Raspberry Cheesecake Squares

Cheesecake and sugar cookies.  A couple of our favorite desserts

Let’s combine them into tasty little squares topped with sweet, raspberry jam!

Let’s start by making a simple sugar cookie recipe that we’re going to use as the crust for the cheesecake bars

You’ll need 2 sticks of room temperature butter and 1/2 cup of white sugar

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Cream the butter and sugar together in a mixer until they are fluffy.  This will take about 2 minutes

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Next we’ll need one egg and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla

I like to make my own vanilla.  It’s inexpensive to make and SO much better than imitation vanilla

Show me how to make Homemade Vanilla Extract

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Beat the egg into the butter-sugar mixture until well combined and add in the vanilla

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Let’s measure out the dry ingredients; 2 1/2 cups of flour and 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda

I used salted butter because it’s what I had in the fridge, but if you use unsalted butter, add in a 1/4 teaspoon of salt to the flour

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Mix until combined, but do not over do it.  We don’t want tough cookie dough

Scrape out of the mixing bowl onto a sheet of plastic wrap

Shape into a disk and set aside while we work on the next part of this tasty dessert

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We’ll be using three 8 ounce bars of room temperature cream cheese, 1/2 cup of sugar, 3 eggs and 1/2 teaspoon of extract.  I’m using almond extract because we love the flavor of almond and raspberry together, but vanilla will work just as well

This is also a good time to preheat the oven to 350 degrees F

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Combine the cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of a mixer and blend on medium speed until combined

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Add in the eggs, one at a time, and beat on low speed just until combined.  Add in the extract and beat a few more times

Let’s work on the crust.  Press the sugar cookie dough that we made earlier into a 13 x 9 pan, as evenly as possible

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Pour the batter over the dough and spread out

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One last step.  Measure out 1/2 cup of seedless raspberry jam into a plastic baggie  Snip off the end so you can use it as a piping bag

Squeeze the jam over the batter in evenly spaced, lengthwise lines

Easier said than done, lol.  As evenly spaced as you can get, unless you’re like my husband who would have used a ruler and a level  Image result for wink eye emoji

Use a butter knife to pull the jam in alternating lines

Don’t worry if it’s a little messy looking at this point.  The jam will melt in the oven and follow the lines you’ve made with the knife

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Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a cake tester or knife comes out clean

Cool on a wire rack then chill for at least 1 1/2 – 2 hours before serving

 

Enjoy!

Simply Sundays ~ Raspberry Cheesecake Squares

  • Servings: 16 - 18 squares
  • Difficulty: Medium
  • Print

Ingredients

For the sugar cookie dough:

2 sticks of room temperature butter

1/2 cup of white sugar

one egg

1/2 teaspoon of vanilla

2 1/2 cups of flour

1/4 teaspoon of baking soda

1/4 teaspoon of salt if you use unsalted butter

For the filling:

Three 8 ounce bars of room temperature cream cheese

1/2 cup of sugar

3 eggs

1/2 teaspoon of almond or vanilla extract

1/2 cup of seedless raspberry jam

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F

For the sugar cookie dough:

Cream the butter and sugar together in a mixer until they are fluffy.  This will take about 2 minutes

Beat the egg into the butter-sugar mixture until well combined and add in the vanilla

Measure out the dry ingredients; 2 1/2 cups of flour and 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda

I used salted butter;  if you use unsalted butter, add in a 1/4 teaspoon of salt to the flour

Slowly add the flour to the butter-sugar mixture and mix until combined; do not over beat

Scrape dough out of the mixing bowl onto a sheet of plastic wrap; shape into a disk and set aside

For the filling:

Measure out three 8 ounce bars of room temperature cream cheese, 1/2 cup of sugar and 3 eggs

Combine the cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of a mixer and blend on medium speed until combined

Add in the eggs, one at a time, and beat on low speed just until combined.  Add in the extract and beat a few more times

Press the sugar cookie dough into a 13 x 9 pan, as evenly as possible

Pour the batter over the dough and spread out

Measure out 1/2 cup of seedless raspberry jam into a plastic baggie.  Snip off the end so you can use it as a piping bag

Squeeze the jam over the batter in evenly spaced, lengthwise lines; use a butter knife to pull the jam in alternating lines

Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a cake tester or knife comes out clean

Cool on a wire rack then chill for at least 1 1/2 – 2 hours before serving

Tools used to make this recipe

Royal Classique 10 Piece Stainless Steel Measuring Cups and Spoons Set with Silicone Handles

Mini Prep Glass Bowl

KitchenAid Artisan Series 5-Qt. Stand Mixer

Pyrex Glass Oblong Baking Dish 9 inch x 13 Inch

Silicone Flexible Rubber Baking Spatula

Farberware Pie Server

© Simply Sundays 2018
All rights reserved

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10 thoughts on “Raspberry Cheesecake Squares

  1. Drooling here, raspberry cheesecake is one of my favorite desserts, the cookie base definitely makes me want to try your recipe, can’t wait!

  2. You had me at raspberry cheesecake! My favorite combo of flavors ever. I need to try this ASAP.

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