Vanilla Cheesecake Bars with Caramel Mousse

Each step to make these cheesecake bars is actually very simple. I have laid out how to prevent your cheesecake from cracking and how to make caramel sauce from scratch. With a little patience and a lot of sugar, you can make a perfect cheesecake everyone will love!

For more cheesecake recipes, try Creamy Sicilian Cheesecake, Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies, and No Churn Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream.

Ingredient Notes

• Graham Crackers: You'll need a whole box of graham crackers. It is a lot, I know, but trust me, an extra thick crust is necessary!
• Brown Sugar: A little bit of light or dark brown sugar is all you need.
• Unsalted Butter: You'll need just over a stick of butter to melt and add to the crust.
• Cream Cheese: You'll need three 8 oz blocks of FULL FAT cream cheese. Don't bother with reduced fat cream cheese. 
• Mascarpone: Mascarpone adds a little bit of tang and makes the filling perfectly creamy.
• Granulated Sugar: You'll need about 1 ½ cups of sugar to beat into the cream cheese and mascarpone.
• Vanilla Extract: Since these are VANILLA cheesecake bars, you'll want to use a high quality vanilla so the flavor shines through.
• Eggs: The eggs are added at the very end, but be cautious of over-mixing!
• Granulated Sugar: The trick to ensure your sugar caramelizes properly is to add a little bit of water.
• Cream of Tartar: This acts as a stabilizer for extra assurance.
• Unsalted Butter: Be sure your butter is at room temperature before adding to the caramelized sugar. 
• Heavy Cream: You'll need about a ¼ cup of heavy cream for the sauce, as well as 3 cups for the whip cream.
• Gelatin Powder: You'll need unflavored gelatin powder to add to the caramel to stiffen it up and add a mousse-like texture. 

See recipe card for full information on ingredients and individual quantities.

Step by Step Instructions

Here are step by step photos and instructions on how to make this vanilla cheesecake bar recipe! For the full ingredient list and method, see the recipe card at the end of this post.

STEP 1: Make the caramel mousse. Start by making the caramel sauce over the stovetop, removing from heat when it turns an amber color and whisking in the butter one tablespoon at a time. Whisk in the heavy cream and vanilla. Allow to cool for a few minutes before pouring into a bowl. Bloom the gelatin by combining the powder with one tablespoon of water, then stir into the slightly cooled caramel. Transfer caramel to a glass jar and place in the fridge to cool completely before adding to whipped cream.

STEP 2: Make the cheesecake bars. To make the crust, food process together the graham crackers, brown sugar, melted butter, and salt. Pack the crust into the pan with a measuring cup or the back of a spoon and bake the crust for 8 minutes. To make the filling, beat together the cream cheese, mascarpone, sugar, vanilla, and salt. Add the eggs and beat until fully combined, but do not over-mix. Pour the filling over the crust. Fill a large baking dish with water and place in the oven on the rack below the cheesecake. Bake the cheesecake for 40 minutes, then turn the oven off and keep the cheesecake in the oven for another 20 minutes. Allow to cool completely before placing in the fridge overnight, then top with mousse and serve.

Expert Baking Tips

• Make the cheesecake and caramel the day before you intend to serve it. The next day, you can whip up the heavy cream for the caramel mousse and add to the cheesecake before serving. 
• Follow my tips for preventing your cheesecake from cracking above!
• When making the caramel, be sure to measure all of your ingredients and bring the butter and heavy cream to the right temperatures before beginning. The process moves quickly, so everything needs to be ready!

All of the recipes on this blog are carefully developed with gram measurements so you can easily recreate them in your own kitchen with success. Volume measurements are extremely inaccurate and leave room for significant errors. Not all measuring cups are made equally, so your one cup of flour will be different from my one cup of flour. By providing precise measurements in grams (aside from minor ingredients, which are given in tsp/tbsp), you can make these recipes accurately and with less cleanup! All you need is this kitchen scale. 

If this still isn't enough to convince you, I have provided volume measurements in the recipe card. If you are interested in understanding the conversions, this is the best conversion chart.

But trust me, once you try baking in grams you'll never turn back!

Happy baking! x