These cranberry cheesecake bars are creamy, gently spiced, and swirled with a bright cranberry sauce that bakes up into a striking holiday dessert. A buttery gingersnap crust gives every bite a warm crunch, and a touch of orange zest in the vanilla cheesecake batter is a classic pair for the tart cranberry flavor.
These cranberry cheesecake bars are the perfect make-ahead holiday dessert, especially since they need ample chill time in the fridge! And, let's not forget how stunning the swirl effect is...just like in these pumpkin cheesecake bars, raspberry cheesecake bars, baklava cheesecake bars, and chocolate marble cheesecake.
What can we say, we love an aesthetic dessert that looks as amazing as it tastes. Want a super tart version? These cranberry lemon bars will be your new go-to!
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
Classic holiday flavors - cranberry, orange, and warm ginger and cinnamon from the gingersnap crust. Cranberry orange cinnamon rolls for breakfast, cranberry cheesecake bars for dessert!
Clean, impressive slices - striking swirls, and slices with perfectly sharp edges! Wipe the knife off in between each cut for best results.
Make-ahead friendly - these can be made multiple days in advance and store incredibly well in the fridge without compromising on looks or flavor.
Ingredients
- Cranberries. Use fresh or frozen cranberries to mix up the quick cranberry puree for these cheesecake bars.
- Gingersnaps. Whatever brand is your favorite...go for it! I love Sweetzels because they're extra spicy.
- Eggs. Just two eggs help to bind the cheesecake batter for a slow, creamy filling.
- Cream cheese. Two block of brick-style cream cheese get used in the batter. I love Philadelphia brand best.
- Sour cream. Just a touch of sourcream creates an extra tangy punch of flavor in every bite.
- Fall spices. A mix of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger gives you that nostalgic holiday flavor combination.
See recipe card for full ingredients list and quantities.
Substitutions and Variations
- Use graham crackers, vanilla wafers, or Biscoff cookies (like in these mini biscoff cheesecakes) for the crust in place of ginger snaps.
- Try lemon zest instead of orange zest for an extra tangy version.
- Add a white chocolate drizzle to the cooled bars for an extra layer of flavor.
How to Make This Recipe
One: Cook down the cranberries, spices, and sugar until broken down.
Two: Pass the puree through a fine mesh sieve and let it cool.
Three: Mix together the melted butter, salt, and ground gingersnaps.
Four: Press it evenly into a prepared pan, then bake.
Five: Rub together the orange zest and sugar, then mix into the cream cheese.
Six: Add the whisked eggs and vanilla and beat to combine.
Hot tip! Mix every step for the cheesecake batter on the lowest speed. Whipping in too much air can cause the cheesecake bars to crack.
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Seven: Scrape down the sides and fold in the sour cream until incorporated.
Eight: Mix ⅓ of the cheesecake batter into the cranberry puree until combined, reserving a few spoonfuls of cranberry puree for the swirl.
Nine: Alternate adding the batters on top of the crust, then dollop on the remaning puree.
Ten: Use a butter knife to gently swirl the batters together - don't over-swirl!
Expert Tips
- Press the crust in tightly and evenly, being sure to get the edges and corners nice and compact.
- Use room temperature dairy (cream cheese, eggs, sour cream). Cold dairy = lumpy batter.
- Mix the cheesecake batter low and slow. Adding too much air can cause the cranberry cheesecake bars to crack.
- Less is more on the swirl. Overswirling will cause a muddy final product.
Testing Notes
- I highly recommend using a food processor or blender to pulverize the gingersnaps. I tried a version, breaking it down with a ziploc bag and rolling pin, and it left larger chunks that didn't press into the pan nicely.
- I really liked the amount of orange flavor that one full orange gave. If you want a less prominent orange flavor, use a quarter or half of the orange.
- Sour cream makes for an extra tangy and smooth version of the cheesecake batter. If you don't love a New York style flavor, you can omit the sour cream with no changes to the recipe.
