No bake cheesecake bars consist of a creamy cheesecake filling stacked on a buttery graham cracker crust, topped with fresh whipped cream made from scratch. It’s the perfect treat for large gatherings and dinner parties, because just one recipe serves 12!
You may be accustomed to fussing with a springform pan, hot water baths, or cracked cheesecakes when working with a traditional baked cheesecake recipe. What I love about this no-bake dessert is that you can make an absolutely delicious cheesecake with an ultra creamy filling and it takes little preparation. You can even jazz it up with a layer of creamy lemon curd or drizzle brown sugar caramel sauce over top.
While we’ve cut this pan of cheesecake into 12 bars, you can easily turn it into many more servings by cutting smaller squares. A large square might be great for a standalone dessert, but smaller cheesecake bites are perfect for a dessert buffet.
If you like simple, cheesecake bar recipes, be sure to try my apple cheesecake bars and birthday cake cheesecake bars. Another one of my favorite no bake treats is my white chocolate dessert lasagna.
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🍰 Ingredients:
Cheesecake Filling Ingredients:
- cream cheese – soften at room temperature
- powdered sugar – sweetens the cheesecake layer and helps with consistency.
- vanilla extract – this is the easiest way to add a little more flavor, but some prefer to use vanilla bean paste.
- sour cream – adds a slightly tangy flavor, while being a secret ingredients for the perfect texture.
- heavy cream – keep the heavy cream cold before mixing in.
Homemade Graham Cracker Crust Ingredients:
- graham cracker crumbs – we pulsed graham crackers, but you can also use store-bought graham cracker crumbs
- granulated sugar – could also use light brown sugar.
- butter – we used salted. If using unsalted butter, add a sprinkle of salt as well.
For a full list of ingredients and their measurements, 📋 please view my printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Optional Garnish:
We love topping these delicious cheesecake bars with piped homemade whipped cream. You could also add fresh fruit or different flavors of canned pie filling.
Substitutions and Variations
- Crust – Use chocolate graham crackers for a chocolate crust or use crushed Oreos instead of graham crackers. You could also use biscoff cookies if you like that flavor. Really you could use just about any cookies that will make a crunchy crust, you just want it to have a sturdy base to hold the thick filling.
- Chocolate no bake cheesecake bars – Add 8 ounces of of melted chocolate to the filling mixture. Check out our no bake chocolate cheesecake for a specific recipe and then spread the filling over the crust base.
- Lemon blueberry cheesecake bars – Pour in some lemon juice and add zest to the cheesecake filling, placing fresh blueberries (or canned blueberry pie filling) on top.
- Mini no bake cheesecakes – Assemble your cheesecake in small containers such as ramekins, shallow glass jars, or even muffin tins!
- No bake strawberry cheesecake bars – spoon strawberry pie filling on top of the individual squares, or spread a layer on top before slicing.
- No bake cherry cheesecake bars – use cherry pie filling on top before serving, or spread a layer over the cheesecake filling.
- Cool Whip – if you don’t feel like making homemade whipped cream, use store-bought whipped topping instead.
🔪 Instructions:
PREP: Add the graham crackers and pulse into fine crumbs using a food processor.
Step 1: Place them in a large bowl and stir in the sugar (or in the baking pan to reduce clean up).
Step 2: Melt the butter in the microwave, then mix evenly with the crumbs and sugar.
Step 3: Press the crumb mixture into the bottom of a 9×13 baking pan in an even layer.
Step 4: In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the room temperature cream cheese with 1 ¼ cups of powdered sugar, sour cream, and the vanilla.
Pro Tip: Keep the large mixing bowl for the whipped cream chilled until ready to use. This speeds up the process of whipping the cream.
Step 5: Pour the heavy cream into a separate bowl that has been chilled. Use a hand mixer and beat on medium high speed until soft peaks form (or use the whisk attachment with your stand mixer). Once the cream thickens, add the remaining powdered sugar and beat for another 2-3 minutes, or until stiff peaks form.
Step 6: Reserve 2 cups of whipped cream for decorating the top of the cheesecake bars. Fold the remaining whipped cream, using a rubber spatula, into the cream cheese mixture.
