These almond raspberry cheesecake bars are the stuff of the dreams. Creamy cheesecake studded with raspberries, encased in buttery crust.
Take a lot at my Rustic Plum Cheesecake for an easy and more relaxed take on traditional cheesecakes! Or try my easy No Bake Cheesecake.
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Some days are just made for almond raspberry cheesecake. You know them, right? Not the days when you are sad and just want to stuff your face with ice cream straight from a tub.
No, I am talking about bright, sunshiny days that are made even brighter by this beauty!
Cheesecake Bars
I love this recipe because it absolutely hits the spot when a cheesecake cravings set in but it’s so much easier to make than a traditional cheesecake. They are easily cut into small squares making the portion control a breeze!
They are fuss free as you don’t have to faff around with water bath. No fear of this cheesecake cracking!
They also bake and cool much quicker. Unlike a traditional cheesecake, which needs to be cooled in the oven to room temperature, then overnight in a fridge, these bars are ready to slice 3 hours after baking!
What I also love is that the recipe produces creamy almond raspberry cheesecake bars with very little effort. You get a cheesecake studded with plump and juicy raspberries and sandwiched between almond flavoured buttery crumbs.
The pastry itself is made with one part flour and one part ground almonds. The addition of almonds makes it extra delicious. It also improves the texture.
I’ve drawn on a family recipe for these almond raspberry cheesecake bars, called Tertiy Pirog in Russian. I grew up eating these bars for special occasions and not so special occasions. Basically, whenever my mom felt like a day called for a cheesecake.
How to make them
Start by making the pastry. Unlike the traditional North American cheesecake recipe, where the crust is made from graham cracker crumbs and butter, this recipes uses homemade shortcrust pastry.
Great news is you can easily make this pastry in your food processor. And this takes only 5 minutes! It is also a very versatile and forgiving pastry recipe. You can use it for making tarts and galettes as well.
Once you make the pastry it’s very important to chill it for at least 20 minutes before you roll it out and fill with the cheese and raspberry filling.
The top crumb layer is the same pastry but it’s chilled in the freezer until firm, then grated on a vegetable grater and mixed with more ground almonds.
Cheesecake filling
I’ve used Russian curd cheese Tvorog, also known as farmer’s cheese, but traditional full fat cream cheese will also work in this recipe. I just love using this lightly tangy cheese I grew up with, and sweet cheese fritters Syrniki is my favourite treat to make with it.
Tvorog, Twarog or farmer’s cheese is available in many supermarkets, especially ones that have an Eastern European section.
Since farmer’s cheese is quite grainy unlike cream cheese, I run the filling through a food processor to make it silky smooth. You can also use a blender or leave it alone and enjoy the texture.
If you are using cream cheese, simply whip with an electric mixer.
Recipe tips and notes
- I used Tvarog, or Farmer’s Cheese, because I love the slight tang it gives. Cream cheese will also work, although be sure to grab the full fat variety.
- Although it means pausing the recipe, remember to chill the pastry in a fridge after it is made and again after it is added to the baking dish. This step helps the pastry to relax and hold it’s shape when it is baked.
- The recipe calls for fresh or frozen raspberries but blueberries, blackberries or chopped strawberries can be successfully used here.
- If you use frozen fruit, do not defrost before adding to the cheese filling. This way the berries will hold their shape when baked and won’t bleed into the filling.
Storage and leftovers
These bars are a part cookie, part cheesecake. However, unlike cookies they have to be refrigerated because of the high dairy content.
I store these in an airtight container in my fridge. This way they will last for 3-4 days but ours are usually gone after 2!
More Cheesecake Recipes to Try
- Raffaello Cheesecake
- Strawberry Meringue Cheesecake (No Bake)
- Crumb Apricot Cheesecake
- Lemon Curd Cheesecake
Raspberry Cheesecake Bars
Ingredients
For the pastry
- 250g / 2½ cups flour
- 200g / 1 cup sugar
- 60g / ½ cup ground almonds
- 250g / 1 cup cold butter cubed
- 1 egg large
- ½ tsp baking powder
For the filling
- 500g / 16oz cream cheese or farmer's cheese/ Tvorog
- 2 eggs
- 200g / 1 cup sugar
- 2 tsp This is an affiliate link.vanilla
- 70g / ½ cup raspberries fresh or frozen
For the topping
- 30g / ¼ cup ground almonds
Instructions
- In a food processor combine flour, ground almonds, cold butter, sugar and baking powder and pulse until the mixture resembles fine bread crumbs, add the egg and pulse until just combined. (This could also be done in a bowl with a pastry blender.)
