This Best Ever Sopapilla Cheesecake Recipe (Churro Cheesecake) is an easy to make dessert and absolutely delicious. Each bite is delicious cinnamon sugar flavor filled with creamy and smooth cheesecake filling. Made with Pillsbury crescent rolls to mimic the churro or sopapilla dough, a yummy cheesecake filling, and a slightly crunchy outer cinnamon sugar layer make it a hit with a crowd.
Churros originate from hundreds of years ago. They are Spanish and Portugese cuisine and are made from fried choux pastry. They are also part of Latin American cuisine and other countries who had immigrants from Spain.
Sopapillas are another type of fried pastry that originates from Spain, who brought it to the Americas. It can typically be found in Mexican or other Latin restaurants.
Churro Cheesecake is a great year round dessert. It is especially great for Cinco de Mayo and Christmas. Make them into bars or bites and enjoy!
This was inspired by my Churro Chips and goes great with my Homemade Caramel Sauce on top. For more cinnamon treats, check out our Snickerdoodles Without Cream of Tartar and our Air Fryer Cinnamon Rolls.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Quick and Easy- this recipe is Super Easy to make and the hands on time is really low. When tasting it, you'd think it took a long time to make because it's so good!
- Great for Entertaining - this recipe is great for entertaining. Everyone always gobbles it up. With the great texture and flavor, it's always a hit.
- Kid Friendly - Kids not only love to eat it, but it's easy enough to make that they can help make it too!
- New and Different - Sopapilla Cheesecake is more unique and really fun to make when you're in the mood to try something new.
- Simple - it's simple to make and uses simple everyday ingredients, yet is special and fun to eat. Cut them into bars and they are so good!
Ingredients
- crescent rolls - we like to use Pillsbury crescent rolls, but any brand will do. We also like to use the sheets, but if you have the regular, just press the seams together.
- cream cheese- we highly recommend PHILADELPHIA cream cheese for the smoothest texture.
- egg - for the cheesecake filling to help it bake properly.
- granulated sugar- both to mix with the cinnamon for the churro flavor, and to mix for the cheesecake filling.
- vanilla- we recommend pure vanilla for the best flavor, but imitation is fine since the highlight of this recipe is the churro flavor.
- cinnamon- to give it that amazing cinnamon sugar flavor!
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Mix together the cinnamon and part of the sugar together in a bowl. Lightly spray the bottom of a 9x13 pan with oil. Sprinkle about ¼ of the cinnamon sugar mixture onto the bottom of the pan.
2. If using the crescent roll sheets, lay it on top of the cinnamon and sugar, and cut away or press in any excess that may be coming up the sides. If using the regular rolls, press together the seams before placing in the pan on the cinnamon sugar.
3. Beat one brick of cream cheese together with half of the sugar for 2 minutes, scraping down the sides at minute one. Add one more package of cream cheese and beat for another minute. Scrape down the sides and add the last package of cream cheese and beat for one more minute.
4. Add the rest of the sugar and beat an additional minute. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until well combined. Smooth the cheesecake filling over the crescent roll.
5. Place the second sheet of crescent roll dough (with seams pressed together if applicable) on top of the cheesecake filling. Melt butter and use a pastry brush to brush it over the top layer of crescent roll dough.
6. Sprinkle the remaining cinnamon and sugar mixture on top. Bake for 30-35 minutes at 350° F. The cinnamon will be bubbly and when you nudge the pan, the cheesecake should wobble a little. Allow to cool completely at room temperature (about 90 minutes-2 hours), then move to the refrigerator and chill 2-24 hours. Serve cold.
Hint: Don't over bake the cheesecake. Instead of being smooth and creamy, it'll be a little tough and a little dry.
Substitutions
- Puff Pastry - I was skeptical about the Pillsbury crescent rolls too. But they taste really good with the churro cheesecake! You can absolutely substitute the crescent rolls with puff pastry.
- Imitation Vanilla - you can use imitation vanilla instead of pure vanilla in this recipe. The taste difference should only be very small (but we do recommend pure vanilla ;)).
- Butter - while there isn't a great way to make these dairy free, you can absolutely use plant based butter with no ill effects.
- Tortillas - you can make this with tortillas instead of crescent rolls. Simple layer the bottom and the top with cooked tortillas. Our favorite way to do this is with TortillaLand raw tortillas that we cook at home.
Variations
- Spicy - for a fun latin spice, try sprinkling Tajin on top, or even mix it in at the same time as the cinnamon.
