauce to cool completely before using. Cover and store for up to 1 week in the refrigerator.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line the bottom and sides of a 9-inch square baking pan (8-inch is too small) with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on the sides to lift the finished bars out (makes cutting easier!). Set aside.
- Make the crust: In a food processor or blender, pulse 22 Oreos (including the cream filling) into a fine crumb. You should have about 2 cups (packed) crumbs, or 250g. Pour crumbs into a large bowl. Add the melted butter and stir to combine. The mixture will be thick and quite wet. Try to smash/break up any large chunks. Pour the mixture into prepared pan. With medium pressure using your hand, pat the crumbs down into the bottom to make a compact, thick crust. Bake for 8 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside. Leave oven on.
- For the filling: Melt the chopped white chocolate in a double boiler or the microwave. If using the microwave: place the white chocolate in a medium heat-proof bowl. Melt in 20 second increments in the microwave, stirring after each increment until completely melted and smooth. Let the warm chocolate cool as you work on the other cheesecake filling ingredients. You can place it in the refrigerator, but just don’t let it solidify!
- Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and granulated sugar together on medium-high speed in a large bowl until the mixture is smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the flour, lemon juice, vanilla extract, and salt, then beat until fully combined. On medium speed, add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition until just blended. After the 2nd egg is incorporated into the batter, stop mixing. A few small lumps can remain. Pour in the cooled (but still liquid) white chocolate. Beat on low speed just until combined.
- Pour half of the cheesecake filling onto the crust. It’s ok if the crust is still slightly warm. Drizzle half of the raspberry sauce all over the top. Spread remaining cheesecake filling on top. (It’s ok if the raspberry sauce has spread to the sides or slightly incorporates into the top layer of cheesecake.) Drizzle remaining raspberry sauce on top, then use a toothpick or knife to gently swirl everything together.
- Bake for 32–36 minutes or until the cheesecake appears set on top and the edges are lightly browned. The bars will be puffy, but will sink slightly down as they cool. Place pan on a wire rack. Cool for 45 minutes at room temperature, then chill in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours (and up to 1 day) before slicing. If you plan to chill the bars for longer, loosely cover with aluminum foil after 3 hours of chilling.
- To slice, lift the bars out of the pan as a whole using the parchment overhang on the sides. Cut into squares with a sharp knife. For extra neat squares, wipe the knife clean between each cut.
- Cover and store leftover cheesecake bars in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make-Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Prepare the raspberry sauce up to 1 week in advance. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use. Prepare recipe through step 6 up to 2 days in advance. Cover unbaked cheesecake bars and store in the refrigerator until ready to bake. Continue with step 7. Since they’re cold, bars will take a few extra minutes to bake. To freeze: cool, chill, and slice bars as instructed. Freeze bars between layers of parchment paper for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Fine Mesh Strainer | 9-inch Square Baking Pan | Parchment Paper | Food Processor | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Glass Mixing Bowl | Cooling Rack
- Oreo Cookies: You need about 22 whole Oreos, which pulse down into about 2 packed cups of crumbs (250g).
- Graham Cracker Crust Instead: If you want to use graham crackers instead of Oreos, use this graham cracker crust recipe. Same pre-bake time.
- White Chocolate: Use 6 ounces of “baking chocolate” bars, found in the baking aisle. They’re sold in 4-ounce bars, so you’ll need 2. (You’ll have 2 ounces leftover for another use.) I prefer Bakers or Ghirardelli brands. Do not use candy melts, white chocolate dipping wafers, or white chocolate chips; all contain stabilizers or added ingredients preventing them from combining evenly with the cheesecake filling.
- Lemon Juice: This recipe does not taste like lemon. The 1 teaspoon of lemon juice brightens up the otherwise flat white chocolate flavor.
- Raspberry Jam: You can try using raspberry jam instead of the homemade sauce. I recommend 3 Tablespoons for each layer (6 Tbsp total).
