Lemony Cheesecake Squares with Raspberry Swirl

These Gluten-Free sweet & tart beauties are out of this world! Graham cracker base + creamy & luscious lemony cheesecake + raspberry swirl. Impressive-looking but super EASY to make and perfect for special dessert or any time!

Lemony Cheesecake squares raspberry swirl gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com
Lemony Cheesecake Squares with Raspberry Swirl

An easy dessert recipe for the most delicious gluten-free lemony cheesecake bars!

Looking for our classic Cheesecake Bars, click here.

New! Just in time for Valentines Day, I added a cooking video to this page so you could see just how simple it is to make these gluten-free Lemony Cheesecake Squares with Raspberry Swirl!

If you’re new to this website, at the bottom of every recipe page is a printable recipe with exact measurements and directions.

Enjoy!

Lemony Cheesecake squares raspberry swirl gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

Update April 2020: This is a great treat/ dessert for Spring and Easter! It uses mostly pantry staples and tastes super indulgent and special without having to make an entire cake.  Plus it stays well in the refrigerator for several days is you have extra.

If you don’t have fresh raspberries or raspberry preserves, you could substitute frozen ones or strawberries or even skip the swirl… the bars will still taste amazing!

Hope you love them!

Original post….

These Lemony Cheesecake Squares are amaaaaaazing!

Creamy & Luscious  Lemony Cheesecake + Graham Cracker Crust+ Raspberry Swirl.

The perfect balance of Sweet and Tart and SO YUMMY!

We first made them last year for Valentine’s Day and they quickly became a fan favorite of ours and yours!

They also happen to be ridiculously easy to make.

So let’s make them!

They are made 10 real whole food ingredients:

gluten-free graham crackers

sugar

butter or dairy free butter

cream cheese or dairy free cream cheese

eggs

milk or dairy free milk

lemons  (both juice and zest)

vanilla

raspberry preserves

and raspberries

Lemony Cheesecake squares raspberry swirl gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

First we make the graham cracker crumbs and graham cracker base.

We made our graham cracker crumbs using Schar Honeygrams which we like because they are certified gluten-free, non-gmo and so tasty.

And we just pulse them in our Mini Cuisanart (Amazon affiliate link)

Lemony Cheesecake squares raspberry swirl gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

And the graham cracker base is mostly graham cracker crumbs plus a touch of melted butter.

Lemony Cheesecake squares raspberry swirl gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

Just mix together and press into the baking pan evenly.

For this recipe, especially, I like to place parchment paper on the base of the pan. That way when the bars are cooked and cooled, you can just lift the parchment paper and the bars right out of the pan and cut/ serve them easily.

Lemony Cheesecake squares raspberry swirl gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

While the graham cracker layer bakes for just 8 minutes, we whip up the cheesecake filling which, adapted from a Martha Stewart recipe, is a luscious and creamy blend of:

cream cheese or dairy- free cream cheese

eggs

lemon juice

lemon zest

a touch of milk or dairy free milk

and vanilla.

Pro tip: if you’re doing a lot of baking/ cooking, you may find yourself needing “zest” for recipes… I shared on Instagram stories that another basic kitchen tool we love is our Microplane (Amazon affiliate link) which makes zesting a cinch!

Lemony Cheesecake squares raspberry swirl gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

Back to the cheesecake layer…

You first cream the cream cheese and sugar .

Then add the rest of the ingredients, mix to combine then mix well for 1-2 minutes until super creamy and luscious looking!

Lemony Cheesecake squares raspberry swirl gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

The creamy filling gets poured onto the hot graham cracker base.

Lemony Cheesecake squares raspberry swirl gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

Then onto the raspberry swirl!

The swirl is a blend of raspberry preserves, fresh raspberries and a touch of lemon juice so it’s not too sweet.

Lemony Cheesecake squares raspberry swirl gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

It’s mixed together and run through mesh strainer so it’s liquid-y and without seeds.

I was terrified of adding the swirl (I thought it would be difficult) but after doing this several times have decided it’s super easy and fun!

You literally drizzle the “liquid jam” in any swirl pattern you like, then using a tooth pick make swirls into the cheesecake filling. That’s it!

And suddenly a basic cheesecake bar is transformed into a festive and fun treat!

Bake, cool, then lift the parchment straight out of the pan and cut into bars.  It couldn’t be easier!

