These blueberry cheesecake bars are perfectly sweet, a little bit tart, and bursting with juicy blueberries! Everyone loves lemon blueberry cheesecake squares.
This tasty dessert is just like cheesecake, but easier to make and perfect for sharing! When I bring these blueberry cheesecake bars to a party or summer barbecue, everyone goes nuts for them.
The cheesecake filling is so rich and creamy, and it’s studded with juicy berries that pop in your mouth, releasing their delicious flavor in each bite.
A buttery graham cracker crust is a must for this creamy blueberry dessert, and always my favorite part. The crust on my cheesecake bars is thick, sweet, and simple.
Excellent! I will make it again and again!
Sara
Love Cheesecake? You should grab the recipe for my New York Cheesecake and Oreo Cheesecake too, or make an easy No Bake Cheesecake!
Need a different variety of cheesecake bars? Biscoff Cheesecake Bars are divine!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Balanced Flavor– A sweet and creamy cheesecake filling is very rich, but balanced by the acidity of fresh lemon juice and the slight tartness of blueberries. Each bite of this dessert is perfection.
- Tons of Blueberries – If you’re going to make a blueberry dessert, do it right by adding lots and lots of them to the mix! I love the texture of whole, fresh blueberries in this cheesecake. They almost explode in your mouth with flavor.
- Easy Recipe– This might not be the easiest recipe ever, but I am giving you simple step-by-step instructions so that you can be successful in creating the most amazing dessert for your friends and family.
Ingredients In Blueberry Cheesecake Bars
Fresh blueberries are a must! Add in some common baking ingredients and you’ll be ready to bake.
Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
- Graham Cracker Crust: I suggest using whole graham crackers rather than the crumbs that you can buy pre-crushed. You’ll also need melted butter and sugar to create this tasty layer of the dessert.
- Cream Cheese: The beginning of every good cheesecake recipe is standard cream cheese. The best option here is full-fat cream cheese. The recipe will work if you use Neufchâtel cheese, but it won’t work if you try to use fat-free cream cheese.
- Eggs: In cheesecake, eggs act as a binder. Let your eggs come to room temperature before mixing them in.
- Flour: Only a small amount of flour is needed in this recipe, but it’s important. Some of the flour is added to the cheesecake filling to thicken it, and a bit more is tossed with the blueberries. This helps them to float in the filling rather than sinking to the bottom.
- Vanilla: Pure vanilla extract is the only kind you should use.
- Lemon Juice and Zest: Lemon juice is common in cheesecake, as it helps to balance the richness of cream cheese. It’s also a delicious complement to blueberries.
- Fresh Blueberries: A whole cup and half of blueberries are added to these cheesecake bars.
If you love blueberries you should also make my Homemade Blueberry Pie!
How To Make Blueberry Cheesecake Bars
- Prepare: Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C or (140°C fan oven), and line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper.
- Make Graham Cracker Crust: Use a food processor to crush the graham crackers, then add melted butter and sugar and mix until combined. Press the mixture onto the bottom of the prepared pan.
- Bake Crust: Bake for 8 minutes, then remove from the oven to cool completely.
- Mix the Filling: In a bowl of a stand mixer, or in a medium mixing bowl with a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese and sugar on high speed until creamy. Then add the eggs, 2 tablespoons of flour, vanilla, lemon juice, and lemon zest, and beat at medium speed until combined.
- Add Blueberries: In a separate bowl, toss the blueberries with the remaining flour. Then gently fold the blueberries into the cheesecake filling.
- Fill and Bake: Pour the filling over the cooled graham cracker crust, and bake for 30-15 minutes, or until the cheesecake has set and the edges are lightly golden. The center of the cheesecake will still be a bit jiggly, but it will set as it cools.
Tip!
Coating the blueberries with flour is key to keeping them suspended in the cheesecake. Don’t skip this part!
Recipe Tips
- Make parchment handles: When lining your pan, make the parchment paper longer than you need so that it overflows the sides of the pan. After the cheesecake squares have been baked, you’ll be able to lift them out using the paper.
- Follow all of the steps: This recipe requires two different baking steps, as well as cooling steps. It’s all required! If you follow the steps here, your bars will turn out beautifully.
- Instead of whole berries: Add a blueberry swirl! Simply blend up the berries with a tablespoon of sugar. Swirl that into the cheesecake mixture just before baking.
