Strawberries + White Chocolate = Match made in heaven. These Strawberry White Chocolate Cheesecake bars are the perfect Valentine´s day treat! Homemade strawberry coulis (sauce) is swirled with tangy and rich white chocolate cheesecake on a buttery graham cracker base. The secret to these cheesecake bars is the addition of crème fraîche in the batter, making it creamier without the heaviness that rich desserts can have.
Why you´ll love these Strawberry White Chocolate Cheesecake Bars
1. They´re ULTRA creamy thanks to the crème fraîche in the batter.
2. They´re swirled with delicous and smooth strawberry coulis.
3. The sweet white chocolate in the batter, perfectly balances the tanginess from the cream cheese and crème fraîche, and the brightness from the strawberries.
Not only is this recipe tasty and looks impressive with its beautiful design, but it´s actually easier to make then it looks! (This was my first time trying a marbled cheesecake)
The Layers of Strawberry White Chocolate Cheesecake Bars
These gorgeous cheesecake bars are made with layers of:
Graham Cracker Base – Buttery graham cracker crumbs are packed and pre-baked to hold this cheesecake. Opt for sugar free Graham crackers or Digestive cookies for a balanced sweetness level.
White Chocolate Cheesecake – The cheesecake batter is made with white chocolate, cream cheese (always Philadelphia), and crème fraîche. High quality white chocolate is melted and mixed in with the batter. The addition of crème fraîche is what makes this so creamy yet light.
Strawberry coulis – Coulis is just another term for a puréed and strained sauce. Frozen or fresh strawberries are cooked with sugar, lemon, and cornstarch until thick and jammy. The coulis is then layered with the cheesecake batter and marbled on top for a beautiful look.
Tips for making Cheesecake bars
Use room temperatured ingredients – The eggs, cream cheese, crème fraîche have to be room temperatured before mixing. The batter will unfortunately turn out lumpy and not mix properly if you use cold ingredients. If you are short on time, a tip is to submerge everything in warm to the touch (not boiling) water for 10 minutes.
Do not over mix – Overmixing the cheesecake batter will lead to airpockets in the cheesecake that will cause cracks in the final result. The key is low speed and minimal mixing.
Bake in a waterbath – For a evenly baked cheesecake with no cracks, place the baking pan with the cheesecake in a deep baking tray and fill the tray with boiled water. The heat from the water all around the baking pan will help cook the cheesecake more smooth and evenly.
Jiggle test – Nothing is more sad than overbaked and dry cheesecake. Make sure to only bake until the center is jiggly while the corners are more firm. So if it wobbles like water, it´s too soon. If it jiggles (mostly in the center) like jello, it´s ready! After baking, let it cool in the (turned off) oven with the oven door cracked open to not shock the cheesecake, thus avoiding cracks.
Strawberry White Chocolate Cheesecake Bars
Ingredients
Graham cracker base
- 2 cups (200 g) graham cracker
- 6 tbsp butter, melted
Cheesecake
- 3 large eggs
- (2) 8 ounce (400 g) Philadelphia Cream Cheese, room temperatured
- 1/2 cup (1.25 dl) granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups (5 dl) crème fraîche
- 8 ounces (200 g) white chocolate, melted
Strawberry coulis
- 1.1 lb (500g) strawberries (thawed if frozen)
- 1/4 cup (1/2 dl) granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp water
- 3 tsp cornstarch
Instructions
Strawberry coulis
- In a small saucepan, toss the strawberries with the sugar and lemon juice over medium heat for about 8-10 minutes (20 minutes for frozen strawberries) or until the strawberries soften and get jammy.
- Whisk together the cornstarch with the water in a small glass and pour the slurry into the strawberry jam. Cook for an additional 2 minutes or until the mixture starts to thicken.
- Use a handblender to purée the mixture into a thick sauce texture.
- Pour the purée over a mesh sieve to catch any remaning lumps. Set the strawberry coulis aside to cool for about 25 minutes while you prepare the rest of the cheesecake.
Graham cracker base
- Set the oven to 350 ℉ (180 ℃) and grease a 9 inch square pan. Line all sides with parchment paper and set aside.
- Put the graham crackers inside a ziplock bag and close. Use a rolling pin to gently hammer the biscuits into fine crumbs.
- In a small saucepan, melt the butter then take off the heat. Pour the graham crumbs into the saucepan and combine until all crumbs are wet and coated with the butter.
- Pour the graham crumbs into the lined baking pan and press with your fingers to form the crust at the bottom.
- Bake the graham crust for for 8-10 minutes, then side aside to cool.
Cheesecake
- In a large mixing bowl, mix the cream cheese on low speed until creamy.
- Add the crème fraîche and sugar while mixing on medium speed until smooth.
- Crack in one egg at the time, ensuring it gets incorporated between each egg.
- Scrape down the sides and mix in the vanilla and melted white chocolate on low speed.
- Pour half of the batter into the crust and dollop blobs strawberry colis on top with a spoon. Cover with the rest of the cheesecake batter and top off with more blobs of strawberry coulis. Use a knife or the back of a spoon to connect the blobs together, creating a marble effect.
- Bake for 45-50 minutes or until the cheesecake is slightly jiggly in the center but more firm around the edges.
- Turn off the oven and let the cheesecake rest inside for another hour with the oven door cracked open.
- Take the cheesecake out of the oven and allow to rest in room temperature for 30 minutes.
- Take the cheesecake out of the baking pan by grabbing the corners of the parchment paper and gently wiggling upwards. Chill in the fridge for at least 3 hours but preferably overnight.
- Cut into bars and enjoy!