White Chocolate Blondie Raspberry Cheesecake Bars

Blondies and cheesecake together?? Could there be a better combination? These white chocolate blondie raspberry cheesecake bars are composed of a chewy white chocolate blondie on the bottom with a creamy raspberry swirled vanilla cheesecake on top. They are gorgeous to look at and even better to eat!

I love a good cheesecake but they can be a bit time consuming and finicky. Don't get me wrong; full cheesecakes have their place in this world (evidenced by my lemon blueberry cheesecake and my raspberry brownie cheesecake) and are the perfect dessert to impress and spoil those you love but sometimes ain't nobody got time for that.

Cheesecake bars are just the opposite. You whip up a filling rather quickly, pour it over your crust of choice and then throw it in the oven. No water bath with foil salvage ring, no cracking or sinking. But, I like to be extra. So why not throw that raspberry cheesecake bar filling over a decadent white chocolate blondie? Well that's exactly what I did and I'm here to tell you to make these asap. They make an awesome presentation with the pretty swirl of raspberry, are nice and portable and don't require utensils to eat.

How to make the raspberry puree

I recommend starting with the raspberry puree so that it can cool while you make the other components. Start by adding raspberries, sugar and water to a small saucepan over medium heat. You will bring this to a boil while squishing the raspberries with the back of the spoon to break them down. Once this starts to boil, you will add in a cornstarch slurry which is just a little water and a little cornstarch stirred together. This will thicken the mixture. Add the slurry and then reduce the heat to medium and simmer for about 3 minutes while stirring constantly until the raspberry puree begins to thicken. It should coat the back of a spoon as you stir it.

Remove it from the heat once it has thickened and press it through a fine mesh sieve to get rid of the berry seeds. You don't have to do this step if you don't have a sieve or aren't bothered by berry seeds, but I really prefer the smooth consistency of no seeds in the puree. Place the puree in the refrigerator to allow it to cool while you start the other components.

How to make the white chocolate blondie

Now we will start with the blondie base. Blondies are simply brownies without chocolate. You'll need the following ingredients for the blondies:

• all purpose flour
• baking powder
• kosher salt
• unsalted butter
• brown sugar
• eggs
• vanilla extract
• white chocolate chips

First, prepare a 9 x 9 baking pan with parchment paper with an overhang on at least 2 sides and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. You'll combine the melted butter and brown sugar in a medium bowl and then add eggs and vanilla. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt and then stir this into the butter and sugar mixture until just combined. It will be a thick batter. Last, fold in the white chocolate chips and spread into your prepared pan, smoothing the top. Bake this until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean, about 25-28 minutes. Don't overbake!! Let the blondie cool while you make the filling.

How to make the cheesecake filling

You can use a stand mixer or a hand mixer for this step. If using a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment so that you don't whip too much air into the filling which can cause cracking or sinking.

Start by mixing together the softened cream cheese and sugar until creamy and incorporated, about 1 minute. Next add the eggs, one at a time, mixing for about 30 seconds each time. Then add the vanilla. Last, you will add 1 tablespoon of flour which helps provide some stability to the cheesecake filling so that it won't sink. Mix the flour until fully incorporated. You may see little lumps after this step but you won't notice it in the final product so don't worry about it.

That's it! Pour the filling over the cooled blondie and then dollop the raspberry puree over the top of the filling. Use a knife to swirl the puree into the cheesecake mixture. Now, you are ready to bake it. Bake the raspberry cheesecake bars for about 36-40 minutes. You'll want the edges to be fully set and just barely starting to brown and the center to be slightly jiggly. It will fully set up while cooling and refrigerating. Let it cool on a wire rack for about 30 minutes and then place in the refrigerator to cool for 2-3 hours before serving. They can also chill overnight.

Tips for best results

• Make sure to use full-fat cream cheese that has been softened and is room temperature. If you are like me and forget to pull out your ingredients prior to baking, you can place a block of cream cheese on a microwave-safe plate and microwave on 50% power for 10 seconds and then flip and do the same for the other side to quickly soften it. Be sure to watch it carefully and don't let it melt! If you start with cold cream cheese, you will have lumps of cream cheese in your cheesecake.
• Don't overbeat the blondies or the cheesecake filling. Overbeating the blondies can make them tough and overbeating the cheesecake filling can whip too much air into it causing cracks or sinking.
• If you prefer to skip the homemade raspberry puree, you can use a seedless raspberry jam as the swirl on top of the cheesecake filling. The puree yields about ¼ cup so use about the same amount of jam.
• Don't overbake! It's tempting to do so as the filling won't be completely set in the center making you think it's not done. It will firm up while cooling. The same goes with the blondies. While you don't want an underbaked blondie, an overbaked one is worse! While the blondies shouldn't be jiggly in the center like the cheesecake filling, but the edges will be fully set and the center can look just slightly underdone and will continue to bake after being taken out of the oven.