- 9×13-inch or Full Cheesecake: For a 9×13-inch pan, you can double the filling recipe. Do not double the raspberry sauce or crust ingredients. For the sauce, use 3 teaspoons of water (1.5 teaspoons with the cornstarch, 1.5 teaspoons with the raspberries & sugar), 2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries, and 3 Tablespoons of sugar. For the crust, use 30 Oreos and 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp) of melted butter. Bake time is closer to 45–50 minutes. Cool for 1 hour at room temperature, then chill for at least 4–5 hours before slicing. Use these same amounts for a full cheesecake in a 10-inch springform pan (no smaller). I recommend following the baking and cooling instructions, including using a water bath, as found in my regular cheesecake recipe. I found the edges rose up and burned quickly, so tent with aluminum foil after about 30 minutes. (I found the cheesecake then stuck to the foil, creating a bit of a mess on top.) For these reasons, I strongly recommend using this recipe for bars instead of a full cheesecake.
- Mini Individual Cheesecakes: Use the baking and cooling instructions found in my mini cheesecakes and use this recipe as written. Recipe makes about 2 dozen cheesecakes in a muffin pan. Line 2 12-count muffin pans with liners. Firmly press 1.5 Tablespoons of crust mixture into each. Pre-bake for 5 minutes. Pour filling on top, about 1 Tbsp filling for each. Drizzle each with raspberry sauce. Swirl with a toothpick. Again, use the baking and cooling instructions found in my mini cheesecakes. Feel free to top cooled mini cheesecakes with whipped cream.
More Cheesecake
- No-Bake Cheesecake Jars
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake Bars
- Blueberry Swirl Cheesecake
- No-Bake Cheesecake
- Small Batch Cheesecake (so fun—bake in a loaf pan)
Hi! Would Ghirardelli’s melting wafers be sufficient if their baker’s bars are out of stock or does they not melt the same / the wafers are best for dipping items? I have used both but never thought to check for differences since they worked for what their respective recipes called for!
Hi Kathleen, we don’t recommend it, but if that’s all you can find you can try using them in a pinch.
Hi Sally and team,
I recently made your raspberry coulis and was wondering if I should follow the notes in your recipe and use three tablespoons per layer. Does that sound right, or would you recommend adjusting the amount?
Thank you!
Hi Isabel, yes, you can certainly use the raspberry coulis instead. Same amount. Hope you enjoy the cheesecake bars!
I baked according to the recipe for 9×13 pan at 45 minutes. Definitely way too long and the cheesecake was overcooked and slightly burnt. My mistake for not checking the oven at 30 minutes mark. Just wanted to throw a cautionary tale for those attempting to bake for bigger crowd.
To make Ina 9×13 pan for a large gathering, should 1.5 times the recipe?
Hi Chris, see detailed Note for making a 9×13-inch pan of these bars.
We recently tried the lemon cheesecake and it was amazing! Would like to now try this but would prefer to make in a more traditional way with the chocolate crust but in a springform pan. Would these measurements work for that?
Hi Nikole, You can use a 10 inch springform pan, with the same amount of ingredients, following the baking and cooling instructions (including using a water bath) as found in our regular cheesecake recipe.
These are definitely getting added to my repertoire. I used pink white chocolate, and it added a beautiful contrast to the homemade raspberry sauce from my homegrown raspberries.
It was so dangerously good that I almost slithered my way around the whole cheesecake lol
I would love to try this but would make for a larger crowd. How would I go about doubling this recipe.
Hi Dianne! We would make two batches instead of multiplying the recipe for best results.
Hi! Would this recipe work well to make in a cupcake tin for individual sized cheesecakes?
Hi Joni, see recipe Notes for individual mini cheesecake instructions. Enjoy!
Hi there, there are only 2 of us, so would I be able to cut the recipe in half and do it in a 6″x6″ pan?
Hi Barb, it shouldn’t be a problem to halve the recipe and use a smaller pan. We’re unsure of the exact bake time. Or, you might be interested in this small batch cheesecake recipe!
Is it possible to substitute the raspberry sauce with blueberry? If so, do you have a recipe for it? I know you have the blueberry lemon cheesecake bars, but I’ve had a request for blueberry cheesecake with Oreo crust. Thank you!
