Carrot Cake Cheesecake Bars
I may receive compensation in the form of payment or products to supplement my posts, but all opinions remain my own. Read our disclosure policy.
Moist carrot cake swirled with tangy cheesecake – these carrot cake cheesecake bars combine two classic desserts into one delicious bite. These are perfect for Spring and Easter.
Carrot cake with cream cheese frosting just might be the quintessential spring dessert. The moist cake crumb, warm spices and tangy frosting is a match made in heaven. In these carrot cake cheesecake bars, you get a moist and tender carrot cake. But instead of being topped with cream cheese frosting, it’s marbled with smooth and creamy vanilla cheesecake.
The bars aren’t as sweet as a traditional carrot cake slathered with frosting and you’ll love the combination of moist, dense carrot cake and creamy, velvety smooth cheesecake.
For this recipe, you’ll first need to make the carrot cake batter, then the cheesecake batter. The batters are then marbled and swirled together in the pan.
Making the Carrot Cake Batter
The carrot cake can be made without an electric mixer and comes together with minimal effort. It’s a dense, moist cake that almost verges on the texture of a blondie.
- You’ll first whisk together the dry ingredients.
- Then you’ll separately whisk together the wet ingredients and sugars.
- Stir the shredded carrots and sour cream into the wet ingredients. I recommend using finely shredded carrots for this recipe.
- Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Be careful not to overmix. You can do this entirely by hand. Stop mixing when you no longer see lumps or streaks of flour.
Making the Cheesecake Batter
The cheesecake batter is creamy, smooth and not too sweet. The most important tip is to ensure that you use brick style cream cheese. You do not want to use anything that’s labeled as spreadable or that’s low fat.
- Beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth and creamy. You want to turn off the mixer and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl of a few times so that there aren’t any lumps.
- Then mix in the egg and vanilla extract.
Assembling the Bars
While it isn’t difficult, I do find that having a visual helps.
- You’ll first spread about 1/2 of the carrot cake batter into the lined pan. I reserved about 3/4 cup of carrot cake batter.
- Then spoon dollops of the cream cheese batter on top of the carrot cake batter.
- Use the reserved carrot cake batter to drop dollops of carrot cake batter beside the dollops of cheesecake.
- Use a thin, sharp knife to make swirls through the batter. You don’t need to be overly careful when doing this.
The bars will need to bake for about 30-40 minutes. The bake time is dependant on your oven and also if you prefer your bars a little on the gooier side or not. When they’re done baking, the top should look set and an inserted toothpick shouldn’t come out with gooey carrot cake batter.
Recipe Tip
The bars will have to cool fully in the pan, then chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours for the cheesecake layer to set and for easier slicing. When ready to slice, lift the bars out of the pan using the overhang of the foil and place on a cutting board. Then slice with a thin, sharp knife.
Storage & Freezing
Because of the cheesecake, these bars should be stored in an airtight container in the fridge. They can also be wrapped tightly and placed in a freezer bag to be frozen. Always thaw in the fridge.
The combination of moist, flavorful carrot cake and creamy cheesecake is truly delicious. These are perfect if you love carrot cake, but don’t want something quite as sweet, and the marble effect looks beautiful too!
If you love carrot cake, be sure to try:
- Carrot Cake Bars
- Carrot Cake Cupcakes
- Mini Carrot Cake – for when you only have a few mouths to feed
Carrot Cake Cheesecake Bars
Equipment
- 8×8 inch (20×20 cm) pan
Ingredients
Carrot Cake Layer
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour (94 grams)
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup unsalted butter (75 grams), melted
- 3/4 cup brown sugar (158 grams), light or dark
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons sour cream (45 ml), or plain Greek yogurt
- 1 cup finely shredded carrots
Cheesecake Swirl
- 8 ounces full-fat cream cheese (226 grams), brick style, not from a tub
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar (67 grams), or caster sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325F (170C). Line an 8×8 inch (20×20 cm) pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil so that there's an overhang around the edges. If using aluminum foil, lightly grease.
Carrot Cake Batter
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk together the melted butter, brown sugar, egg and vanilla extract until you no longer see pieces of egg or lumps of sugar.
- Whisk the sour cream and shredded carrots into the wet ingredients.
- Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Gently stir together using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon. Stop mixing when you no longer see streaks or lumps of flour. Set aside.
Cheesecake Batter
- Beat together the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Occasionally, turn off the mixer and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.
- Mix in the egg and vanilla extract. Stop mixing when you no longer see pieces of egg.
Assemble & Bake
- Reserve about 3/4 cup to 1 cup of carrot cake batter. Spread the remaining carrot cake batter into an even layer in the prepared pan.
- Drop large dollops of the cheesecake batter on top of the carrot cake batter.
- With the reserved carrot cake batter, drop large dollops of batter in between the dollops of cheesecake.
- Use a thin knife or toothpick to swirl the carrot cake batter and cheesecake batter.
- Bake in the middle of the preheated oven for about 30-40 minutes. The bake time will vary depending on your oven and if you prefer the carrot cake layer to be more cake-y in texture or a little more like a blondie (a longer bake time will make it more cake-y in texture). When you're done baking, the top should look set and an inserted toothpick should come out without gooey carrot cake batter (gooey cream cheese batter is OK because it will set as the bars cool and chill).
- Cool the bars in the pan until the pan is no longer warm to the touch. Cover the pan and place in the fridge to chill for at least 4 hours before slicing.
- When ready to slice, lift the bars out of the pan using the overhang of the parchment/aluminum foil and place on a cutting board. Slice with a sharp knife. Wipe off the knife between each slice for clean cuts.
Notes
- Pan Sizes: This recipe can also be made in a 9×9 inch (23×23 cm) pan. The bars will be thinner and the bake time will be shorter – about 25-30 minutes.
- Doubling the Recipe: This recipe can be doubled and made in a 9×13 inch (23×33 cm) pan. The bars will be thicker and the bake time will be longer – about 40-50 minutes.
- Cream Cheese: Be sure to use full-fat, brick-style cream cheese. For best results, it should be at room temperature before getting started.
- Storage: Store bars in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Bars can be frozen for up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge and store in the fridge after freezing.
- Nutrition: Details provided are an estimate only and based on 1 bar, assuming the pan is sliced into 12 uniform pieces.