Tips for serving

The blondies need to chill in the refrigerator for a few hours prior to serving to allow the cheesecake filling to fully set up. I recommend pulling them out of the fridge about 15-20 minutes prior to serving to allow the blondie base to come to room temperature so it's not so hard when eating.

How to store the cheesecake bars

The bars will keep in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. They do need to be stored in the refrigerator due to the cheesecake filling. Wrap the pan in foil or place the blondies in an airtight container ideally pushed together if they were cut to keep the blondie from drying out. These didn't last very long in my household so you may not need to worry about it :-).

You can also freeze the raspberry cheesecake bars. I would recommend placing them on a sheet tray to freeze for a couple of hours until firm before wrapping them tightly with plastic wrap and foil and then storing them in a zip-top bag or another airtight container. They should last 1-2 months if stored properly. Enjoy these raspberry cheesecake bars!

If you like this recipe, you may enjoy these:

• Frozen strawberry cheesecake with a pretzel crust
• Mini chocolate cheesecakes with thin mint crusts
• Carrot cake cheesecake cupcakes
• Brown butter peach blondies

Tag me on Instagram @themarblekitchenblog if you make this and leave a star rating and comment below! Thank you and enjoy!

White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Bars

These white chocolate blondie raspberry cheesecake bars are composed of a chewy white chocolate blondie on the bottom with a creamy raspberry swirled vanilla cheesecake on top.

5 from 1 vote

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Chilling time: 3 hours hours

Total Time: 4 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Servings: 16 bars

Calories: 426kcal

Author: Tara Kringlen

Ingredients

Raspberry Puree

• 1 cup raspberries
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 teaspoon water
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch

White Chocolate Blondie Crust

• 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¾ cup unsalted butter melted
• 1 ¼ cups light brown sugar packed
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup white chocolate chips

Cheesecake Filling

• 2 8 oz packages cream cheese softened
• ½ cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 tablespoon flour

Instructions

Raspberry Puree

• In a small bowl stir together 1 teaspoon water and cornstarch until combined.
• Combine raspberries, sugar and 1 teaspoon water in a small saucepan over medium high heat.
• Cook until boiling, stirring often and using a spoon to crush the berries, about 4 minutes.
• Reduce the heat to medium, add the cornstarch slurry and simmer for 3 minutes, stirring constantly until thickened and the mixture coats the back of a spoon.
• Remove from the heat. Press the mixture through a fine mesh sieve to remove the berry seeds.
• Place in the refrigerator to cool while you make the other components.

White Chocolate Blondie Crust

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9 x 9 baking pan with parchment leaving an overhang on 2 sides.
• Combine melted butter and brown sugar in a medium bowl and mix well. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing for about 30 seconds after each. Add the vanilla.
• Stir together the flour, baking powder and salt in a separate small bowl.
• Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir just until the flour is incorporated. Do not overmix.
• Stir in the white chocolate chips until just combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula. The batter will be thick.
• Bake for 25-28 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean and the bars are golden brown. Let cool on a wire rack while you make the cheesecake filling.

Cheesecake Filling

• Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or a hand mixer, combine softened cream cheese and sugar, mixing until incorporated, about 1 minute.
• Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing about 30 seconds each time. Add the vanilla and mix until incorporated. Add the flour and mix for 20 seconds.
• Pour the cheesecake filling over the cooled baked blondie and smooth the top.
• Dollop the raspberry puree over the top of the filling and use a knife to swirl it into the filling.
• Bake the cheesecake bars at 350 degrees for 36-40 minutes until cheesecake is almost set in the middle but still slightly jiggles and the edges are set and barely begining to turn brown.
• Cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes and then place in the refrigerator to chill for at least 2 to 3 hours before slicing and serving.

Notes

• Store in the refrigerator tightly covered for 3-4 days.
• Remove from the refrigerator 15-20 minutes prior to serving to soften the blondie crust. 
• The raspberry puree yields about ¼ cup. You can substitute the same amount of seedless raspberry jam if you prefer not to make the puree. 

Nutrition

Calories: 426kcal