Gingerbread Cheesecake Crust Bars

Oh yeah. These Christmas Cheesecake Bars are pretty much perfection in my life right now!!! 

I used to love cheesecake growing up. It was my default dessert to order anytime we ate out. Of course that was before I switched to being an apple crisp gal!

Nowadays, however, I don’t usually get too excited about cheesecake on menus. It tends to be dried out or covered with some sauce that’s either loaded with weird sugars or includes fruit that have seen better days.

But homemade cheesecake for Christmas is where it’s at this year!

Christmas Cheesecake Bars

These cheesecake bars would be perfect for any Christmas/holiday gathering without the toppings, but I don’t think you should skip them! I always try to use real food to add festive color to food over any dyes and this may be my favorite combo yet!

And while the cheesecake recipes is fabulous year round really, these bars are ideal for this time of year because of the gingersnap crust – the perfect bit of zing and sweet to really bring it all together!

I think cheesecake bars don’t dry out as easily during baking. They always tend to be moist and that crust is just yummy!

This crust – made from gingersnap cookies – is delicious and a flavor I would crave year round – no judgement here!!

Natural Red & Green Toppings

You might remember these mini Christmas Tarts from last year. Those cocoa crusts with spiced custard have the arils and mint leaves on top. This year, we added chopped pistachios.

You’ll see a note in the recipe to use raw instead of roasted pistachios if you want to maintain that green color. You could also do a combination of raw and roasted!

Here the red comes from fresh pomegranate arils. Other festive and sweet red foods include dried cranberries, any red jam or jelly, and dried goji berries.

And the green here includes chopped pistachios and that beautiful mint leaf. Otherwise, try finely chopped kiwi, green apple, anjou pears, candied lime peel, and green grapes. 

And you’ll want to check out this complete list of natural christmas cake decorations.

Holiday Dessert Recipes

If you’re serving at the table, try these mini Christmas tarts with spiced custard and chocolate cups. If you want something to set out for people to enjoy, try saffron shortbread (a conversation starter to be sure), chocolate tiffin (a no-bake Scottish dessert) or old fashioned sugared nuts!

Looking for a sweet gift for the holidays? Chocolate dipped figs are heavenly (I usually eat as many as I give away). Or you can always give the gift of breakfast or tea time with cranberry biscotti or orange biscotti with dates!

Want something a little less sweet? Try infused olive oils or homemade seasoning mixes.

Print Recipe

5 from 19 votes

GINGERBREAD CRUST CHEESECAKE BARS

These perfect little desserts will be a favorite in no time. the gingersnap crust screams the holiday season. And those perfect red and green toppings can't be beat. Delicious, crunchy pistachios combines with pomegranate ariIs for festive fun on these Christmas Cheesecake Bars.

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time45 minutes mins

Cooling Time2 hours hrs

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: christmas, dessert, holidays

Servings: 16

Calories: 180kcal

Author: Luci Petlack

Ingredients

Crust

• 2 cups gingersnap cookies
• 3 tablespoons butter melted
• Pinch fine sea salt

Cheesecake

• 1 8-ounce package cream cheese softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup sour cream
• 3 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Garnish

• pomegranate arils
• chopped raw pistachios
• mint leaves

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9-by-9-inch pan with non-stick cooking spray.
• Place the cookies in a small food processor and pulse until ground into fine crumbs. Transfer the crumbs to a bowl. Pour in melted butter and add the salt. Stir well until the butter has saturated all of the cookie crumbs.
• Press the crumbs in a single layer along the bottom of the baking pan. Bake for 12 minutes, until lightly browned and firm. Set aside.
• Add the cream cheese and sugar to the bowl of an electric mixer. Mix on medium until the sugar is blended into the cheese, about 2 minutes. Add the sour cream. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed. Mix 1 more minute on medium-high, until smooth.
• Add the eggs, mix on medium until fully incorporated into the cheesecake filling, about 2 more minutes. Mix in the vanilla.
• Pour the filling into the prepared pan, over the crust.
• Bake 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to 325°F and bake an additional 30 minutes, until the edges are browned and the cheesecake is firm in the center. Cheesecake will look very fluffy coming out of the oven but will settle while it cools.
• Let cool for 30 minutes, then refrigerate until completely chilled 2 ½ to 3 hours. Cut into squares. Garnish with arils, nuts, and mint, before serving.

Notes

Just a note: The reason for using the raw pistachios is so that they maintain their green color. Roasted work well too, but they tend to brown up and look less green when roasted.

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Nutrition

Calories: 180kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 45mg | Sodium: 95mg | Potassium: 105mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 16g | Vitamin A: 209IU | Vitamin C: 0.5mg | Calcium: 33mg | Iron: 1mg