No-Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
Super creamy and perfectly spiced, these no-bake pumpkin cheesecake bars are an easy fall-inspired treat.
Pumpkin pie spice and pumpkin puree turn this simple no-bake cheesecake into the perfect dessert for the fall season. The cheesecake filling sits on a spiced cookie base. Finish the bars off with a whipped cream dollop and a spiced caramel sauce drizzle.
If you’re loving pumpkin season right now, check out my other pumpkin recipes! I have pumpkin donuts, pumpkin sticky buns and pumpkin pie with graham crust bars just to name a few!
The base
The base is made of crushed Biscoff cookie combined with butter. Biscoff cookies are delicious cookies from Belgium. This Belgian cookie tastes buttery, crisp, light, and spiced with cinnamon. They are also known as speculoos cookies.
Blend them into a fine crumb in a food processor, or crush them in a Ziploc bag. Use melted butter to combine it into a clumpy dough. Press this into a pan and let it harden into a cookie crust.
For another delicious speculoos recipe, check out these Biscoff cinnamon rolls!
The pumpkin cheesecake filling
The no-bake filling for these easy pumpkin cheesecake bars is super simple. Whipped cream and cream cheese are the main structure.
The trick to a light cheesecake batter is in how you fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese. Folding gently is key. You want to keep all the airiness of the whipped cream. If you beat it in it will become sloppy.
Ingredients
Find the full ingredients amounts in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. Here is a rundown of what you will need –
- Biscoff cookies- for the base. You can substitute with plain vanilla biscuits, graham crackers, or gingersnap cookies for a spicy gingersnap crust.
- Butter – salted or unsalted butter
- Cold heavy cream/ whipping cream
- Cream cheese – Use the block-style cream cheese at room temperature
- Pumpkin puree – You can use canned pumpkin puree or make your own pumpkin puree from scratch.
- Spices –
- Granulated white sugar
- Soft brown sugar
- Vanilla extract or paste
The spices
Pumpkin pie spice is the magic combination of individual spices that makes pumpkin desserts taste so darn good. Making your own spice blends is a lot cheaper than buying a pre-made mix from the grocery store too! Spices enhance the pumpkin flavor.
Use pre-mixed pumpkin spice flavors or individual spices – cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice (see the notes in the recipe card). Here is an easy recipe for homemade pumpkin spice mix!
Equipment
8-inch square baking pan- You’ll need an 8-inch square baking pan for these bars, the same square pan used in this crinkle brownie recipe. It makes a cheesecake square that can be easily sliced into 10 servings. The pan will be lined with parchment paper so that the cheesecake can be lifted out once it has been chilled.
Electric mixer or a stand mixer – to whip the cream and cream cheese
Food processor (optional) – A food processor is helpful to blend the cookies into crumbs, though you could also add them into a large Ziploc bag and use a heavy rolling pin or similar to crush the cookies.
Method
The crust
Line an 8×8 square pan with parchment paper. Leave an overhang of parchment so that you can lift the cheesecake from the pan to slice it.
In the bowl of a food processor add the cookies, and blend them on high speed until they achieve fine crumbs.
Pour in the melted butter and pulse to combine the cookies and butter into a clumpy crumb mixture.
Add the crumbs to the prepared pan and use an offset spatula or the bottom of a glass to press it in evenly and firmly in the bottom of the pan.
Place the pan in the freezer for 10 minutes.
The filling
In a medium bowl, pour in the heavy cream and use a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment to beat the cream on medium speed until stiff peaks form.
In a large bowl add the cream cheese, and use a mixer to beat the cream cheese well until completely smooth.
Add the sugars and beat until creamy.
Add in the pumpkin puree, spices salt, and vanilla and beat again to combine into a creamy mixture.
Spoon in half the whipped cream and use a rubber spatula to gently fold it in. Continue with the remaining cream, carefully folding it all together.
Scoop the mixture over top of the cold cookie crust .
Use an offset spatula to smooth out the pumpkin layer.
Cover with plastic wrap and chill the cheesecake for at least 6 hours or up to 24. For best results, leave the cheesecake to set as long as possible. This is a great make-ahead dessert!
Serving
Use a sharp knife to slice the cheesecake into 16 squares. Cleaning the knife between each slice will keep it neater.
Serve with a dollop of whipped cream and a drizzle of spiced caramel sauce. The caramel sauce is super fast and easy to make! You can make it while the cheesecake sets.
Leftover cheesecake can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. The finished cheesecake can also be frozen for up to 3 months.
Related recipes
Try these other pumpkin desserts!
No-Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
Super creamy and perfectly spiced, these no-bake pumpkin cheesecake bars are an easy fall-inspired treat.
Ingredients
Base
- 200g Biscoff cookies (around 26 cookies)*
- 85g (6 Tbsp melted butter)
Cheesecake base
- 240g (1 cup) heavy cream, cold
- 450g (16oz) block-style cream cheese, room temperature
- 100g (1/2 cup) soft brown sugar
- 50g (1/4 cup) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoon pumpkin spice**
- 220g (1 cup) pumpkin puree
- 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla paste
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Topping
- Whipped cream
- Spiced caramel sauce
Instructions
- Line an 8x8 square pan with parchment paper. Leave an overhang of parchment to lift the cheesecake from the pan to slice it when it's ready.
- In the bowl of a food processor, add the cookies and blend them on high speed until they achieve fine crumbs.
- Pour in the melted butter and pulse to combine the cookies and butter into a clumpy crumb mixture. Add the crumbs to the prepared pan and use an offset spatula or the bottom of a glass to press it in evenly and firmly in the bottom of the pan.
- Place the pan in the freezer for 10 minutes.
The filling.
- In a medium bowl, pour in the heavy cream and use a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment to beat the cream on medium speed until stiff peaks form
- In a large bowl, add the blocks of cream cheese and use a mixer to beat the cream cheese well until completely smooth.
- Add sugars and beat until creamy. Add in the pumpkin puree, spices salt, and vanilla and beat again to combine into a creamy mixture.
- Spoon in half the whipped cream and use a rubber spatula to gently fold it in. Continue with the remaining cream, carefully folding it all together.
- Scoop the mixture over the cold cookie crust and use an offset spatula to smooth out the pumpkin layer.
- Cover with plastic or beeswax wrap and chill the cheesecake for at least 8 hours or up to 24 hours. For best results, leave the cheesecake to set as long as possible. This is a great make-ahead dessert!
Serving
- Use a sharp knife to slice the cheesecake into 16 squares. Cleaning the knife between each slice will keep it neater.
- Serve with a dollop of whipped cream and a drizzle of spiced caramel sauce.
Notes
*The Biscoff cookies can be substituted for crushed graham crackers or gingersnaps
**Instead of pumpkin spice you can use :
1 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
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