- Cut Clean Squares: To get super clean cuts like you see in the photos, use a large knife. Before each cut, dip the knife into warm water. Then clean it off with paper towels before the next slice. It takes extra time, but it’s worth it.
- Don’t Worry! The cheesecake may appear to puff up in the oven while it bakes. This is normal. It will deflate after you take it out of the oven and it cools.
Storing Tips
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. These bars will stay fresh for 3 days in the fridge.
To freeze cheesecake bars, store them in an airtight container in the freezer. I sometimes will wrap and freeze the whole pan before I cut them. Keep them in the freezer for up to 2 months, and thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
More Fresh Fruit Desserts to Try
- Fruit Pizza with a sugar cookie crust
- Fruit Salsa with homemade cinnamon chips
- Fresh Strawberry Pie
- Cherry Pie
FAQs
Sure! Instead of a graham cracker crust, make a cookie crust using your favorite crispy cookies. Golden Oreos, shortbread cookies, or even gingersnaps can be used to make a cheesecake bar crust.
Without the blueberries, these cheesecake bars won’t be quite as tall, since the volume of the filling will be less. That said, it should still work.
You can experiment with adding strawberries, raspberries, or other fruit to this recipe in place of or in addition to blueberries. Just be sure that the total amount of fruit isn’t more than 1.5 cups.
You’ll be making these blueberry lemon cheesecake bars for parties all summer long! Make sure to Pin the recipe so you don’t lose it.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
Blueberry Cheesecake Bars
Ingredients
- 10 sheets (200 g) graham crackers (1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs), See note 1
- 2 tablespoons (25 g) granulated sugar
- 5 tablespoons (70 g) unsalted butter melted
- 16 ounces (450 g) full fat cream cheese softened to room temperature, see note 2
- ⅓ cup (66 g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- 4 tablespoons (30 g) all purpose flour divided
- 2 teaspoons (10 ml) pure vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 ½ cups (285 g) fresh blueberries
Instructions
- Adjust the oven rack to the lower-middle position. And preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C,) or 160°C for a fan oven. Line an 8-inch (20 cm) square pan with parchment paper.
- In a food processor, crush the graham crackers, add the sugar and butter, and mix until combined.
- Press the mixture onto the bottom of the pan. Bake for 8 minutes then remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
- In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and sugar on high speed until creamy. Then add the eggs, 2 tbsp flour, vanilla, lemon zest and lemon juice and beat at medium speed until combined.
- In a separate bowl, toss the blueberries in the remaining flour. This will keep the berries from sinking to the bottom.
- Gently fold the blueberries in the cheesecake filling, and pour that over the graham cracker crust.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the cheesecake has set and the edges are lightly golden and set and the center is still a little jiggly. Keep in mind that the cheesecake will puff up as it cooks, once you take it out of the oven it will sink and that’s normal.
- Allow to cool down completely at room temperature, then chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours before serving.
Notes:
- If you can’t find graham crackers, there are options. In the UK, use 14 digestive biscuits in place of the graham crackers, and omit the sugar from the crust. In Australia try Arnott’s Marie crackers. You’ll want 200g of cracker or cookie crumbs total.
- You can use Neufchâtel cheese. The cheesecake won’t be as rich but it will have fewer calories. The recipe will not work with fat-free cream cheese.
- Instead of adding whole berries, you can blend the berries with 1 tablespoon of sugar and then swirl that into the cheesecake layer before baking.
- For clean slices, dip your knife in warm water before slicing, and wipe it off with paper towels after each slice.
- The cheesecake bars may puff up in the oven. Don’t worry, this is normal, and they will go back down as they cool.
- To Store: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. These bars will stay fresh for 3 days in the fridge.
- To Freeze: Wrap well and freeze in an airtight container for up to 2 months. Allow them to thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
© Little Sunny Kitchen
Sara c.c. DaCosta says
Excellent ! I will make it again and again!
Little Sunny Kitchen says
I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe Sara!
D says
You have sugar in two places on this recipe. Sugar doesn’t go into the crust, just butter and graham crackers.
Little Sunny Kitchen says
I actually do add a little bit of sugar to the crust in this recipe. You can leave it out if you like though. Thanks!