Simple Cherry Cheesecake Bars — Easy Dessert for a Crowd 🍒
Food for the Soul
Simple Cherry Cheesecake Bars are the kind of dessert that feeds your family AND your soul — and they come with a free therapy session courtesy of an innocent bag of graham crackers. Some recipes feed your family. Some recipes feed your soul. These do both. Let me explain.
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Watch me make these Simple Cherry Cheesecake Bars from start to finish — and stay until the end for the Olivia outtake. You’re welcome.
Featured Tools & Ingredients
- 9x13 INCH: Includes (1) 9x13x2.75 inch glass baking dish with BPA-free plastic lid. This deep baking...
- GO DEEPER: At up to 50% deeper than the Pyrex basics dishes you know and love, there’s more room...
• This is the exact pan I use in the video — it goes straight from oven to table, and the lid makes storing these bars in the fridge for three days (if they last that long) so easy.
- 300 Watt
- 10-speed slide control - from a very fast whip to a very slow stir
• My parents gave me this stand mixer 15-20 years ago and it still works perfectly. Not optional when I'm cooking for a crowd — and it whips the cheesecake filling smooth in under a minute.
- ESSENTIAL KITCHEN TOOL: 2 piece set includes 1-cup, and 2-cup, measuring cups that are perfect for...
- EASY TO READ: Featuring bold and large measurements in both ounces and milliliters making this...
• A flat-bottomed glass cup is the easiest way to press the graham crust flat and even before it bakes — and the same set measures the crumbs and butter on the way in. My most-used tool in the kitchen.
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Simple Cherry Cheesecake Bars
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Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups graham crackers crushed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 stick salted butter melted (1/2 cup)
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 16 oz cream cheese softened
- 8 oz whipped topping Cool Whip or your preferred brand
- 2 cans cherry pie filling or any pie filling of your choice
Don’t Want to Build Your Own? I’ve Got You.Every Saturday I share a full week of dinners, sides, and a dessert — with the grocery list already done. Come grab this week’s Weekly Meal Plans!Equipment
- 9×13 Baking Pan
- Hand Mixer or Stand Mixer
Method
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Mix crushed graham crackers, sugar, and melted butter together in a 9×13 pan.
- Press firmly and evenly into the bottom of the pan.
- Bake for 5-8 minutes until set. Allow to cool completely before adding filling.
- In a large mixing bowl combine powdered sugar, softened cream cheese, and Cool Whip.
- Mix with a hand mixer until smooth and creamy.
- Place in the fridge until crust has completely cooled.
- Once crust has cooled completely, spread cheesecake mixture gently and evenly across the crust.
- Top with cherry pie filling — I used 2 cans to make sure everyone gets enough cherries!
- Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Nutrition
Video
Notes
Tried this recipe?
Tap the stars above to rate it! This helps other families find it.Why These Simple Cherry Cheesecake Bars Work
The crust requires crushed graham crackers. And I may have been a little more aggressive than necessary in the crushing process. My middle name is mess — just ask anyone in this kitchen — but I have found that aggressively banging graham crackers is significantly cheaper than actual therapy. So there’s that.
These Simple Cherry Cheesecake Bars have everything — a buttery, crunchy graham cracker crust, a smooth and creamy cheesecake filling made with Cool Whip , and a gorgeous cherry pie filling on top. I used two full cans of Duncan Hines cherry pie filling because in this house everyone gets enough cherries. No skimping. You could use blueberry, strawberry, peach, or any pie filling you love — but I am a cherry girl through and through.
The recipe makes 16 to 20 squares, feeds a crowd beautifully, and keeps in the fridge for 3 days. If it lasts that long. And I hope you stayed until the end of the video — Olivia didn’t realize the camera was still on. You’re welcome. 😄🍒
A Few Things That Make Simple Cherry Cheesecake Bars Even Easier
- Get aggressive with the graham crackers. Bag them up, grab a rolling pin or a wine bottle or whatever blunt object is closest, and go to town. Therapy. Bars. Two birds.