Hi Sasha, yes, you can use blueberries in place of the raspberries. Enjoy!
Fantastic as always. Sally’s recipes are not only delicious, they are so dependable! I feel totally comfortable making a recipe for the first time for a crowd, something I’d never do with another site.
I didn’t have a 9×9 pan so I used my regular 8×8. The bars were a little tall but aesthetically they were totally fine, I wouldn’t go out and buy a 9×9 just for this. Took about 7 – 10 mins longer to cook, I just eyeballed it until the pan was set. Used raspberry jam, forgot to buy the seedless kind but the seeds didn’t bother us.
I love your recipes. Can I use lemon curd instant of raspberry sauce? I will have leftover lemon curd from another recipe. Thank you
Hi Ana, we haven’t tested that and are unsure how the curd would bake in these bars. You could simply spoon some on top of the finished bars, or we have many other options for how to use lemon curd here.
I made these and took to work for Valentine’s Day. Everyone loved them, especially me! I’m not a fan of graham cracker crust so the Oreo cookie crust was a perfect fit. This is very easy to make and so delicious.
This is second time I’ve made this recipe. Wonderful flavor, gorgeous presentation,
Perfect for party or just because. When searching for a recipe, Sally’s Baking site never disappoints. Thank you.
I made this cheesecake for my family and we all loved it! Thank you for sharing it’s recipe with us 🙂
Great recipe and easy to make. Was a Valentines Day hit!
Very delicious as always! I didn’t have a 9×9 baking pan so I went ahead and threw caution to the wind and used an 8×8 square glass pan. The bars are thicker/taller obviously, and took longer to bake (about 46 minutes). Didn’t overflow or anything. Next time I will probably plan ahead and buy a 9×9 pan to make them as written, but they’re still very good.
So this recipe in the beginning says regular or double stuffed Oreos DOES not matter – and then in the actual recipe it says it does ??? I used double stuffed and it was fine
These are fabulous! The crust has a very high butter content, so it is a bit different from a traditional Oreo crust, but still delicious and it provided a wonderful crunch. The white chocolate cheesecake filling was absolutely wonderful- so creamy and delicious! Lastly, the raspberry swirl was super tart and delicious, and it was the perfect contrast to the filling! All together, it was the perfect combo, and a huge crowd pleaser! I will say that even with dipping the knife in warm water and wiping the balde in between cuts, it was a bit messy, and difficult to make look good if you’re arranging them on a tray or something. I did bake these in a 13×9 pan and followed the instructions in the notes, and it turned out wonderfully. Either way, I’m definitely making these again!
I had about 340g of raspberries so I cooked them all to make the sauce, adjusting water, cornstarch, and sugar accordingly. What anticipated yield for the sauce when using the 205g of raspberries called for in the recipe? I don’t want to use all of the sauce I ended up making as that would make the ratio of sauce to filing too high. Thanks
Hi Elizabeth! We haven’t measured the sauce yield, so really aren’t sure, but would guess around 1/2 cup.
I have frozen strawberries on hand , can I use this instead of raspberries,and I would like to make it in a 9×13 baking dish … do I just double the recipe, please tell me how long to bake it.
Hi Christina, you can use strawberries here. They will take longer to cook down. See recipe notes for information about doubling the filling recipe for a 9×13 pan. Enjoy!
Would I be able to use regular graham cracker crust instead of Oreo? Has anyone ever tried this?
You bet! See recipe notes for details.
These were marvelous!
If you only have white chocolate chips could you use those?
Hi Natalie, White chocolate chips have coating on them that will prevent the chocolate from melting to the correct consistency (it will be too thick). We suggest sticking with pure white chocolate for best results.
Would I be able to use previously frozen cream cheese for this recipe? Thank you!
Hi Michelle, If the cream cheese has been properly thawed to room temperature, we can’t see why not. Let us know if you try it!
This is one of my favorite recipes! It’s so good! If I were to make in a 9×13 pan, would it be okay to do just 1.5 the filling recipe rather than double?
That should be fine, Carrie!