Why choose between cheesecake and carrot cake when you can combine them together into the most scrumptious carrot cake cheesecake bars. These easy cheesecake bars are perfect for easter or any occasion!
Why choose between cheesecake and carrot cake when you can combine them together into the most scrumptious carrot cake cheesecake bars. These easy cheesecake bars are perfect for easter or any occasion!
Carrot Cake Cheesecake Bars
You know we love a good mashup. And this one might be my favorite combo of two delicious desserts. I love carrot cake. I love cheesecake. So, why not take those two scrumptious sweets and put them together into the most delicious carrot cake cheesecake bars you’ll ever have. They’re perfectly spiced, sweet, tangy, and surprisingly easy to make!
What are carrot cake cheesecake bars?
These carrot cake cheesecake bars take all your favorite flavors of moist, flavorful cheesecake and swirl it up with thick ribbons of creamy, dreamy, tangy cheesecake. We all know that cheesecake pairs *perfectly* with cream cheese frosting, so obviously carrot cake cheesecake bars are pretty much the perfect creation. We adapted our favorite carrot cake recipe to a dense, scrumptious carrot cake bar and then mixed in huge dollops of our favorite cheesecake batter.
The result is a super decadent, scrumptious dessert that’s perfect for easter or really any other occasion that demands carrot cake.
What do you need to make these carrot cake cheesecake bars?
You’ll only need 10 ingredients to make these carrot cake cheesecake bars! And most of them are ingredients you probably already have in your fridge, making these spring cheesecake bars the perfect treat to whip up on a whim. Here’s what you’ll need:
Carrots
Butter
Brown Sugar
Vanilla
Eggs
Flour
Baking Powder
Salt
Cream Cheese
Granulated Sugar
Tips for these spring cheesecake bars
The great thing about cheesecake swirled desserts is that they are way more forgiving than making a straight cheesecake. No need to worry about your cheesecake cracking or splitting. Just follow these four easy tricks and you’re guaranteed perfect carrot cake cheesecake bars every time.
Make sure your ingredients are room temperature: It is SO important for any dessert that calls for a cheesecake component for your ingredients to be a soft room temperature. If your cheesecake and egg are not true room temperature they will not beat up seamlessly into that dreamy cheesecake batter. We recommend leaving your cream cheese out on the counter for at least 3 hours!
Use high quality ingredients: This recipe calls for simple ingredients that will really shine through in the final product, so make sure you’re using good butter (we love Vermont Creamery) and cream cheese (Philadelphia is our favorite) in particular.
Do not over mix the batter: This goes for both the cheesecake batter and the carrot cake batter. If you over mix the carrot cake the consistency will become bread-y and tough–not what you want in a tender, melt in your mouth cake batter. And if you over mix the cheesecake you’ll aerate it and it will probably crack! Try to only mix until things are homogenous and evenly distributed.
Don’t over bake them: Over baked anything is sad in my book, but over baked cheesecake is a special kind of gross. It takes on a gummy, tough consistency that will simply put, not taste good. Take out the bars when they are just set and a knife comes out mostly clean!
We hope you enjoy these spring cheesecake bars just as much as we do!
These carrot cake cheesecake bars take all your favorite flavors of moist, flavorful cheesecake and swirl it up with thick ribbons of creamy, dreamy, tangy cheesecake.
These carrot cake cheesecake bars take all your favorite flavors of moist, flavorful cheesecake and swirl it up with thick ribbons of creamy, dreamy, tangy cheesecake.
Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a 9 x 9 square pan with parchment paper on all sides. Combine the brown sugar and butter together in a mixing bowl. Whisk to combine. Add the vanilla extract, eggs and carrots and mix.
Add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, and orange zest and mix until only just combined and no streaks of flour remain. Do not overmix!
Pour the carrot cake batter into your prepared pan and set aside while you make the cheesecake layer.
Combine the softened cream cheese, egg, granulated sugar and vanilla together in a mixing bowl and beat together (if using a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment) until creamy and homogenous. Don’t over mix as this will beat too much air into your batter.
Drop dollops of the cheesecake batter on top of the carrot cake batter and use a butter knife to make big swirls. Bake the bars at 350°F for 30 minutes or until a knife inserted into the middle comes out mostly clean.
Allow the bars to cool completely to set up before slicing into squares and enjoying!
Oooh yes that would be tasty! You could add 1/3 cup nuts and 1/3 cup raisins! For crushed pineapple I’d probably only do 2 tablespoons! I think any more than that and you’d be compromising the texture of the carrot cake batter!
Hi! Do you have any recommendations on the best way to store the leftovers? Since there is cheesecake, I am not sure whether it’s best to keep these on the counter or in the fridge. Thanks!
Leave a comment and rate this recipe!
is the butter salted or unsalted?
Unsalted!
I’d like to add nuts, raisins and crushed pineapple to these. Any suggestions for how much I can get away with each
Oooh yes that would be tasty! You could add 1/3 cup nuts and 1/3 cup raisins! For crushed pineapple I’d probably only do 2 tablespoons! I think any more than that and you’d be compromising the texture of the carrot cake batter!
Hi there! Can you double this and use a 13×9 inch pan? Would the cooking time change?
Absolutely! The cooking time might take a bit longer, but I’d just keep an eye on them!
Used the same size pan and it came out a goopy mess ): it definitely needed like 45-50 min in total to cook but was great with some extra time
Hi! Do you have any recommendations on the best way to store the leftovers? Since there is cheesecake, I am not sure whether it’s best to keep these on the counter or in the fridge. Thanks!
I usually store these tightly wrapped or an airtight container in the fridge! I wouldn’t store them at room temperature because of the cream cheese 🙂