Sopapilla Cheesecake

Sopapilla Cheesecake combines the taste of sopapillas and cheesecake. The flavors of cinnamon and sugar, cheesecake, wrapped in a flakey pastry make for a delicious dessert.

I first tried this sopapilla cheesecake dessert at a pot luck dinner. This is so easy to put together. You combine Pillsbury Crescent rolls, and a cheesecake filling, and top it with a delightful cinnamon and sugar topping. I brought these sopapilla cheesecake bars to a party, and it was a hit.

Sopapilla Cheesecake is the Perfect Dessert

Are you looking for the perfect dessert to bring to a potluck or a party? This is the dessert for you.

sopapilla cheesecake slices stacked on a cake stand


Sopapilla cheesecake is one of the best desserts you will have! It has layers of sweet buttery dough, a creamy cheesecake center, and topped off with cinnamon sugar goodness.        

What is a Sopapilla?

Sopapillas are found in many different cultures but are generally known for the same time of delicious dessert. 

They are pillowy pieces of dough fried in oil, that are known to either be dipped in cinnamon sugar, powdered sugar, or served with a fondue chocolate platter. 

If you have ever been to a fair where they serve elephant ears, that is also another, larger version of a sopapilla. But, rather than keep the dough thick, it is rolled then and then fried in oil as well. 

They too can be topped with cinnamon sugar, powdered sugar, or even pie toppings. 

sopapilla cheesecake bars on a cake stand

How Should You Store the Sopapilla Cheesecake?   

Since the sopapilla cheesecake recipe calls for a large amount of cream cheese, you will need to keep the cream cheese crescent bars in the fridge when they are not being served. 

By keeping the cheesecake bars in the fridge you are able to avoid them getting moldy or allowing for bacteria to grow. 

So, to store them,  either keep them in the pan the sopapilla cheesecake was made in and add a lid, or cut them up and put them in an airtight container and store them in the fridge while you are not serving them. 

Best Toppings For Sopapilla Cheesecake

While this fantastic cheesecake recipe is more than you will need for a hit recipe for your next party, you can always elevate this dessert with simple additions, like some tasty toppings. 

A few of my favorite toppings to add is either a light dusting of powdered sugar or chopped up fresh strawberries. 

Or if you want this a little more savory you can use a ziplock bag and pour in some caramel sauce and drizzle it all over and top it off with coarse sea salt. This will pair wonderfully with the cheesecake layer. 

And then of course you can melt down some chocolate chips and drizzle some chocolate on and serve it with homemade whipped cream. 

These are just a few of the ways to make these cheesecake bars a completely different dessert. 

Is Sopapilla Cheesecake Easy to Make?

While cheesecake in its natural form can be a daunting dessert to tackle, this cheesecake sopapilla recipe is extremely easy in comparison. 

You will need two containers of crescent dough, a 9×13 inch pan, and you will line the bottom of the pan with one of the containers of crescent dough. 

When that is done, mix together the cheesecake ingredients, spread it out on top of the dough. 

Then, just place the other piece of dough on top of the cheesecake layer, top it off with cinnamon sugar, and bake it.

Sopapilla Cheesecake Recipe Ingredients

This recipe has easy-to-find ingredients. You can see this has all of the flavors of cheesecake, but you don’t have to worry about finding exotic ingredients.

Here’s a list of what you need:

  • Canned crescent roll dough
  • Cream cheese
  • Sugar
  • Vanilla extract
  • Lemon juice
  • Lemon zest
  • Ground cinnamon
  • Butter
sopapilla cheesecake ingredients

How to Make Sopapilla Cheesecake

Wonder how easy it is to make this cheesecake? It’s easy. Here are the steps:

  1. Line the bottom of a 13×9-inch baking dish with crescent roll dough.
    crescent roll dough in the bottom of a baking dish
  2. Place cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, lemon zest, and lemon juice in a medium-sized mixing bowl.
    sopapilla cheesecake filling ingredients in a bowl
  3. Beat until thoroughly combined and smooth.
  4. Spread the cream cheese mixture evenly over the crescent rolls in the baking dish.
  5. Place crescent roll dough over the cream cheese layer.
  6. Combine cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl.
  7. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the top layer of crescent rolls.
  8. Drizzle melted butter on top.
    sopapilla cheesecake before baking
  9. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until the top is lightly browned.

