Raspberry Cheesecake

My raspberry cheesecake is swirled with fresh raspberry flavor throughout. It’s baked on a classic graham cracker crust and, of course, is made without a water bath! Recipe includes detailed step-by-step photos and instructions and a how-to video tutorial.

The BEST Raspberry Cheesecake

My raspberry cheesecake recipe deviates slightly from the other berry cheesecakes I’ve shared here. With my strawberry cheesecake we used a plain base with the strawberries making an appearance only on the top. That worked beautifully there, but we needed more oomph here. Unlike with my blueberry cheesecake, using whole berries didn’t work so well here. Instead, we’ll make a homemade raspberry sauce for a concentrated bright, tart contrast to the sweet and creamy, dense cheesecake.

The end result is so pretty and completely irresistible. Seriously, it’s hard to stop eating this once you start, which is not something I often say about a dessert as rich as cheesecake!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• No water bath needed! I don’t use a water bath in any of my cheesecake recipes (though it is a necessary step for making my chocolate pot de creme and creme brulee). Just make sure to follow my tips below for avoiding cracks!
• Bursting with raspberry flavor throughout! We’ll add a raspberry swirl in the middle, on top, and then drizzle with raspberry sauce before serving. I sometimes like to toss in some fresh raspberries with the sauce at the end for even more fresh raspberry flavor!
• Saves you a step, because there is no need to pre-bake the crust. Oh, and if you like raspberries and chocolate together, feel free to use an Oreo crust instead.
• Can be made year-round! This recipe tastes equally as good with frozen raspberries as it does with fresh, so you don’t have to wait for summer berries.

Ingredients

We stick to simple and fresh ingredients when making raspberry cheesecake. As always, I do have a few I’d like to mention before we get started.

• Raspberries. Either fresh or frozen berries will work. Decide what you want to use depending on when you make this raspberry cheesecake; fresh are best when they are in season.
• Sour cream. Cheesecake absolutely needs sour cream for the proper flavor–I feel very strongly about this and include it in all of my cheesecake recipes (even my cheesecake bites and no-bake cheesecake!)! If you don’t have sour cream, full-fat plain greek yogurt would also work.
• Cream cheese. You must use full-fat, brick-style cream cheese for this recipe to turn out properly. The spreadable kind sold in tubs will not work here, unfortunately.
• Eggs. 3 room temperature eggs are key to give the cheesecake base its classic firm but custard-y texture. More on this critical ingredient below!
• Graham cracker crumbs. These are for my go-to graham cracker crust. If you can’t find pre-crushed crumbs, just crush your own graham crackers. I use a food processor or put the crackers in a ziplock bag and use a rolling pin.

SAM’S TIP: Let’s talk eggs! First, it’s important to use room temperature eggs. If you forget to set yours out ahead, use my trick to quickly bring eggs to room temperature. Second, add the eggs one at a time, and briefly beat each egg to break it up before adding it to the batter. Third, only mix your eggs into your batter until just combined. All of these tips will prevent over-mixing the eggs, ultimately giving you the smoothest texture, prettiest appearance, and best flavor.

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 Raspberry Cheesecake

Raspberry Sauce

1. Cook the berries, water, lemon juice, and sugar until the berries start to break down and become juicy.
2. Increase the heat and let the sauce simmer until thickened. Stir constantly during this time. There won’t be a huge change in consistency, but the sauce shouldn’t be quite as loose as it was initially and will darken in color.
3. Pour the sauce through a strainer into a heatproof bowl. Press with a spatula to work the liquid through the strainer and into the bowl.
4. Stir 2 tablespoons of the seeds from the strainer into your sauce, then discard the rest. This will give the sauce just a little bit of texture, which I love! Set the sauce aside and let it cool while you prepare your cheesecake.

Graham Cracker Crust

1. Combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugars, and melted butter. Remember, don’t do this when your butter is too hot, or your crust will be greasy.
2. Press into your springform pan. Make sure to cover the bottom and as high up the sides as you can get it (this will prevent cracks!). I use a drinking glass to help me do this. Set the crust aside while you prepare your batter.

Raspberry Cheesecake Batter

1. Stir the cream cheese and sugar together until smooth and creamy. Make sure to work any lumps out now, or they will end up in your cheesecake!
2. Add the sour cream and vanilla and stir until just combined.
3. Add the eggs. Do this one egg at a time, beating first in a separate bowl and then mixing on low speed until just incorporated. When you are done adding the eggs, make sure to give the sides and bottom of the bowl a good stir with a spatula to make sure everything is combined.

Assembly

1. Pour half of the cheesecake batter into your crust, then drizzle some of the raspberry sauce overtop. You don’t have to be quite so precise with how this looks since it will be in the center of your raspberry cheesecake.
2. Dollop the rest of the cheesecake batter over the raspberry sauce. Smooth the surface with a spatula so your final cheesecake has a smooth, even top.
3. Add another drizzle of raspberry sauce overtop. Be more careful with this ripple as it will be the surface of your cheesecake and will make an impression. I use a knife to swirl the sauce into the batter and make it pretty. Note you will have some leftover raspberry sauce–save this for serving!
4. Bake, then turn off the oven and crack the door. Let the cheesecake sit like this for an hour, then remove and cool to room temperature. This helps keep the cheesecake from cracking due to drastic temperature change. It will need to then chill in the fridge overnight before you serve (topping with additional raspberry sauce as desired).

