This creamy swirled Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars recipe includes a crushed biscoff base and pumpkin spice through a creamy cheesecake filling for a perfect Fall dessert.
This easy recipe is the perfect combination of a pumpkin pie with a baked cheesecake for an easy to share autumn treat. The bonus is that thanks to the moisture in the canned pumpkin, no water bath is needed for a nice easy recipe.
Table of Contents
Why you’ll love these
That biscoff base
The crushed biscoff base with it's spiced Fall flavors perfectly compliments the cream cheese pumpkin flavors. It requires little effort and is an easy press in crust.
The creamy cheesecake pumpkin filling
The spiced pumpkin filling is light and creamy and perfect to share for a Fall event or even maybe your Thanksgiving table.
Ingredients and substitutions for the best Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
- Biscoff biscuits: These lightly spiced biscuits make the perfect base for these bars. If you are unable to obtain them, a great substitute in equal measure would be graham crackers or digestive biscuits and add in ½ teaspoon pumpkin spice when making the base.
- Cream cheese: The core of our creamy cheesecake is room temperature full-fat cream cheese, helping give us a light cheesecake that bakes up and sets perfectly.
- Sugar: Superfine or caster dissolves best into the cream cheese during whipping and doesn't add additional flavor. You could half and half the sugar with light brown sugar and caster sugar; it is not recommended to use a different type of sugar.
- Eggs: As well as adding structure to the cake, the eggs will bind everything together so are essential.
- Canned pumpkin: The reason we use canned versus homemade pureed pumpkin here is because canned has less moisture in it and ensures consistent results whereas using a homemade pureed pumpkin might be more closesly related to apple sauce in texture which would affect the cheesecake setting.
- Flour: The flour in the cheesecake helps it set due to the quantity of moisture in the pumpkin puree, this is a sure fire way to have your cake set. You can substitute with cornflour or cornstarch
- Pumpkin Spice: Homemade or purchased pumpkin spice adds the characteristic seasonal flavors.
See recipe card for quantities.
How to make Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars:
Stir it: Stir the crushed biscuits and melty butter together and pour into the baking tin.
1
Press: Spoon into your baking tin and press evenly.
Bake: Bake until golden.
Whip: Whip the cream cheese until smooth.
Sugar time: Add in the sugar and whip until well combined.
2
Egg at a time: Add in one egg and beat until well combined, repeat with the second egg.
3
Sift: Sift the flour and whisk until combined.
Pumpkin spice: Place the pumpkin and spice into a bowl and stir to combine.
4
Creamy pumpkin: Add in ⅔’s of the cream cheese mixture to the pumpkin and stir to combine.
Pour: Pour most of the pumpkin batter into the tin, followed by portions of the cream cheese in different patches, finishing with the remaining pumpkin batter.
5
Swirly: Swirl the batters together.
6
Bake: Bake until no longer jiggly in the center.
Cool and chill: Allow to cool and then chill for several hours.
Slice and serve: Slice it up and serve em up.
Variations
You can definitely change up the dish by changing the following:
Pumpkin butter - you could add a tablespoon or 2 of pumpkin butter which is more concentrated in flavor, though you would likely want to add less to your cheesecake.
Cookie butter - Lightly spiced cookie butter would work well here alongside the tart cheesecake flavors.
Equipment needed to make this
Greaseproof paper: Lining your tin will make getting your bars out a breeze!
Mixing bowls: You'll need two medium mixing bowls for the cheesecake filling and one small bowl to combine the crushed base and butter.
Offset spatula: A small spatula helps smooth out crushed biscuit base.
Baking tin: A 18x18 cm or 7x7 inch square baking tin works well here, though a rectangle tin would also work well. Note, the larger the tin from the one used here, the thinner your base and curd will be.
FAQ's for the best Swirled Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
The cheesecake batter, particularly the cheesecake portion will be very runny, more so than traditional cheesecakes, but as it bakes it will firm up thanks to the flour in it.
The pumpkin spice flavor is best subtle here so 1 teaspoon is made up of ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon ground ginger and equal parts ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves and star anise or all spice.
Use room temperature only ingredients and only mix your filling until it is combined, we don't want to overmix here. Once your cheesecake bars are in the oven ensure you leave the door shut as much as possible and allow to cool slowly in the oven.
More cheesecake recipes you’ll love
Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
Ingredients
Base
- 210 grams / 7.4 ounces biscoff biscuits crushed
- 70 grams / 2.5 ounces butter melted
Filling
- 450 grams / 15.9 ounces cream cheese room temperature
- 125 grams / ⅔ cup superfine/caster sugar
- 110 grams / 2 large eggs room temperature
- 16 grams / 2 tablespoons plain flour
- ¼ teaspoon sea or kosher salt
- 280 grams / 1 ¼ cups pumpkin puree
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin spice see note
Instructions
Base
- Preheat the oven to 160C/320F and line a baking tin with greaseproof paper.
- Place the crushed biscuits in a bowl and add in the melted butter. Stir to combine.
- Spoon into your baking tin and press firmly into the base and even out.
- Bake for 10 minutes until the base looks matte.
- Remove and set aside to cool.
Filling
- Meanwhile, beat the cream cheese until smooth and no lumps remain, on medium speed for approximately 2 minutes.
- Toss in the sugar and beat until smooth and well combined, approximately 1 minute.
- Add 1 egg and beat until well combined and smooth, approximately 30 seconds.
- Repeat with the remaining egg until the mixture smooth.
- Sift in the flour and beat until just combined and no lumps remain in your batter.
- Place your pumpkin and pumpkin spice in a separate bowl and stir to combine.
- Pour ?’s of your cheesecake batter into the pumpkin puree and fold together.
- Setting the plain cheesecake batter aside.
- Pour ½ the pumpkin cheesecake batter into the baking tin.
- Spoon the cheesecake batter in patches onto the pumpkin batter and add the last portions of the pumpkin batter over the top.
- With a skewer or toothpick add swirls until you reach your desired swirl level.
- Place in the oven and bake for 40 minutes.
- Remove and allow to cool to room temperature before placing in the refrigerator for several hours or preferably overnight.
- Slice evenly and serve with your favorite hot beverage!
- Enjoy
Video
Notes
- Biscoff biscuits: These lightly spiced biscuits make the perfect base for these bars. If you are unable to obtain them, a great substitute in equal measure would be graham crackers or digestive biscuits and add in ½ teaspoon pumpkin spice when making the base.
- Cream cheese: The core of our creamy cheesecake is room temperature full-fat cream cheese, helping give us a light cheesecake that bakes up and sets perfectly.
- Canned pumpkin: The reason we use canned versus homemade pureed pumpkin here is because canned has less moisture in it and ensures consistent results whereas using a homemade pureed pumpkin might be more closely related to apple sauce in texture which would affect the cheesecake setting.
- Homemade pumpkin spice: The pumpkin spice flavor is best subtle here so 1 teaspoon is made up of ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon ground ginger and equal parts ? teaspoon ground cloves and star anise or all spice.
- Runny batter: The cheesecake batter, particularly the cheesecake portion will be very runny, more so than traditional cheesecakes, but as it bakes it will firm up thanks to the flour in it.
Nutrition
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