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Blackberry Cheesecake

Blackberry cheesecake is creamy vanilla cheesecake with a hint of lemon in it. It has swirls of fresh blackberry sauce and is baked on a golden oreo cookie crust. This baked cheesecake recipe makes the perfect summer dessert when blackberries are at their peak. Check out the rest of my cheesecake recipes too!

Blackberry Dessert Ideas

I'm still on a blackberry desserts kick. Here are the blackberry dessert recipes I have made:

What can I say? It's one of my favorite berries. I wait all summer long to go pick fresh blackberries. I used them to make a swirled blackberry cheesecake with a golden Oreo cookie crust.

So, after creating the blackberry cheesecake recipe, this is what I've decided. Cheesecake + Blackberries = Miranda's slice of heaven. I think the golden Oreos put the icing on the cake.. or the crust on the cheesecake. hahaha. See what I did there?

brownie mix cookies
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When Are Blackberries in Season?

Depending on where you live, blackberries ripen in June through August. They ripen earlier in Southern states, and later in the season in the Midwest and North.

The only thing that I can't stand about blackberries are the seeds. Does anyone else have a deep love for fresh blackberries or raspberries, but can't deal with crunchy seeds? I know I can't be the only one. If you're one of those people, I've got you covered. Since I, too, cannot stand the seeds, I cooked the blackberries and strained them out, leaving a silky smooth blackberry sauce.

I'm digging the swirly look of the blackberry cheesecake. I got a little heavy-handed on one side of the cheesecake with the blackberry sauce. It happens, I suppose. Just go with it as I did, and eat the fully loaded side of the blackberry cheesecake first. It is almost too good to handle.

How to Make Blackberry Sauce for Cheesecake

To make the blackberry sauce, add the blackberries, sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest in a medium saucepan. Cook it on medium heat and mash the blackberries with a wooden spoon until the blackberries are broken down.

Strain the blackberries to separate the seeds from the juice with a fine-mesh strainer. Use a spatula and press the pulp through the strainer. Discard the seeds.

Rinse the saucepan out to make sure all of the seeds are gone and add all except ยผ cup of the blackberry sauce back into the saucepan.

In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and blackberry sauce. Now add the ยผ cup of the blackberry sauce back into the saucepan with the rest of the sauce. Heat back up on medium heat and let boil for 1 minute to thicken the sauce. Set the blackberry sauce aside and make the cheesecake part for the baked blackberry cheesecake.

This blackberry sauce recipe would also be perfect on a no bake lemon cheesecake recipe.

PRO TIP: I made two batches of the blackberry sauce. One that goes into the blackberry cheesecake, and one that goes on top of the cheesecake when serving.

How to Make Swirled Blackberry Cheesecake

Add the cream cheese into a large mixing bowl. Beat until there are no lumps. This is especially a good idea if your cream cheese is not fully up to room temperature.

Next, add in the sugar and beat until creamy.

Add in the eggs one at a time and beat until each egg is worked in. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl after each egg to make sure that any bits of cream cheese and egg are worked in to avoid lumpy cheesecake.

Add in the sour cream, heavy cream, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Beat just until everything is combined.

Pour the batter on top of the golden oreo cookie crust. Drizzle the blackberry sauce on top. I like to put my sauce in a sandwich bag and cut a small hole in the corner and drizzle it on that way. Using a skewer or butter knife, swirl the blackberry sauce into the cheesecake batter.

Place the cheesecake in a water bath and bake.

My cheesecake has cracks in it. What happened? This is happening because we're swirling a blackberry sauce into the cheesecake recipe with a skewer or butter knife. The two textures are different and naturally cause some cracks. The more you spread the sauce out, the smaller the cracks will be.  It's perfectly fine to have these cracks, but if you're that upset by it, make a second batch of blackberry sauce and fill in the cracks with the sauce.

Can I leave out the lemon in the homemade black cheesecake? YES! Make it purely a vanilla cheesecake by excluding the lemon juice and lemon extract. I would add 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract instead.

Should I use fresh blackberries or frozen blackberries? They will both work great!