SAM’S TIP: All of my notes from my other cheesecakes apply here to avoid cracks. This includes pressing the crust high up the sides so it can shrink as it cools, using room temperature ingredients, avoiding over-mixing, and cooling slowly.

Frequently Asked Questions

What fruity cheesecake flavor would you like to see next? Cherry? 🍒 Mango? 🥭 Peach? 🍑
Let me know!

Enjoy!

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Raspberry Cheesecake

My raspberry cheesecake is swirled with fresh raspberry flavor throughout. It's baked on a classic graham cracker crust (though Oreo works too!) without a water bath!

Recipe includes a how-to video!

4.91 from 10 votes

Print Pin Rate

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Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 50 minutes minutes

Cooling Time: 8 hours hours

Total Time: 9 hours hours 20 minutes minutes

Servings: 12 servings

Calories: 444kcal

Author: Sam Merritt

Ingredients

Raspberry Sauce

• ▢ 12 oz (340 g) raspberries fresh or frozen (about 2 ½ cups)
• ▢ ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
• ▢ ¼ cup (60 ml) water
• ▢ 1 Tablespoon lemon juice

Crust

• ▢ 1 ½ cups (170 g) graham cracker crumbs
• ▢ 2 Tablespoons (25 g) granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 Tablespoon light brown sugar firmly packed
• ▢ 7 Tablespoons (100 g) unsalted butter melted

Cheesecake

• ▢ 24 oz (680 g) cream cheese softened (use brick-style full fat cream cheese)
• ▢ 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
• ▢ ½ cup (120 g) sour cream
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 3 large eggs room temperature preferred

Recommended Equipment

• ▢
  Saucepan
• ▢
  Fine Mesh Strainer
• ▢
  9" Springform pan
• ▢
  Mixing bowls

Instructions

For the sauce

• Prepare the sauce first so it has time to cool while you prepare the cheesecake. Sauce may be prepared up to 3 days in advance.

  In a small saucepan,combine raspberries, sugar, water, and lemon juice over medium/low heat. Stir frequently, and cook until the berries release their juices (will take several minutes).
  12 oz (340 g) raspberries, ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar, ¼ cup (60 ml) water, 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
• Increase heat to medium and bring mixture to a simmer while stirring constantly. Cook for several minutes until the berries break down and the sauce deepens in color and is slightly thickened (it will thicken only slightly).
• Remove from heat and pour through a fine mesh strainer into a heat proof bowl. Measure out 2 Tablespoons of your seeds left in the strainer and add them back to the sauce, discard the rest.
• Allow the mixture to cool while you prepare the crust and the cheesecake.

For the crust

• Preheat oven to 325F (165C).
• In a medium-sized bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs, granulated sugar, and brown sugar. Add the melted butter until crumbs are all moistened.
  1 ½ cups (170 g) graham cracker crumbs, 2 Tablespoons (25 g) granulated sugar, 1 Tablespoon light brown sugar, 7 Tablespoons (100 g) unsalted butter
• Press the graham cracker mixture evenly into the bottom and up the sides of a 9” springform pan. Use the bottom of a glass or measuring cup to help you. Set crust aside as you prepare your cheesecake.

For the Cheesecake

• Combine cream cheese and sugar in a large mixing bowl and use an electric mixer to stir together until smooth, creamy, and completely lump free.
  24 oz (680 g) cream cheese, 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
• Add sour cream and vanilla extract and stir on low speed until combined.
  ½ cup (120 g) sour cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• In a small bowl, lightly beat one egg and add it to the cheesecake batter, stirring on low speed until egg is just combined. Repeat with the remaining eggs, then scrape the sides and bottom of bowl to ensure all ingredients are thoroughly combined.
  3 large eggs

Assembly

• Pour half of the cheesecake batter evenly over the prepared crust. Take about ⅓ cup (80ml) of the cooled raspberry sauce and pour evenly over the batter.
• Gently dollop the remaining cheesecake batter evenly over the raspberry sauce and smooth it with a spatula.
• Drizzle with another ⅓ cup of raspberry sauce over the surface and use a toothpick or knife to swirl over the cheesecake. Reserve the rest of the sauce for serving (store covered in the refrigerator).
• Transfer to center rack of 325F (165C) preheated oven for 45-55 minutes. The center of the cheesecake will be jiggly but the cheesecake should be mostly set.
• When cheesecake is finished baking, turn off the oven, crack the door open a few inches and let cheesecake cool in the oven for 1 hour (this will help prevent cracks).
• After 1 hour, remove from the oven and allow to cool at room temperature for an hour or until no longer warm. Once cooled, transfer to refrigerator to chill for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight.
• Serve, topped with reserved raspberry sauce (we serve the raspberry sauce on the side so people can add as much or as little as they’d like).

Notes

Storing

I store my cheesecake in the springform pan that it’s baked in. Once it’s cooled, cover with plastic wrap to avoid absorbing any odors from the fridge. Will keep for up to 5 days in the refrigerator or may be frozen for up to several months.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 444kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 121mg | Sodium: 268mg | Potassium: 169mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 30g | Vitamin A: 1094IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 89mg | Iron: 1mg

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.

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