I hope you give this recipe a try. I have brought this dessert to several potlucks and bunco parties, and the dish has always come back empty!

a stack of sopapilla cheesecake slices on a cake stand

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sopapilla cheesecake slices stacked on a cake stand

Sopapilla Cheesecake

Homemade sopapilla cheesecake bars are a delicious dessert with a creamy filling and buttery cinnamon-sugar crescent roll crust.
5 from 1 vote
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Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Sopapilla Cheesecake
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 24
Calories: 229kcal

Ingredients

  • 2 cans crescent rolls dough
  • 16 ounces cream cheese softened
  • 2 cups sugar divided
  • 1 teaspoons vanilla extract (Mexican vanilla, if you have it)
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice (orange juice will also work nicely)
  • ½ teaspoon lemon zest (orange zest will also work nicely)
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • ½ cup butter, melted (1 stick)

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Line the bottom of a 13×9-inch casserole dish with 1 can of crescent roll dough. The dough can be stretched a bit to cover the bottom of the dish. If you roll it out with a rolling pin the pre-cut lines will disappear.
  • In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, 1½ cups sugar, vanilla, lemon zest, and lemon juice.
  • Spread the cream cheese mixture over the layer of crescent rolls in the baking dish.
  • Spread the remaining can of crescent rolls over the cream cheese layer.
  • Place 2 teaspoons of cinnamon and ½ cup of sugar in a small bowl. Stir to combine.
  • Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the top layer of crescent rolls.
  • Drizzle melted butter on top.
  • Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until the top is lightly browned.

Video

Notes

If you really want to send this dessert over the edge, you may want to serve this with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Nutrition

Calories: 229kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 30mg | Sodium: 242mg | Potassium: 26mg | Fiber: 0g | Sugar: 19g | Vitamin A: 370IU | Vitamin C: 0.2mg | Calcium: 21mg | Iron: 0.3mg

About Stephanie Manley

I recreate your favorite restaurant recipes, so you can prepare these dishes at home. I help you cook dinner, and serve up dishes you know your family will love. You can find most of the ingredients for all of the recipes in your local grocery store.

Stephanie is the author of CopyKat.com's Dining Out in the Home, and CopyKat.com's Dining Out in the Home 2.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Debbie

    Could you recreate the Cheesecake Factory Fun Fenfttii Cheesecake? Or that chocolate 7 layer truffle one? Thanks love your recipes

  2. Antonette

    Just wanted to thank you for this super easy, delicious recipe. First time I ever did a semi-homemade dessert for my blog after doing a search for Sopapilla. Thank you and will continue to follow you!

  3. G.L.

    I made this for our Church Thanksgiving last year and this year, none left to bring home!!!! Everyone wants the recipe and can’t believe how easy it is to make.

  4. Catie Johnston

    OMG what a yummy recipe..cant wait to take it for a holiday party,Sooo easy to make..wondreful right ouy of the oven
    there goes my diet;)
    thanks,
    Catie

  5. Sarah Jean

    Can this be made ahead of time, refrigerated, and then baked later in the day?
    I have not tried this, and I can not fully verify this, but I would guess this would work, I would spray the top with a non-stick spray to keep the crust from drying out, but optimally, I would do this before baking. ~ Stephanie

  6. Janet

    My family loves this. I bake the bottom crust for 10 min. I also place a can of fruit over cream cheese mixture sometimes.

  7. Janie

    Nice! This was the featured recipe a week or so ago on allrecipes.com, so I guess it is definately a copycat. I am always happy that recipes are public domain, myself being a author of 2 cookbooks, unlike Martha Stewart who thinks recipes are HERS and HERS alone.

    • Stephanie

      Actually this is a recipe that I changed a bit from my recipe archive, I added the lemon to it, and I love the change. The original recipe is called Heather’s Sopapilla Cheesecake. Either way, I can tell you I love this recipe, and its very tasty, serve this, and you are unlikely to have any left overs.

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