- Fall Favorite - add 1 ½ teaspoons cardamom, ½ teaspoon nutmeg and ¼ teaspoon cloves for a robust fall flavor.
- Dulce de Leche - our absolute favorite way to serve this is to drizzle dulce de leche over the top of this recipe when serving. It adds so much flavor and deliciousness!
- Caramel - we also love drizzling caramel over the top. It isn't quite as authentic as dulce de leche, but gets the job done in a pinch. We like to use our Homemade Caramel Topping.
- Braum's Sopapilla Cheesecake Sundae - serve with ice cream and all the toppings! Chocolate, Dulce de leche, caramel, whipped cream and more! Go the extra mile and cut the cheesecake into bites, then use mix them into homemade ice cream.
- Strawberry - top with fresh or sugared strawberries
- Cherry - top with fresh or pie cherries
- Pumpkin - add 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice to the cinnamon sugar mixture. Stir in ½ cup pumpkin puree into the cheesecake filling. Prepare as usual.
- Bites - make these into little bites by cutting them into 1 inch squares. Many people like to freeze cheesecake bites. Feel free to freeze them and let sit at room temperature for 5-20 minutes before enjoying
- Honey - Another classic way to serve this recipe is to top with honey. Drizzle on top for a delicious authentic flavor.
Equipment
Storage
Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. These store well, but the cheesecake will start to weep into the crust making it soggy after a few days.
Store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 months. We recommend cutting them into bars or bites before freezing. Thaw bars for 15-30 minutes before eating and thaw bites for 5-20 minutes before enjoying.
Top tip
The longer you wait to serve your cheesecake, the softer the crust will be. For a crunchier churro crust, serve as soon as it's done being refrigerated.
FAQ
Mix together cinnamon and sugar. Sprinkle on the bottom of a pan. Use Pillsbury crescent rolls and lay on top of cinnamon and sugar. Make a cheesecake filling. Place on top of crescent rolls. Add another layer of crescent rolls and cinnamon and sugar on top. Bake and enjoy!
Sopapilla Cheesecake is a churro cheesecake. Made with cinnamon sugar, crescent rolls or sopapilla dough, then filled with cheesecake and topped with more crescent rolls and more cinnamon and sugar then baked. It is often served with dulce de leche.
It is good for 3-5 days in the refrigerator or for 2 months in the freezer.
Using a crescent roll crust and cinnamon and sugar, make a smooth and creamy cheesecake filling and top with more crescent rolls and cinnamon sugar. Bake, allow to cool at room temperature, then refrigerate. Then cut into bars and enjoy!
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Pairing
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Recipe
Best EVER Sopapilla Cheesecake
Ingredients
- 2 rolls crescent roll dough I used Pillsbury
For the Cinnamon Sugar Mixture
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
For the cheesecake center
- 24 oz cream cheese Philadelphia for the best creamiest results
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla
Other
- 2 Tablespoons butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° F.
- Combine sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl for the cinnamon sugar mixture. Lightly grease a 9x13 pan then pour about ¼ of the cinnamon sugar mixture over top. Open one can of crescent dough. If it's sectioned off, press the seams together then place in pan on top of the cinnamon mixture.
- Beat the cream cheese and half the sugar together in a bowl for 3 minutes on medium low, scraping down after each minute of mixing. Add the remaining sugar and beat 1 more minute. Scrape down the sides. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until well combined. Layer the cheesecake mixture on top of the crescent dough in the pan.
- Melt the butter. Place the remaining tube of crescent dough on top of the cheesecake layer (pressing seams together beforehand if there are any). Brush butter over the top, then sprinkle with the remaining cinnamon and sugar mixture.
- Bake for 32-35 minutes. The top will be bubbly and there will be a slight wobble when you nudge the pan. Allow to cool at room temperature for one hour, then refrigerate for 2-24 hours before serving. The longer you wait to serve, the softer the crust will be. Serve cold. Enjoy!
- Top with dulce de leche or honey for a more authentic experience. Caramel, chocolate sauce, nutella and more can also be used.
Notes
- Store in the refrigerator for 3 days.
- Store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 months. Cut into bites or bars before freezing. Thaw at room temperature for a few minutes (bites) or for 15-30 minutes (bars).
Nutrition
Food safety
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
Nicole
This Sopapilla Cheesecake recipe is the absolute best! It was so easy to make. We had the leftovers with ice cream and toppings and it reminded me of the sopapilla cheesecake sundae we had from braum's. Next time I might use the leftovers and cut them into bites instead of bars and use it to make ice cream. yummm.