Gluten Free White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

Gluten Free White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Bars. A decadent, white chocolate cheesecake, swirled with homemade raspberry sauce on top of a buttery Oreo crust - the perfect dessert for any occasion.

This recipe has a few components but comes together easily. The raspberry sauce can be made ahead and while it is cooling you can prepare the gluten-free oreo crust and cheesecake filling. The best part about this recipe - is this gluten-free white chocolate cheesecake bakes without a water bath.

Recipe Ingredients Notes

Raspberries: For the raspberry swirl you can use fresh or frozen raspberries. Make sure not to thaw frozen raspberries before turning them into the

Gluten Free Oreos: Gluten free Oreos are widely available in the United States but free to use other brands Kinnikinnick KinniTOOS or Glutino Chocolate Vanilla Creme Cookies. If you are located in Europe, look for Schär Chocolate O's. You may also substitute the gluten-free Oreo cheesecake crust with my gluten-free shortbread crust (Found here).

White Chocolate: I recommend using high-quality white chocolate in this recipe like Guittard, Callebaut, or Ghiradelli Classic White Premium Baking Chips. Some grocery store white chocolate chips burn easily since they have been designed to hold their shape. Do not use White Melting Wafers since they are designed for dipping and not for baking.

Cream Cheese: I use a full-fat block/brick of cream cheese. My brand of choice if Philadelphia which is gluten-free according to the Kraft-Heinz website. I always recommend checking the packaging or the manufacturer’s website to ensure the products used are celiac safe. I have not tested any of my cheesecake recipes with fat-free or non-dairy cream cheese.

Easy Raspberry Swirl Sauce

The raspberry swirl sauce needs to at room temperature before topping the white chocolate cheese cake. So make sure to make it first thing so it has time to cool while you prepare the gluten free cheesecake crust and white chocolate cheesecake filling. The sauce can be made in advance and stored in the refridgerator up to 7 days.

1. To make the raspberry sauce, combine the raspberries, the zest from half a lemon, water, sugar, cornstarch, salt, vanilla extract, and lemon juice in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. If you use frozen raspberries there is no need to thaw them first.
2. With a spoon or small spatula stir the ingredients together and break up the raspberries. Allow for it to simmer at a low/medium heat for 3-4 minutes until the raspberries start to release their juices and the sauce starts to thicken. Try not to boil the sauce since it can burn very quickly.
3. Remove the raspberry sauce from the heat and allow to cool down for a few minutes.
4. Place a stainless steel fine mesh strainer over a bowl big enough to hold your raspberry sauce. Fill the strainer with the raspberry sauce, and with a spoon or a spatula, stir content in the strainer. The strained liquids will drip into the bowl from the strainer, and the seeds will remain in the strainer.
5. Allow the raspberry sauce to cool at room temperature while you make the gluten free cheesecake crust and cheesecake filling.

Gluten Free Oreo Cheesecake Crust

1. Preheat your oven to 325F and arrange the wire rack in the oven in the middle. Line an 8x8 baking pan with parchment paper and set it aside. Make sure to leave some overhang on the sides to remove the cheesecake easily from the pan. A 9" square baking pan can be used. Just be aware that the white chocolate raspberry cheesecake will be thinner and bake faster.
2. In a microwave safe bowl or small saucepan, melt the unsalted butter.
3. In the meantime, place the gluten free Oreo cookies (or Oreo-style cookies) in your food processor or blender and grind up until very fine crumbs. You can also place them in a ziplock bag and crush them up with a rolling pin.
4. Add the cookie crumbs to a small mixing bowl. Add the melted butter and stir together until the cookies are evenly coated.
5. Transfer the gluten-free oreo cookie mixture to the prepared pan and spread it out evenly with a small offset or the bottom of a metal measuring cup.
6. Bake in your 325F oven for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool before adding the white chocolate cheesecake filling.

DO NOT turn your oven off after you baked the crust. Reduce your oven temperature to 300F - make sure to keep an eye on it. Many ovens have issues keeping a steady temperature at 300F. If you see your oven thermometer drop below 300, turn up your oven to 310-315F.

White Chocolate Cheesecake Filling

1. Carefully melt your chopped white chocolate in your microwave or over a hot water bath (make sure the bowl does not touch the boiling water). White Chocolate can go from melted to burnt within seconds therefore start with 30-second intervals. Remove the melted chocolate from the microwave and allow it to sit at room temperature.
2. To make the white chocolate cheesecake filling, combine the room temperature cream cheese and granulated sugar, lemon juice and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. You can also use a hand mixer and a large bowl.
3. Starting at a low speed, mix the ingredients together until fully combined and smooth. Mix at a medium speed until light and fluffy, around 2-3 minutes.
4. Add the gluten-free multipurpose flour (any gluten free flour mix works here) The flour helps with the moisture from the raspberry sauce.
5. Scrape down the sides of your mixing bowl with a flexible spatula.
6. Beat in the room-temperature eggs and the egg yolk one at a time, just until combined; do not overmix once you've added the eggs.
7. Remove the mixing bowl from the stand mixer and add the melted, cooled but still fluid white chocolate. With a flexible spatula fold the white chocolate into the cheesecake batter. Make sure everything is combined. It is okay if there are some small lumps of cream cheese left in the batter.

