Cheesecake Bars with All The Berries
Total Time
1 hour, plus cooling time
Rating
4.5 out of 5 stars
(120)
Ingredients
24 servings
- 2 cups (220 grams) graham or digestive cracker crumbs
- 1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons (85 grams) salted or unsalted butter, melted, browned if you wish
- A pinch or two of salt
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla (optional)
- 1 1/2 pounds (3 8-ounce packages) cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract
- 2 cups (455 grams) sour cream
- 2 tablespoons (25 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla
- 3 to 4 cups mixed berries, dry
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Preparation
Step 1
Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Line bottom and sides of a 9×13-inch rectangular baking pan with 2 sheets of foil (crisscrossed), leaving a 2-inch overhang on all sides.
Step 2
Combine crumbs, sugar, butter, salt, and vanilla in a bowl with a fork until evenly mixed. Press firmly into bottom of prepared pan. Bake for 10 minutes.
Step 3
While crust is baking, beat cream cheese until fluffy with sugar, then beat in eggs, one at a time, until thoroughly mixed, scraping down the sides and bottom of your bowl between each addition. Beat in vanilla.
Step 4
Pour over prepared crust (still hot is fine) and bake for 25 minutes, until puffed but still jiggly like Jell-O when shimmied. Let cool on rack for 5 minutes.
Step 5
Whisk together sour cream, sugar, and vanilla. Drop spoonfuls of topping all over bars and spread gently in one thin layer. Bake bars with topping for 10 minutes.
Step 6
Set pan on a cooling rack and let cool; refrigerate at least 2 hours or ideally overnight.
Step 7
Use foil sling to carefully lift bars out of pan and transfer them to a cutting board. If you can, carefully slide them off their foil — proceed at your own risk.
Step 8
Scatter berries all over cake. Cut gently into 2×2-ish-inch squares with a serrated knife. Keep leftovers in fridge.
Step 9
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Chef's notes
I used a mix of wild strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries and red currants. If you’re lucky enough to find white or black currants, they’d be stunning here too.
Crumb crusts vary by brand and type, so adjust butter accordingly. Add more butter if crumbs aren’t coming together, or more crumbs if they seem too buttery.
Consider skipping the sour cream topping for a whipped cream layer instead, or marble with raspberry sauce or chocolate glaze for variation.
