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.
PrintWhite 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)
So in love with this recipe that I’m now making it every weekend, lol!
Can I divide the recipe into two 6inch pans? What would be the baking time?
Thanks again and again Sally!
Hi Sue, We haven’t tested it in 6 inch pans but that should work. The bake time will be less – I’m unsure exactly how long they will take.
I made this in the weekend and it was just perfect! Would love to try a Lotus biscuit Crust, should I use 4 spoons of butter as well?
Can you substitute “real” baking chocolate for the white chocolate to make it a chocolate cheesecake?
Sure! Simply swap the white chocolate with 6 ounces of semi-sweet or bittersweet baking chocolate.
Can I make this without white chocolate?
Hi Tracy, you can leave out the white chocolate. If doing so, leave out the flour as well. The bake time will be similar.
Sally, these cheesecake bars were amazing! Gave some to my neighbor who then wrote me back that they were the best cheesecake she’s ever had! I’m keeping this recipe in my baking arsenal for sure. And when I posted my final product picture on a baking forum it got over 3K likes! That was the biggest reaction I’ve ever had! When folks asked for the recipe I sang them your praises and shared the link to this page, of course!
Keep doing what you’re doing hun, you’re my new hero!!!
Sally I have to say that you are crushing your goals. You have given me the confidence in the kitchen to bake from scratch. I raise my hand and say I’m not a baker, but guess what…I just baked these cheesecake bars. And OMG they are delicious. I love how you broke down the three step process and made sure to give tips on what to work on first and how to complete each step. They even baked in my 9 inch round glass pie pan!
Hi Erin
Welcome to being a baker. It is so much fun and it is a very rewarding thing to do. Sallys receipes are easy to understand and the outcome is always delicious. I hope you will keep trying new bakes and gain even more confidence. We are in lock-down in the United Kingdom, we are both essential workers with stressful jobs and baking is even more of a joy for me during these restrictive times.
These are amazing! Huge hit with the family. Will make again soon!
I made these yesterday exactly as written except following the instructions for 9 x 13 pan and they turned out amazing! The filling is spot on in terms of flavor AND texture. You can actually taste the white chocolate. And the raspberry sauce is perfect and not too sweet . I have been looking for the perfect White Chocolate Cheesecake and am so happy to have finally found it. Next time, and there will definitely be a next time, I will use a Graham cracker crust. While the Oreo crust is absolutely delicious, I felt that the subtle flavors of the white chocolate and raspberry were overpowered by the dark chocolate in the crust. Great Recipe!!
Can I sub another kind of flour (gf, almond?) or cornstarch for the 1 tablespoon of all purpose? Thanks!
Hi Erin, I haven’t tested it but an alternative type of flour should work here.
If you use strawberries instead of raspberries for the sauce, would you still use the same ratio of water/sugar/cornstarch?
Yes, the same. Enjoy!
These were PERFECT for Valentine’s Day! Great cheesecake–creamy and delicious (with no water bath required!). Love the Oreo crust. Even with 3 separate steps, came together quickly in a square pan. Next time I’ll try to drag or pipe raspberry filling into hearts on top. Your recipes, hints and tips included, are always foolproof–really appreciate how you anticipate and answer questions that may come up.
Hey Sally,
I made this recipe this weekend. I make guava jam that I keep in my freezer so I used that instead of the raspberry. HUGE hit with the family. Absolutely delish!!!
Thanks!
I made these exactly per your instructions and they were ah-mazing!!!! (Well…I didn’t use parchment paper. Just baked in pan).
I had never made a raspberry sauce like that before and it did take time to push it all through the mesh strainer. I used the bottom of a one-cup plastic measuring cup to push it through bit by bit. I kept scraping the sauce off with a small spatula and moving cup back and forth while pressing down on the cup. This worked great for me. I read a review where she struggled with this. I did wonder at first how this would work when so little came of it at first. Then I just kept repeating the process over and over until nothing but the seeds were left. Sauce was delicious and so worth the effort!!! I’ll be making these delicious bars again. And again and lol. Thank you Sally!
These were amazing!
I made these for our Valentine’s Day dessert (with strawberries because they were on sale) and OMG it’s delicious. I will be making them again, this is a new favorite. My husband and I had to restrain ourselves from eating the entire pan. The cheesecake is creamy and perfect. The Oreo crust has a great crunch and provides an amazing textural element.
I don’t have a 9 inch pan, so I used an 8 inch (despite the note saying it’d be too small) and it fit. The bars are thick, but it didn’t overflow.
Made them this afternoon and my family is inhaling them! So easy and delicious. Made the raspberry sauce yesterday so the recipe went really fast today. Thanks again for the great recipes!
