Pumpkin cheese might scream fall but they are always a good idea no matter the season. These swirled pumpkin cheesecake bars are so pretty and even more delicious! They’re the perfect thing to make to share with a small crowd. The slightly sweet graham cracker crust pairs perfectly with the smooth, creamy pumpkin cheese cake. The swirl of colors make these visually beautiful, enhancing the overall experience of this decadent dessert!
My favorite thing about these cheesecake bars is that they are so fun to make! Swirling the pumpkin filling with the cream cheese filling is so satisfying. I love to see the swirling colors especially after you cut into them when they’re cool. By lining your pan, you can easily pop these out to cut into perfect bars and serve on a tray, allowing everyone to enjoy how beautiful those swirls are.
These swirled pumpkin cheesecake bars are also so good that they are now my husband’s favorite! Cherry cheesecake use to claim that title but after he tried these, he said with out a doubt, these are superior. We are a pumpkin loving household though!
My favorite pumpkin puree to use is fresh pumpkin puree. For this specific batch, I used pumpkin puree I made a few weeks ago that I froze. Canned pumpkin works absolutely perfect as well, you might notice that you need slightly less baking time with canned pumpkin, as it tends to have less moisture.
The graham cracker crust is fantastic with the pumpkin cheesecake! Another great alternative is using gingersnap cookies. You can omit the sugar in the crust if you want.
Swirled Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
Ingredients
Crust:
- 2 packets of graham crackers (18 whole rectangles)
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 cup butter – melted
Pumpkin Filling:
- 2 cups pumpkin puree
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tbsp flour
Cream cheese filling:
- 3 – 8oz blocks of full fat cream cheese*
- 1 & 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 & 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup full fat sour cream*
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 3 large eggs
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
- Line a 9×13 baking pan with foil and lightly grease – you do not have to use foil if you want to serve the bars right out of the dish.
- Place graham crackers in a food processor or blender and blend until crackers are in fine crumbs. In another bowl, add blended crackers with melted butter and sugar and mix until combined.
- Press the graham cracker mixture into the bottom of the 9×13 pan to form the crust.
- Bake the crust for 10-15 minutes until golden brown. Then place on wire rack to cool as you make the filling.
- Combine pumpkin filling ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
- Combine cream cheese filling, mixing well with a hand mixer or in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Do not over beat the mixture.
- Take 1 and 1/2 cups of the cream cheese filling and mix in with the bowl with the pumpkin filling.
- Alternate scoops of cream cheese filling and pumpkin filling into the 9×13 pan on top of the crust. Use a utensil such as a knife or fork to lightly swirl the two fillings together. Be careful not to touch the crust.
- Bake for 40-55 minutes until the center is still slightly jiggly but the edges are set. Place pan on wire rack to cool. Allow to cool completely. This will take several hours.
Notes:
*Make sure to use the full fat verisons of the cream cheese and sour cream. Other low fat alternatives might alter texture.
If using canned pumpkin, be sure to use pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling
Leftovers need to be stored in the fridge. Discard after 3 days or place in freezer for up to one month. As with anything homemade, discard leftovers sooner if they have any bad or wrong smell or taste.
This recipe goes perfect with my homemade butterscotch sauce! I use to call this sauce “caramel sauce” then I learned that caramel does not have butter in it! The more you know!
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as my family does!!
Keep making food at home!
Happiness is homemade.
Happiness is Homemade 
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