- Take the pastry out of the food processor, it will be soft. Pinch off ⅓ of the pastry, wrap it in plastic wrap and put it in the freezer. Wrap the rest in plastic wrap as well and put it in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.
- Combine cream cheese or farmer's cheese, eggs, sugar and vanilla in a large bowl using a hand mixer or a food processor if you want your farmer's cheese to be silky smooth.
- When the pastry is done chilling take it out of the fridge and roll it out to fit a rectangular 9×13 inch (23x33cm) baking dish on a floured surface, making sure it comes up the sides. Don't worry if it tears, you can patch it up, this pastry is very forgiving. Then put it back in the fridge to chill for 20 minutes longer.
- Preheat the oven to 350F/180C.
- Take the pastry out of the fridge and fill it with the cheese filling, top with raspberries.
- Take the frozen part out of the freezer and grate it using a vegetable grater, then toss the crumbs with 30g/1/4 cup of ground almonds. Scatter all over the cheese filling. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes until golden.
- Cool completely for 3 hours or overnight in the fridge before cutting into bars.
Diane says
Why so scimpy on the raspberries? My husband would love lots more!
Julia Frey (Vikalinka) says
It’s a cheesecake, adding more fruit can result in too much moisture, which will alter the final result. If you like more raspberries, you can experiment with adding a bit more and see if the cheesecake still holds, Diane.
Lily B says
Can’t stop thinking about this recipe! I’m bringing this to a girls brunch tomorrow, not because I was asked to bring something but because I needed an excuse to bake these again haha! The ingredients are so simple I always have what I need.
Julia Frey (Vikalinka) says
I am so with you, Lily. I can’t resist these bars when I bake them, so I really need to control myself with them around! 🙂
Evelyn says
Hi,is there any way I can make this recipe sans almond flour to support my kids’ nut allergies, yet still get that buttery cookie crust? Recipe looks divine.
Julia Frey (Vikalinka) says
Hi Evelyn, you can simply omit the almonds and you will still have a delicious buttery crust. My mom’s recipe, which inspired these cheesecake bars, doesn’t actually include ground almonds, I added them in. 🙂
Hannah says
Hello,
Do you know if these are suitable for freezing?
vikalinka says
You can absolutely freeze these cheesecake bars, Hannah.
jan says
Hmmmm, how do you think adding a little cocoa powder or shaved chocolate to the 1/3 to save for the crumbled topping?
Chocolate and raspberries go so well together.
vikalinka says
That sounds delicious to me, Jan. Let me know how it goes!
Rebecca says
Those Bars look delicious! I only have one question as I’m not familiar with the cup as a unit of measurement I don’t understand how many flour do I need? 2 full cups and half a cup or two half cups?
vikalinka says
Hi Rebecca, you will need 2 full cups and 1/2 cup, which would be equal to 250g flour. I hope this helps!
Anja says
Thank you for this lovely recipe! I’ve made them a couple of times and are so happy with the results every single time. That is not something I am used to… 😛 Have to make them again soon. In Norway Philadelphia is what I have used. Once I made it with plucked blueberries from the local forest. Also delicious. But rasberrys are definitly the best. 😉
vikalinka says
I am so happy to hear that, Anja! Thank you for such a lovely comment!
Mila says
Hi what did u used farmers cheese or cream cheese?
vikalinka says
You can use either, Mila. Both cream cheese and farmer’s cheese work well for this recipe. What you see in the pictures was made with farmer’s cheese.
Heidi Woodruff says
Just made this with our two granddaughters. I divided it into two “pies”. I skilled the semolina flour, and just crumbled the crusts on the tops. SO good! We served it as “pie” with whipped cream.
vikalinka says
Sounds delicious, Heidi! I need to make these bars again soon. Love them!
Armine says
I made these for my New Year’s dessert display. Everyone loved it. However, I swictched the raspberries for pineapple and also used silvered almonds instead of ground almonds for the topping. Thank you for a wonderful reciepe. These remind me of a dessert I learned from my mom. However instead of farmers cheese she would add typically apricot jam in the middle, I think it is called sterlitz.
