Salted Caramel Cinnamon Cheesecake Bars (gluten-free)

These Salted Caramel Cheesecake Bars are such a delicious gluten-free creamy and rich cheesecake recipe with a homemade salted caramel, graham cracker crust and a silky cheesecake filling.

I have always been so anti-cheesecake over here. I always think it is going to be 100x harder to make than it really is. Is it more time consuming than cookies? Absolutely. But it’s not really challenging to make. Especially these cheesecake bars.

There is nothing not to love about these caramel cheesecake bars. There aren’t any crazy ingredients involved, it’s not complicated to make them and these taste so damn good that you will want to make these bars again and again.

Salted caramel + cinnamon + cheesecake + graham crackers is the ultimate flavor combination. I am obsessed with how flavorful they are and the golden graham cracker crust and cheesy creamy cheesecake filling with the homemade slated caramel sauce on top is just beyond.

This is a great recipe to make for holidays, dinner parties, a random Tuesday afternoon, really any occasion. They’re so creamy and rich yet not too sweet. I am absolutely obsessed with these and I hope you love them too.

What ingredients you need to make these gluten-free Caramel Cinnamon Cheesecake Bars:

• Manuka honey – I love using this for immunity and digestive health. It is so underrated in the caramel and adds flavor and health benefits to it
• Maple syrup – If you don’t have maple syrup, double up on the honey
• Coconut oil – I haven’t tried another oil or a butter for the caramel besides coconut
• Gluten-free graham crackers – if not gluten-free, you can use any other graham crackers you’d like
• Cinnamon – cinnamon is a must in this recipe!
• Unsalted butter – I use unsalted butter for this over salted since we have salt in the crust and caramel
• Cream cheese – make sure the cream cheese is softened and at room temperature
• Coconut sugar – you can use cane sugar if you don’t have coconut sugar
• Yogurt – or use sour cream. I used a full-fat greek yogurt for this
• Eggs – I haven’t tested a flax egg alternative 
• Vanilla extract – added for flavor as always
• Sea salt – love some flakey sea salt in this!

How to make Salted Caramel Cinnamon Cheesecake Bars:

First make the caramel:

1. First make the caramel by adding ingredients to pot and bring to simmer over medium heat
2. Continue to simmer stirring frequently
3. As the mixture cooks, you’ll notice that it first darkens in color and soon after, the caramel will start to lighten in color a bit, and that’s when your sauce is just about done (usually 15-20 minutes)
4. Remove caramel from heat and let it cool in the fridge

Make the graham cracker crust:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line an 8×8 baking dish with parchment paper (leave an overhang)
2. In a food processor, add the graham crackers, butter and cinnamon until combined
3. Press mixture into the baking dish with hands or spatula then bake in oven at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes and remove to cool completely

Make the cheesecake filling:

1. In a large bowl, cream together cream cheese, coconut sugar and caramel until smooth and creamy
2. Add in yogurt, eggs, vanilla extract and salt until combined
3. Pour cheesecake batter on top of the coolest crust and bake in oven at 325 degrees F for 45 minutes
4. Turn off the heat and open the oven door and allow the cheesecake to cool in oven for about 20-30 minutes then remove to let it continue to cool completely
5. Once cheesecake is cooled, pour more caramel sauce across the cheesecake and refrigerate until chilled (at least 3 hours or overnight)
6. Slice into bars and enjoy!

FAQs and tips on making these caramel cheesecake bars:

1. Make sure the cream cheese at room temperature before creaming together. Otherwise consistency will be off. 
2. If your cheesecake is looking lumpy, next time try tuning your mixing bowl until warm water and dry it before mixing (it could be too cool)
3. Do I have to make my own caramel sauce? Nope, you can use store-bought if you want to to save time.
4. Can I double this recipe? Yes! Double all of the ingredients and bake in a larger baking dish (9×13) and extend bake time about 5-10 minutes.
5. Make sure the cheesecake bars are completely chilled before you slice and enjoy.
6. Avoid dragging the knife through the bars when you slice into pieces as it’ll mess up the cheesecake. I like to run my knife under hot water and carefully wipe clean between every slice.
7. Best way to store these cheesecake bars is in the fridge in airtight container for 3 days or freezer for 2 months. All them to thaw in fridge overnight.

A few other delicious desserts to try:

The BEST Pecan Pie Brownies

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Pie (gluten-free)

White Chocolate Brownies (gluten-free)

The BEST Peanut Butter Cookies (gluten-free)

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