These raspberry swirl cheesecake bars are the perfect mixture of tangy and sweet— featuring a creamy cheesecake with a hint of lemon and a swirl of raspberry compote atop a homemade shortbread crust.

These mouthwatering cheesecake bars are almost too pretty to eat. Truthfully, I’m not the biggest fan of cheesecakes but these raspberry swirl ones are out of this world. Seriously, I could have eaten the whole tray and not regretted it one bit 😞

Cheesecake + raspberry + lemon = a match made in heaven. I’m warning you, you won’t be able to stop at one pretty little bar. The shortbread crust is perfectly moist and crumbly, paired with the raspberry cheesecake and the barest hint of lemon, I’m certain you’ll fall in love with these just as I did.

Let’s start by preheating the oven to 350°F and lining a 9×9 inch baking pan with parchment paper. Leave an overhang on the sides to lift the completed cheesecake out with ease.

Now, combine the flour, butter, and brown sugar together in a bowl until the mixture is crumbly. If needed, you can use a food processor for this step. Press the crumb mixture tightly into the bottom of the pan.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the shortbread crust is slightly golden brown at the edges. Remove from oven and set aside.

Next up! In a medium saucepan, bring the raspberries, sugar, and ¼ cup of water to a boil. Dissolve the cornstarch in 3 tablespoons of cold water to create a slurry. Slowly add the slurry to the saucepan, stirring gently with a rubber spatula so it doesn’t clump. Boil until the mixture thickens. Turn off the heat and set aside the raspberry compote.

Don’t have raspberries on hand? You can easily use blackberries, strawberries, or blue berries instead!

In a bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla extract until smooth. Add the egg and beat for another minute or two until combined. Then, beat in the whipping cream until you have a smooth batter.

Pour the cheesecake filling over the baked shortbread crust. Drop spoonfuls of the raspberry compote onto the cheesecake batter and using a toothpick, swirl the raspberry compote through the cheesecake batter.

To avoid having the raspberry compote just ‘sit’ on top of the cheesecake, drop spoonfuls of the jam from a few inches above the baking pan.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the top of the cheesecake sets. Allow to cool completely, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. Cut into bars and enjoy!

Lemon Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake Bars

Servings: 9-12 bars

5 from 2 votes

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Prep Time 20

Cook Time 1

Total Time 5 20

Ingredients

Shortbread Crust

1½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup + 1 tbsp butter unsalted
¼ cup dark brown sugar packed

Raspberry Compote

1 cup raspberries fresh
¼ cup sugar
¼ cup water
1 tbsp cornstarch
3 tbsp cold water

Cheesecake

8 oz cream cheese
⅓ cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 egg
⅓ cup heavy cream

Instructions

For the shortbread crust

Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C) and line a 9x9 inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on the sides to lift the completed cheesecake out. Combine the flour, butter, and brown sugar together in a bowl until the mixture is crumbly. Then press tightly into the bottom of the pan.
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the shortbread crust is slightly golden brown at the edges. Remove from oven and set aside.

For the raspberry compote

In a medium saucepan, bring the raspberries, sugar, and ¼ water to a boil. Dissolve the cornstarch in the 3 tablespoons of cold water to create a slurry. Slowly add the slurry to the saucepan, stirring gently with a rubber spatula. Boil until the mixture thickens. Turn off the heat and set aside the raspberry compote.

For the cheesecake

In a bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla extract until smooth. Add the egg and beat for another minute or two until combined. Then, beat in the whipping cream until you have a smooth batter.
Pour the cheesecake filling over the baked shortbread crust. Drop spoonfuls of the raspberry compote (see note) onto the cheesecake batter and using a toothpick, swirl the raspberry compote through the cheesecake batter.
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the top of the cheesecake sets. Allow to cool completely, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. Cut into bars and enjoy!

Notes

To avoid having the raspberry compote just 'sit' on top of the cheesecake, drop spoonfuls of the jam from a few inches above the baking pan.

Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake Bars