Baking White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Bars

Make sure your oven is at 300F before returning the white chocolate raspberry cheesecake to the oven. Many ovens have issues keeping a steady temperature at 300F. If you see your Oven Thermometer drop below 300F, set your oven to 310-315F. That's a safe temperature to bake the bars at.

1. Pour the white chocolate cheesecake filling on top of the pre-baked gluten-free Oreo crust. Spread it out evenly with a small offset or spatula.
2. Dollop the raspberry sauce on top of the the white chocolate cheesecake in little puddles. With a toothpick or skewer, swirl the sauce and the cheesecake batter together decoratively. Top with a few additional fresh raspberries if you like. Should there be any leftover raspberry sauce you can save it in the fridge and use it for serving the cheesecake later.
3. Place the gluten free white chocolate raspberry cheesecake in the oven and bake until the cheesecake is set around the edges but is still a bit jiggly in the center, 36-42 minutes. Baking times depends on the size of baking pan used and oven.
4. Turn off the oven and allow the white chocolate raspberry cheesecake to cool in the oven for an hour. This will help reduce the chance for it to crack (Cheesecakes often crack when removed too early from the oven). After an hour remove it from the oven and allow for it to cool completely at room temperature.
5. Once the cheesecake is fully cooled, cover it loosely and place in the fridge for at least 4hrs (preferably overnight) before slicing.

How to slice a Cheesecake

This recipe for gluten free white chocolate raspberry cheesecake will give you 9-16 pieces, depending on how big you slice the pieces. To cut them, a cold, very well-set cheesecake is the key here. Always use a long, very sharp, knife, preferably thin. I also like to use a pitcher with hot water instead of running hot water constantly while cutting.

What you will need to slice picture-perfect cheesecake

• cold, well set white chocolate raspberry cheesecake
• a pitcher with HOT water
• clean, dry towel
• sharp Chef’s Knife

1. Dip your Chef’s Knife in the hot water and dry very well with the towel. The hot water will warm up the blade and will slide through the cheesecake a lot easier.
2. For the best results, clean your knife in between cuts in the hot water, wipe clean, and continue cutting. The cleaning is the very important part here. If you skip this step your going to smudge all the leftovers from your previous cut onto the next cut.
3. Arrange your cut slices of chocolate cheesecake on a serving platter and serve them with additional fresh raspberries or even a dollop of whipped cream if you like.

Storage & Freezing

To store this Gluten Free White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake place it in an airtight container and store it in your fridge for up to 5 days.

To freeze a cheesecake, recommend freezing the slices individually on a sheet tray (uncovered) first before transferring them to an airtight container. You may also freeze the entire uncut cheesecake. To freeze the entire cheesecake place it on a sheet tray and freeze until fully frozen. Once frozen wrap in plastic wrap and aluminum foil (or if you have a big enough ziplock bag). Freeze for up to 2 months. When ready to eat allow for it to thaw in the refrigerator.

FAQ for White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

Note about Salt in my Recipes

I use Diamond Kosher Crystal Salt in all of my recipes unless otherwise stated. If use use a different brand or kind of salt in your kitchen please adjust accordingly since some salts can be saltier. If you use Morton’s Kosher Salt please be aware that their salt granules are smaller in size, denser, and crunchier and twice as salty.

Baking in grams

I share my recipes in grams and by weight since baking by weight is the most accurate way to bake. Digital Scales are very affordable and easy to use. You can purchase them on Amazon for less than a set of measuring cups. For small amounts under 10 grams, I like to use this Precision Pocket Scale. Measuring cups are very inaccurate which can cause significant errors when it comes to gluten-free baking or baking in general. Especially since I bake with gluten-free flours which weigh differently than “regular” flours. I do provide some ingredients like spices and leavening agents in measuring spoons. To learn more about Baking with a digital scale, make sure to check out my post about Baking by weight.

Note about Ovens and Oven Temperatures

All my recipes are tested and developed with a conventional oven. I always bake my baked goods on the rack placed in the MIDDLE of my oven. This way the heat coming from the bottom will not burn my baked goods.

If you are baking with convection (fan-forced), please adjust the recipes accordingly. Convection oven can cause baked goods to dry out quickly and still be raw inside. Since takes at least 15-20 minutes for a standard American Oven to be fully preheated. I highly recommend investing in an Oven Thermometer.

Substitutions and Modifications

Any dietary or ingredient modifications/substitutions to this recipe may alter the end result in appearance and taste. I test my recipes several times as published in this post and The Gluten Free Austrian Blog is not responsible for the outcome of any recipe you find on our website.