And they are creamy and luscious and just the right balance of sweet and tart.  A total crowd pleaser!

Hope you love them as much as we do!

Lemony Cheesecake squares raspberry swirl gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

For Classic Cheesecake Bars, click here.

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Gluten-Free dessert recipe lemony cheesecake bars easy recipe

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Recipe

 

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5 from 4 votes

Lemony Cheesecake Squares with Raspberry Swirl

These Lemony Cheesecake Squares are the perfect non-chocolate treat. Creamy Lemony Cheesecake + Graham Cracker Crust + Raspberry Swirl... The perfect balance of Sweet and Tart and SO YUMMY! Plus, they are super easy to whip up!
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time40 minutes
Total Time1 hour
Course: Dessert, Cookies and Bars, Valentine's Day
Cuisine: Gluten-Free, Vegetarian
Servings: 16 bars
Author: Healthy Gluten-free Family

Ingredients

Graham Cracker Crust

  • a scant 1 1/2 cups gluten-free graham cracker crumbs I used one (1 5.6oz box Schar Gluten-Free Honeygrams, finely ground into crumbs using a food processor)
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 3 tablespoons butter melted

Filling

  • 2 8 oz bars cream cheese room temperature
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 3 tablespoons milk
  • 2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest packed (about one lemon)
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice about one lemon
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Raspberry swirl

  • 3 tablespoons Raspberry preserves or jam
  • 1/4 cup fresh raspberries
  • 1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line an 8 inch baking pan with parchment paper

    Graham Cracker Crust

    • Add ingredients in a small bowl and mix until well combined and "moist". Add mixture to lined baking pan and gently press into pan.
    • Bake 8 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

    Filling

    • Place cream cheese and sugar in a large mixing bowl and using an electric mixer, blend until very smooth. Add eggs, milk, lemon zest, lemon juice and vanilla. Mix until well combined and smooth, about 1-2 minutes.
    • Pour mixture onto warm and baked crust in pan. Use a spatula to smooth the top or put on oven mitts and gently rock the pan from side to side. (remember the pan will still be HOT!)

    Raspberry Swirl

    • Combine preserves, raspberries and lemon juice in a small bowl and mash with a fork until well combined.
    • Strain through a fine mesh strainer so that the "raspberry jam" is smooth and liquid-y
    • Using a spoon, drizzle "jam" in swirls over cheesecake filling. Then using a toothpick, gently swirling the jam into the top of the cheesecake. The toothpick should just barely grab the cheesecake filling. There is no right or wrong here, have fun with it and add more jam and swirls as needed or desired.

    Bake

    • Bake 30 minutes, then cover with foil and bake an additional 10 minutes or until set (filling should jiggle only slightly when pan is gently shaken).
    • Cool completely in pan. Cover pan loosely with wax paper and chill until firm --about 2 hours.
    • Gently lift the parchment paper and squares from the pan. Gently pull parchment paper away from sides. Cut into 16 squares.
    Tried this recipe?Mention @HealthyGFFamily or tag #HealthyGFFamily!

     

    14 thoughts on “Lemony Cheesecake Squares with Raspberry Swirl

    1. 5 stars
      These are so good!! I used Annie’s snickerdoodle gluten free graham crackers for the crust. I’m not sure these will make it to Easter because my husband keeps trying to eat them all! So glad I came upon this blog. ?

    2. 5 stars
      I made this recipe using dairy-free cream cheese (Tofutti brand) and the bars came out delicious! Velvety, smooth, and creamy. I baked them for an extra 10-15 mins to firm up, due to the dairy-free cream cheese. They will become fully firm once cooled and refrigerated so don’t be nervous if still a bit loose after baking. Highly recommend!

    3. 5 stars
      Amazing dessert!! Super fun and easy to make 10/10 would recommend a perfect Easter treat. Also turn out so pretty 🙂

    4. Can I double this recipe and use a 9×13? Would I need to change the cooking time at all? I can tell 16 bars will not be near enough!

      1. Great question! I have never doubled the recipe — for a 9×13 I would do 1 1/2 the recipe and it should work, will be a little thicker maybe so may need a few extra minutes (covered) to bake through….. just check with a toothpick or knife…

    5. 5 stars
      These were delicious. I just made them for the second time while visiting my family.
      Thanks for another yummy recipe.

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