Recipe FAQs
Not in this recipe, we need fully hydrated, tart cranberries to create the puree in this recipe. Either fresh or frozen cranberries can be used.
The edges will be set and matte around the outer inch or two, and the center will be jiggly when you tap the pan, but shouldn't be sloshy. The cooling process will finish setting the bars.
These cheesecake bars can be prepared up to three days in advance without sacrificing flavor or quality.
Storage
Store the cranberry cheesecake bars lightly covered in the fridge for up to 5 days. Be sure to allow a bit of air in so the crust doesn't get soggy from trapped moisture.
Freeze the slab or individual bars tightly wrapped in the fridge for two months. Uncover and thaw in the fridge before serving.
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What to Know When Cooking with The Cozy Plum
- All recipes are created with Diamond Crystal kosher salt, the least salty variety of kosher salt. If using Morton's, you'll need to cut the amount of salt in half as it's 2x as salty. This will be the same for sea salt. Please do not use table salt.
- Switch between Cups vs Metric using the toggle on the recipe card. Baking by weight using a digital scale will always produce the most accurate results.
- Scale the recipe using the '1X' '2X' '3X' buttons on the recipe card. Note that this does not make an adjustment for baking times, only quantities.
📖Recipe
Cranberry Cheesecake Bars
Equipment
- 8x8" pan
- Stand mixer with paddle attachment, or handheld mixer
Ingredients
Cranberry Puree
- 2 cups cranberries fresh or frozen
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon ground ginger
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
Gingersnap Crust
- 2 cups gingersnaps finely ground
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
Cheesecake Layer
- 16 oz cream cheese (full fat) room temperature
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 orange zested
- 2 large eggs room temperature and whisked
- ¼ cup sour cream (full fat) room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Cranberry Puree
- Add all of the ingredients to a saucepan over medium heat and cook until the cranberries are completely broken down. Use the back of a spoon to crush them as they begin to soften.2 cups cranberries, ½ cup granulated sugar, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ⅛ teaspoon ground ginger, ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- Pass the mixture through a fine mesh sieve to remove any chunks, then let the mixture cool.
Gingersnap Crust
- Preheat the oven to 350℉/177℃ and line an 8x8" baking pan with parchment paper overhangs so you can easily remove the bars after baking. It helps to lightly grease the pan first so the parchment sticks.
- Using a food processor, pulverize the gingersnaps until finely ground. Add the salt and melted butter and pulse until combined and moistened.2 cups gingersnaps, ¼ teaspoon kosher salt, 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Press the mixture into the bottom of the pan, taking care to press it into the sides and corners.
- Bake the crust for 8 minutes and allow to cool on a wire rack.
- Reduce the oven temperature to 315℉.
Cheesecake Layer
- In a stand mixer fixed with the paddle attachment, mix the cream cheese on low speed to break it down then scrape down the sides.16 oz cream cheese (full fat)
- Rub together the sugar and the orange zest with your fingertips, then add the sugar and mix on low speed until creamy, then scrape down the sides again.¾ cup granulated sugar, 1 orange zested
- Drizzle in the whisked eggs on low until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl again, then add in the sour cream and vanilla and mix on low until it's just incorporated.2 large eggs, ¼ cup sour cream (full fat), 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Assembly
- Reserve a couple of small spoonfuls of the cranberry mixture.
- Add ⅓ of the cheesecake batter to the larger batch of cooled cranberry puree and mix it until combined. Alternate adding the vanilla batter and cranberry batter to the prepared pan until both batters are used up. Dollop on the remaining cranberry puree in small spots all over.
- Using a butter knife, swirl the cranberry and cheesecake mixtures together to create a marbling effect. Don't over swirl!
- Bake the bars for 35-40 minutes, or until the cheesecake is set and matte on the edges but still jiggles in the center. If the center looks sloshy in any way, continue baking.
- Cool on a wire rack for 1 hour, then transfer to the fridge to cool for at least 4 hours, uncovered. Remove the bars from the pan using the parchment paper slings, cut into slices, and serve!
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