Eva says
This cheese cake looks faboulous ! Love it! Do you think I can used Philadelphia cheese? Thanks 😉
vikalinka says
Thanks, Eva! Oh yes, definitely. 🙂
Karin Anderson says
Those bars look wonderful!
While copying it into my recipe program I noticed a problem with the volume/weight conversion. The difference between 1 cup (=227 g) and 250 g butter is not much, but 16 oz (=454 g) and 500 g cream cheese is quite a bit off, and can change the consistency.
Greetings from Maine,
Karin
vikalinka says
Thanks for letting me know, Karin. Fortunately, in this particular recipe it won’t make a big difference. 🙂
Sharon @ What The Fork Food Blog says
OMG these look devine!! I’m going to have to try to make these gluten-free… they look too good not to try!
La Cuisine d'Helene says
Gorgeous bars, I will have to make them.
Nadya T says
Thanks you! I went to Fred Meyers and was able to find both almond and semolina flour made by Bob’s Red Mill flour. so excited to try this out!
Nadya T says
Hey, I just stumbled upon your blog and am super inspired by your beautiful pictures and recipes but in many of the recipes I see things I have never used of even heard of like Jerusalem artichokes and semolina. I live in the states. Do you know where I can find semolina or what I can substitute it with?
thank you. I can’t wait to try out your recipes. I’m trying the lamb for Easter!
vikalinka says
Nadya, thank you for visiting and your sweet comment. I am sure there are some ingredients that are different because I live in Europe and use what is available to me. However, semolina or semolina flour is what your pasta is made out of and should be available in any supermarket in the US. Jerusalem artichokes might be a bit more difficult to find, try farmer’s markets or substitute with potatoes. 🙂
Nancy says
What is semolina? I’ve heard of semolina flour. These look fabulous & would like to make them for Easter.
Thanks
vikalinka says
Nancy, semolina and semolina flour are the same thing, just different terms used in various countries. I hope you enjoy it. 🙂
Nancy says
Can you use regular flour? I don’t know if I have ever seen semolina in my grocery store.
vikalinka says
Nancy, you can use regular flour or you can skip it altogether.
Nancy says
Thanks!
Erika says
OH my gosh are you even serious?!?!?!? These look like HEAVEN. I didn’t like cheesecake for many years, but I became a convert once I tried chocolate cheesecake…and now I’ll even eat non-chocolate cheesecake 🙂 So saying this looks AMAZING coming from a former cheesecake-hater…well, these are truly phenomenal 😉 I LOVE your photos!!
vikalinka says
Hahaha, I am also a cheesecake convert so I understand! Thank you for stopping by, Erica!
Nik@ABrownTable says
These are some of my favorite flavors to eat in spring, love the bars!
vikalinka says
Thank you Nik!
Margaret says
I gave sweets up for Lent, but WOW..this looks amazing. I think this will be the first dessert I will make after Easter. Two of my hubbies favorite things: cheesecake and raspberries. Thanks for posting this!
vikalinka says
This cheesecake will be the perfect “after Lent” reward, Margaret! 🙂
Laura (Tutti Dolci) says
Such gorgeous bars, I love anything almond and raspberry!
vikalinka says
Thank you, so do I!
Marina | Let the Baking Begin! says
My, my, my! I need these in my life! pronto! I might make these in the next couple of days 😀
vikalinka says
I hope you do! It’s one of my favourite recipes from my mom!
laurasmess says
Oh, these are so lovely! Bright, happy and beautiful… perfect for an afternoon pick-me-up or an indulgent dessert with a splash of double cream. Thanks for sharing your recipe. I would’ve taken many photos also! xx
vikalinka says
Thank you, Laura! Sometimes I get carried aways while clicking only to find out later that somehow 269 photos got uploaded to the computer! Crazy!
Jennifer @ Seasons and Suppers says
Beautiful and love the combination of raspberries, cream cheese and almond. I don’t make bars often enough. I suspect because I can’t trust myself with a whole baking pan of them. For these though … I might make an exception 😉
vikalinka says
I am in the same boat! Luckily, my kids love them so they are disappearing quickly without my help. I did sacrifice lunch for one yesterday and no regrets. 🙂
sue/the view from great island says
These look like the picture of spring! The idea of a light crust underneath AND on top of the filling sounds especially nice.
vikalinka says
Thank you, Sue. The double crust balances out the richness of the cheese a bit. I love it! 🙂