Christmas Cranberry Cheesecake Squares

Jump to Recipe

I love baking Christmas squares. They always pack a flavourful punch, and come together in no time! Christmas cranberry cheesecake squares are easy to make ahead of time, cut, and bring to any holiday party. They are also a great way to use up any left-over cranberry sauce from thanksgiving!

There are so many great recipes, and ideas, for Christmas dessert squares and bars. This recipe uses sweetened condensed milk and cream cheese to make a sweet cheesecake centre! The berry in this original recipe is cranberries, but there is no reason you couldn’t easily replace this with your favorite berry. I’m thinking raspberry or Christmas squares with cherry would look just as festive!

Squares and bars are a perfect way to get into holiday baking without having to spend hours of time making dough, cutting out, and decorating cookies. Everything goes in one pan, then slice it into individual squares!

How to store Christmas Cranberry Cheesecake Squares

I make mine in a rectangular casserole dish that comes with a lid. So, I simply snap on the lid and store them in the refrigerator.

These bars should be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container, until they are ready to be used.

These Christmas squares freeze well. Making them in advance and storing them in the freezer, for up to 3 months, is a great way to get a head start on your holiday baking. Especially, if you want to use up some of that left-over cranberry sauce from thanksgiving!

How to make Christmas Cranberry Cheesecake Squares

These Christmas squares are easy to make. There have three different layers.

The oatmeal base -This layer is used as a base and sprinkled on top as well.

The cheesecake- A super simple cheesecake layer using only cream cheese, sweetened condensed milk, and a little lemon juice.

The fruit- The fruit in these Christmas squares is cranberry but you can use your fruit of choice. You will need about 2 cups of fruit sauce, or even a can of pie filling would work great in this recipe!

How to serve Christmas Cranberry Cheesecake Squares

My favourite way to serve these bars is to cut them into small squares and serve cold. They hold together in one piece and can be eaten in a few bites. No plate or fork required! They are perfect to chill and bring to any holiday event.

If you prefer to make these Christmas squares into a festive Christmas dessert, cut them in larger slices. Serve them warm with a generous dollop of whipped cream, or a scoop of ice cream on top! For this you will require a plate and fork!

Substitutions

We already talked about substitutions for cranberry sauce. But how do you make a fruit sauce with a different berry?

Fruit sauce is simple to make. You need your fruit, a sweetener (usually sugar), and a liquid. The amount of each is very much dependent on the type of fruit you are using. Some berries are firm (like cranberries) and some are mush (raspberries). Some give off more liquid and some are sweeter than others.

For a basic starting-point recipe:

In a medium sauce pot, on medium heat, add your fruit, 1 cup of water, and 1/4 cup of sugar (or sweetener or choice). Cook it down for about 8 minutes or until the fruit is tender. At this point you can judge if you need to add more liquid and you can add the amount of sugar to taste.

Mash the berries to make a sauce. This should work for almost any berry fruit sauce.

What about the cream cheese? When I made this recipe, I had some left over ricotta cheese in the fridge. I actually used half cream cheese and half ricotta cheese. It worked perfectly! The bars held together just the same and had an amazing cheesecake flavour and texture.

Ricotta has a similar flavour and texture to cream cheese and acts similarly when baked. Switching out half the cream cheese, or all of the cream cheese, in this recipe for ricotta is a great option.

Mascarpone is another great option for cheesecake. This cheese is the one that is the most similar to cream cheese. It is very creamy and has a slight sweetness to it, which is why it is often used in desserts. Switching out half the cream cheese, or all of the cream cheese, in this recipe for mascarpone is a great substitution.

Ingredients for Christmas Cranberry Cheesecake Squares

For the base

2 cups flour

1½ cups rolled oats

¾ cups brown sugar

1 cup butter, softened

For the cheesecake

1 (8-oz.) brick cream cheese, softened

1 (14-oz.) can sweetened condensed milk

3 Tablespoons lemon juice

Fruit layer and topping

1 can or about 2 cups cranberry sauce

2 Tablespoons cornstarch

¾ cup white chocolate chips

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
2. Combine flour, oats, brown sugar, and softened butter. Mix until they become crumbly.
3. Set aside 1 ½ cups (or just under half) of the mixture to sprinkle on the top later.
4. Press the rest of the mixture in to the bottom of a rectangular (9 X 13 in.) casserole dish or lined cake pan.
5. Bake 15-20 minutes or until lightly golden.
6. Meanwhile, beat the softened cream cheese until smooth.
7. Add in the sweetened condensed milk and lemon juice. Beat until smooth.
8. Spread this over the base.
9. In a medium bowl, mix the cranberry sauce with the cornstarch. (This will help the cranberry sauce hold together in a solid layer when you cut the bars.)
10. Spread the fruit mixture on top of the cheesecake layer.
11. Sprinkle the reserved base mixture evenly on top of the bars.
12. Bake for 40-45 minutes more, or until the crumb mixture is golden.
13. Remove and sprinkle with white chocolate chips.
14. Cool, then slice and serve.

Looking for some more holiday baking? Try one of these! No-bake Rich Chocolate mint bars The Perfect Pumpkin Pie Autumn Spice Decorated Sugar Cookies