A sweet and simple recipe for Funfetti cheesecake bars, made with cake mix and plenty of sprinkles! These are easy, colorful, and delicious!
Sprinkle-Studded Cheesecake Bars
These fun & easy Funfetti cheesecake bars are the party-version of my favorite cheesecake recipe. Perfectly sweetened, bright and colorful, they’re simple to make and a guaranteed showstopper.
As with my other cheesecake bars, this recipe does not require a waterbath, making it as simple and low-maintenance as it is beautiful. Spread over a slightly crisp golden Oreo crust, the filling is smooth and creamy.
These Funfetti cheesecake bars are great served as-is cut straight from the pan or topped with my homemade whipped cream or hot fudge sauce. Let’s get started!
What You Need
Let’s go over the key ingredients for today’s recipe:
- Golden Oreos. These make up our simple, sturdy, and slightly crisp Oreo crust layer. I like the way the sweet golden Oreos work with the Funfetti filling, but alternatively you could use my graham cracker crust (or a traditional Oreo crust).
- Cream cheese. Use “brick-style”, full-fat cream cheese (you’ll need 4 8-oz bricks!). The spreadable kind sold in tubs unfortunately includes additives that can affect the final outcome of the bars.
- Sour cream. This balances the sweetness of the Funfetti cake batter and contributes to the creamy texture of the cheesecake. For sweeter bars, feel free to reduce this to ⅔ cup.
- Cake mix. You can use white, yellow, or classic “Funfetti” cake mix here.
- Vanilla extract. While the cake mix adds some vanilla flavor, we still want to bump it up a bit with vanilla extract.
- Eggs. It’s key to not over-beat your eggs, or your cheesecake could end up cracked or with a curdled texture. Over-beating the eggs could also cause the cheesecake to rise, brown too much on top, and then deflate. To avoid this, lightly beat your eggs before adding them and stir them in on low speed, one at a time.
- Sprinkles! Add ¼ cup additional sprinkles (or homemade sprinkles!) to give these Funfetti cheesecake bars plenty of fun color.
SAM’S TIP: When making the cheesecake batter, it’s best if all of your ingredients are the same temperature before you begin. If you forgot to pull your eggs out of the fridge in advance, see my post on how to quickly bring eggs to room temperature (you just need a little bit of warm water!).
As always, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Funfetti Cheesecake Bars
- Prepare your graham cracker crust by grinding Golden Oreos to crumbs and then mixing with a bit of melted butter. Press this in an even layer into a baking dish.
- Beat together softened cream cheese and sugar, then add cake mix, sour cream, and vanilla extract.
- Lightly beat your eggs then add them, one at a time, to the batter, stirring until just combined. Be sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl frequently as you make your batter, this will ensure no clumps of cheesecake are hiding, only to resurface as unsightly lumps in the finished product!
- Stir in sprinkles, then pour the batter evenly over your crust.
- Bake until the cheesecake is set in the center (it may jiggle slightly in the center if you jostle it, but it should not be liquidy!).
SAM’S TIP: If you opt to use a glass or ceramic baking dish instead of a metal one, your Funfetti cheesecake bars will likely take a bit longer than indicated to finish baking.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you’re looking for a cake mix-free version, I would instead direct you to my classic cheesecake bars. For a flavor that tastes more like this Funfetti version, use clear/imitation vanilla extract (it helps give you that classic cake batter taste) and add ¼ cup of your favorite sprinkles.
Over-beating the eggs or over-baking the bars are the most likely reasons for cracking. However, as we learned with my key lime cheesecake, the cheesecake shrinks while it cools and if the edges are stuck to the pan, this tension can cause ugly cracks in the center of the bars! To prevent this, line your pan with parchment paper that goes up higher than the edge of the cheesecake on all sides. This will allow the bars to constrict nicely and help prevent cracks (so long as you don’t over-mix or over-bake!).
Most traditional sprinkles/jimmies or “sequin” style sprinkles shouldn’t bleed, but nonpareils may if allowed to sit in the batter too long before you stir. I still use nonpareils, though! Just add them to the batter and immediately stir and pour into your pan to bake!
You can also customize the Funfetti cheesecake bars by using the colors of your next party’s theme (ex: pink and blue sprinkles for a gender reveal!).
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Funfetti Cheesecake Bars
Ingredients
Crust
- 25 Golden Oreos (do not remove the filling)
- 4 Tablespoons butter melted (salted or unsalted is fine)
Cheesecake Squares
- 32 oz cream cheese softened to room temperature (use brick-style cream cheese, not the sort sold in tubs)
- 1 ¼ cup (250 g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (226 g) sour cream
- 1 cup (130) Funfetti cake mix
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs, lightly beaten room temperature preferred
- ¼ cup (72 g) colored sprinkles
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and line a 13×9 metal pan with parchment paper (I like to use enough that it goes up the sides of the pan (this helps keep the cheesecake from cracking as the parchment will allow it to constrict as it cools).
- Place Golden Oreos in a food processor and process cookies into fine crumbs.25 Golden Oreos
- Add melted butter, process until fully incorporated.4 Tablespoons butter
- Pour cookie crumbs into the bottom of prepared and tamp down into an even layer. Set aside.
- Using an electric mixer, cream together cream cheese and sugars until smooth and creamy. and sour cream until smooth.32 oz cream cheese, 1 ¼ cup (250 g) granulated sugar
- Add sour cream, cake mix, and vanilla extract and stir on low-speed until smooth, scraping down the sides with a spatula as needed to make sure all ingredients are well-combined.1 cup (226 g) sour cream, 1 cup (130) Funfetti cake mix, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Add eggs, one at a time, stirring until just combined after each addition.3 large eggs, lightly beaten
- Add colored sprinkles and stir quickly by hand until combined.¼ cup (72 g) colored sprinkles
- Pour cheesecake batter evenly into prepared pan over crust.
- Bake at 350F for 35-40 minutes (center of cheesecake should be set).
- Top with homemade whipped cream and additional sprinkles, if desired.
- Refrigerate at least 4 hours before cutting and serving.
Notes
Storing
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Funfetti cheesecake bars may also be frozen for several months, but be sure to chill cheesecake as indicated before cutting, wrapping, and freezing.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
I originally published this recipe in June of 2014. I’ve added more information to the post, updated the photos, and made a few clarifying notes to the recipe, but the recipe remains the same & these are the same Funfetti cheesecake bars you know and love!
Vanessa
Would I need to adjust this recipe for a 3 tier 6” round cake? Looking to make two for my twins.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Vanessa! We’re not quite sure how this cheesecake recipe would do with stacking. You might be better off with our funfetti cake, which should work for what you’re planning to do. For that cheesecake flavor, you could always use our cream cheese frosting or follow the method from our cheesecake stuffed cake. Hope this is helpful!
Julie T
So I did an oops over Easter and erroneously used the entire cake mix instead of the 1 cup as specified. I was so worried it was ruined – was I wrong! It was the favorite dessert at family dinner and I already have a request to make another. It turned out thicker than the original recipe and it was soooo fluffy! The taste was still amazing. It was a happy mistake 😊
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, Julie! 🙂