Slice of blackberry cheesecake on white plate with blackberries in background

Blackberry Cheesecake

4.58 from 26 votes
Prep Time 35 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 25 minutes
Chill Time 8 hours
Total Time 10 hours
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 10 slices
Calories 643 kcal

Ingredients
 
 

Crust

  • 18 Golden Oreos crushed
  • 4 tablespoons butter melted
  • 1 ยฝ tablespoons granulated sugar

Blackberry Sauce

  • 2 cups blackberries
  • ยฝ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • ยฝ teaspoon lemon zest
  • ยฝ teaspoon cornstarch

Cheesecake

  • 24 ounces cream cheese room temperature
  • 1 ยผ cups granulated sugar
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 cup full-fat sour cream
  • ยฝ cup heavy cream
  • 2 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest

Instructions

Blackberry Sauce

  • In a medium saucepan, add in the blackberries, sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Cook over medium heat for about 20 minutes or until the blackberries are completely broken down.
  • Strain out the seeds in the blackberry sauce with a fine mesh strainer.
  • Place back in the saucepan over medium heat.
  • In a small bowl, add in the cornstarch and about ยผ cup of the strained blackberry sauce. Whisk until combined and there are no lumps.
  • Add the cornstarch mixture into the saucepan with the rest of the blackberry sauce and whisk until combined.
  • Let the sauce come up to a boil while stirring constantly. Once the sauce comes up to a boil, let it boil for 1 minute to thicken the sauce. Remove from heat and let cool.

Crust

  • Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray the sides of a 9-inch springform pan with nonstick baking spray. Wrap the sides of the pan with a strip of parchment paper.
  • Mix the crushed Oreos, melted butter, and sugar until it resembles wet sand and can be packed down.
  • Press the crust evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan.
  • Place in the oven for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool while you work on the cheesecake filling.

Cheesecake

  • Add the cream cheese to a large mixing bowl. Beat with a hand mixer on medium until the cream cheese is smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
  • Add in the sugar and beat on medium again until combined.
  • Add in the eggs one at a time and beat in each egg completely before adding the next. Scrape down the bowl after adding each egg.
  • Add in the sour cream, heavy cream, lemon, and lemon zest. Beat on medium until the mixture comes together. It will be runny.
  • Pour the batter on top of the crust in the prepared pan.
  • Pour the blackberry sauce evenly on the cheesecake. Using a skewer or knife, swirl the sauce into the cheesecake.
  • Wrap the springform pan with 2 layers of heavy-duty tin foil. Place the cheesecake into a slightly bigger pan and fill with one inch of water.
  • Place in the oven with a tented piece of tin foil over the top of the cheesecake to prevent browning on the top. Let the cheesecake bake for 1 hour 25 minutes or until done. To make sure the cheesecake is done, gently give it a wiggle. If it slightly jiggles in JUST the middle like jello, then it's done. If it jiggles all over, it needs to bake longer. Turn off the heat and crack the oven door slightly. Let it cool in the oven for 1 to 2 hours until it reaches room temperature and then place in the fridge to chill overnight.
  • Remove the cheesecake from the springform pan. Slice and serve.

Nutrition

Calories: 643kcalCarbohydrates: 59gProtein: 8gFat: 43gSaturated Fat: 23gCholesterol: 181mgSodium: 382mgPotassium: 226mgFiber: 2gSugar: 50gVitamin A: 1529IUVitamin C: 7mgCalcium: 125mgIron: 1mg

(Nutrition facts are an estimate and not guaranteed to be accurate. Please see a registered dietitian for special diet advice.)

This Blackberry Cheesecake recipe post was originally posted on September 16, 2014.

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30 Comments

  1. Hi! Iโ€™m wondering if anyone has had success doing this recipe without the water bath step and instead just baking?

    1. Hi Jess! I would always recommend using a water bath. Otherwise, the cheesecake will puff up quickly and then collapse later on due to the direct heat of the oven. Water baths help the cheesecake cook evenly, giving them a smooth creamy texture. It is the best way to cook any cheesecake!

  2. This recipe was so delicious, easy to follow and easy to make!! Iโ€™m not a baker but this recipe came out so beautifully that my family showered me with compliments! I left the bake time as directed but didnโ€™t use the aluminum tent in the oven because the pie dish couldnโ€™t hold all the cheesecake filling and I didnโ€™t want it to mess with the smooth webbed finish with the blackberry sauce. Overall super amazing recipe and wonderful dessert for holidays.5 stars

  3. I have been baking 30 years, and this recipe was fantastic. Yes, the baking time was longer than stated, but experienced bakers know that you have to go by what the product is telling you versus what the clock reads. I used a combo of homemade Blackberry jam and fresh berries cooked down a bit to expedite the process, otherwise followed it to the tee. Thanks for sharing!5 stars

4.58 from 26 votes (22 ratings without comment)

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