Hello, I love your recipes – I make your pumpkin pie every year for Thanksgiving 🙂
I had the hardest time straining the raspberry sauce and only ended up with about 2 tbsp. I measured everything carefully and after reviewing the instructions I can’t see where I went wrong. It was so thick I had to use my hand (with cling wrap) to push it through the strainer. Could I try adding the cornstarch after straining the raspberries?
Hi Heather, If you strain the raspberries while they are still warm it will be much easier than waiting until they are cool and fully thickened. But yes, you could strain the raspberries before adding the cornstarch if you wish!
My cheesecake crusts (whether graham cracker or oreo cookie) always come out hard. When I try not to pack it down too hard, it crumbles when cut. So I either have a hard crust that won’t cut, or a crumbly loose one. What am I doing wrong?
Hi Margo! Try slightly reducing the butter. The butter is solidifying which could be creating an overly hard crust. Or try skipping the pre-bake crust step. Either should help for next time.
These were absolutely amazing!!! I was a little worried at first because I don’t like white chocolate, but that flavor wasn’t overpowering at all and they were delicious. I couldn’t stop eating them. These are definitely being added to my favorites pile.
This is probably the best cheesecake recipe ever! And this is coming from a person who isn’t a huge fan of cheesecake. I had one… and then another. This recipe is very impressive and delicious!
Thank you so much Sally! This is a total keeper. Will make again soon!
Hello, Sally!
I’d like to make this recipe but only canned raspberry is available here in the Philippines. Would it be alright to use it? How would I adjust the recipe using canned raspberry?
Thank you!❤️
Hi Relle! I’m unsure. If they’re sweetened canned raspberries in syrup, you could just push those through a fine mesh strainer (or puree them first) to rid the seeds and swirl that throughout.
In a pinch and have everything for this but lemon juice. Will it ruin it without?
Hi Crystal, you can leave the lemon juice out if necessary, but the bars have a little more punch of flavor with it.
I made these today and realized last minute I didn’t have lemon juice. I used orange juice instead and it turned out wonderful!
Hi! I’m really excited to make these for Valentine’s Day, but I only have an 8-inch square baking pan, and you say that is too small for this recipe. Is there any way to alter the recipe to better fit the 8-inch pan? Thanks!
Hi Deryn, you could try halving this recipe for an 8-inch pan. Or see my recipe notes for a larger 9×13 inch pan or mini cheesecakes in a muffin pan.
Hi Sally,
I’ve made your salted caramel pumpkin cheesecakes before and had to pre-bake the gingersnap crust for a few minutes before adding the filling. That wasn’t a step listed in note #7 when you talked about converting them to mini cheesecakes so I wanted to double check – should I pre-bake the crust like I did with the other mini cheesecakes, or pour both the crust and cheesecake batter in at the same time?
Thank you. I’ll be making these for Valentine’s Day and I’m very excited about it!
Hi Kat! Yes, pre-bake the crust for 5 minutes. Sorry for that confusion.
They are delicious and turned out perfectly. I made the 9 x 13 recipe. Perfect. Thank you for this.
Hi Sally, these look amazing and I would love to make them!
Only issue is I live in the UK and we don’t seem to have any brick style cream cheese, only the soft spreads 🙁 is there anyway I could make it work with that sort of cream cheese?
Hi Lucy! And from what I understand, spreadable cream cheese sold in a tub in countries outside of the US is a little different from the spreadable cream cheese in the US. It’s thicker, sturdier, and more solid and should be OK to make these bars. I have no experience with it, but this is what I’ve heard from other non-US readers.
These look amazing, Sally! White chocolate + raspberry is my favourite flavour combo and my husband loves cheesecake so this might be on the Valentine’s Day menu.. if I can wait that long to make them 😉
I just have one question though, I’ve made your blueberry sauce before using frozen blueberries and it was still delicious but didn’t thicken as much as using fresh. All I have to make the raspberry sauce is frozen raspberries, so would you recommend maybe adding a touch more cornstarch + water so it still thickens and is less watery? I would HATE to wreck these bars 🙂
Hi Stephanie! I do find that frozen blueberries release a lot of liquid. You currently use 1 teaspoon of water mixed with 1 teaspoon of cornstarch. If using frozen blueberries, you can add another 1/2 teaspoon of water + 1/2 teaspoon of cornstarch (to the 1 tsp of each). You can leave out that 1 extra teaspoon of water that goes into the pan. Hope this helps!
They are in the fridge! Will be a long 3 hours. ☺️
Hi Sally,
Do you still pre bake the cookie crust for the mini cheesecakes and if yes is it still 8 minutes?
Thank you.
Sharon
Yes, follow the baking directions for my mini cheesecakes. You will pre-bake the crust for 5 minutes.
Can you leave the seeds in the raspberry sauce?
If you want to, absolutely!