- Let the crust cool completely before adding the filling. Warm crust + creamy filling = a melty mess. Bake the crust, then walk away for 30 minutes. Patience pays off here.
- Two cans of cherry pie filling. Always two. One can leaves you with bare patches and sad readers. Two cans means every single square gets cherries. This is the hill I will die on.
- Swap the topping if cherries aren’t your thing. Blueberry, strawberry, peach, mixed berry — any pie filling works. The crust and cheesecake layer are flexible. Just keep the two-can rule.
- Use my deep Pyrex 9x13 with the lid. The lid is the unsung hero here. You can cover the bars and stash them right in the fridge to chill before serving, then carry them to the potluck without dirtying a second dish.
Simple Cherry Cheesecake Bars FAQ — The Questions I Get Every Time
How long does it take to make Simple Cherry Cheesecake Bars?
About 30 minutes of hands-on work — 20 minutes of prep plus 8 minutes to bake the crust. Then the bars need to chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours before serving so the cheesecake layer can set up. I usually make these in the morning or the night before so they have plenty of fridge time before the crowd shows up.
How do I make a graham cracker crust that doesn’t crumble?
Two things. First, crush the crackers fine — you want sandy crumbs, not jagged shards. Second, press the mixture firmly and evenly into the bottom of the pan before you bake it. A flat-bottomed measuring cup is the easiest tool for this. The Kitchn has a great walkthrough on the press-and-bake technique if you want to read more on the basics.
Can I make Simple Cherry Cheesecake Bars ahead of time?
Yes — these are one of my favorite make-ahead desserts. Assemble the whole pan, cover with the lid, and refrigerate up to 3 days before serving. They actually get better after the first day as the flavors meld. If you’re bringing them to a potluck or family dinner, I’d make them the night before so the cheesecake layer has plenty of time to set.
Can I freeze cherry cheesecake bars?
You can. Wrap the pan tightly in foil plus plastic wrap and freeze up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before serving. The texture of the cherry topping changes a tiny bit after freezing — it gets slightly softer — but the bars themselves hold up beautifully.
Can I use a different pie filling instead of cherry?
Absolutely. Blueberry, strawberry, peach, apple, or mixed berry all work beautifully — just swap two cans of whatever flavor you love for the cherry. I am a cherry girl through and through, but I have made these with blueberry for a Fourth of July party and they were gone before I sat down.
Why two cans of cherry pie filling?
Because in this house, everyone gets enough cherries. One can leaves you spreading the topping thin and praying it covers the corners. Two cans means every square has cherries piled on top — the way it should be. No skimping. This is my favorite hill to die on.
How many Simple Cherry Cheesecake Bars does this recipe make?
The recipe makes 16 to 20 squares depending on how big you cut them. For a crowd I cut them on the smaller side and get closer to 20 — they are rich and a smaller square is just right. For a smaller family dessert night, cut bigger and serve 16. Either way, they feed a crowd beautifully.
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Ingredients
Equipment
More Easy Crowd Desserts You’ll Make on Repeat
- 3 Ingredient Cherry Dump Cake — if you love cherry, you need this in your life immediately. Three ingredients and it’s done.
- Chewy Oatmeal Cookie Bars — my most-requested cookie, straight from a cookbook called Straight from the Horse’s Mouth.
- Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars — quick, easy, and gone in minutes at any gathering.
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Simple Cherry Cheesecake Bars — About Stephanie’s Recipes
Stephanie Longstreth is the home cook, mom, and storyteller behind StephanieCooksForACrowd.com. She cooks for a family of seven in Florida — five kids, two cats, and one husband who appreciates a good meal. Four of her children came home through adoption, and family stories are woven into everything she makes and shares. Find her crowd-friendly recipes, weekly meal plans, and real family life on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Pinterest @stephaniecooksforacrowd.