Step 7: Spread the cheesecake layer over the prepared crust. Use the back of a spoon or offset spatula to smooth the top. Chill the cheesecake bars in the refrigerator for 4 hours or in the freezer for 2 hours
Step 8: Transfer the reserved whipped cream to a piping bag with a #1M tip. Pipe dollops of cream on top of the cheesecake squares.
SERVE: Slice into bars and serve.
Recipe Tips for No Bake Cheesecake Bars
- Cheesecakes and cheesecake bars should be chilled if not serving. At about 6 hours of sitting out, the cream based ingredients may start to spoil and/or separate.
- If you don’t have a food processor, place the crackers into a resealable plastic bag, then seal. Use a rolling pin to crush into fine crumbs.
- Room temperature cream cheese works the best to get the creamy texture of the no bake filling.
- The filling and the crust can be made ahead of time. Store the filling for up to 1 week in the refrigerator in an airtight container, or freeze for 3 months. Thaw the frozen filling in the fridge, then add to the crust.
- Do not overmix the whipping cream as it can turn to butter.
- If using a 9-inch pie dish, use this simple graham cracker crust recipe.
Fun Fact
While the first versions of the cheesecake are substantially different from what we enjoy today, we can credit the addition of sugar to the cook serving England’s King Henry VIII. The use of cream cheese in place of cottage cheese can be attributed to a New York farmer who accidentally invented cream cheese in 1872, although the use of cream cheese in cheesecakes only took off in the early 1900s. -Zippy Facts
Recipe FAQs
Longer than you may think! In fact, the earliest recorded cheesecakes date back thousands of years ago when a Greek writer around 230 AD described cheesecakes being fed to gladiators, consisting of a mix of wheat flour, honey and pounded cheese.
Today, the majority of cheesecakes are made with a cream cheese mixture and are considered to be a dessert with varying degrees of sweetness depending on the additional ingredients and toppings used.
Store leftover cheesecake bars in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Place the set cheesecake bars on a baking sheet and flash freeze for 2 hours. Then wrap individual slices in plastic wrap and store for 1 month.
More No Bake Desserts to Try
If you tried this No Bake Cheesecake Bars Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you liked it in the 📝 comments below.
No Bake Cheesecake Bars
Ingredients
Filling Ingredients
- 3 8-ounce packages cream cheese, softened
- 1 ¾ cups powdered sugar divided
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- 3 cups heavy whipping cream cold
Graham Cracker Crust Ingredients
- 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup salted butter melted
Instructions
- Combine graham cracker crumbs and granulated sugar in a mixing bowl (or right in a 9×13 baking dish to reduce dishes).
- Melt butter in a heat-proof bowl in the microwave. Pour melted butter into the graham cracker mixture and stir until evenly combined.
- Press graham cracker mixture evenly across the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish. Place baking dish in the freezer to firm up the crust while making the cheesecake mixture.
- In a medium mixing bowl, beat together cream cheese, 1 ¼ cups of powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and sour cream until thoroughly combined.
- Pour 3 cups of heavy whipping cream into a chilled mixing bowl. Beat on medium high speed (either with a standing mixer whisk attachment or with a handheld mixer). When the whipping cream thickens to soft peaks, add in the remaining ½ cup powdered sugar (2-3 minutes).
- Continue beating until whipped cream forms stiff peaks. Set aside about 2 cups of the whipped cream for decorating the top of the cheesecake.
- Use a spatula to gently fold the remaining whipped cream (about 4 cups) into the cream cheese mixture.
- Spread the cheesecake filling evenly over the chilled graham cracker crust. Use an offset spatula to smooth the top of the cheesecake.
- Place cheesecake in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or in the freezer for at least 2 hours to set.
- Transfer reserved whipped cream to a piping bag fit with Tip #1M.
- Pipe 12 dollops of whipped cream onto the cheesecake, evenly spaced to
- Storage:
- Store leftovers, covered, in the refrigerator for 2-3 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month.
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Notes
Nutrition
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