Sopapilla Cheesecake Bars

Prep: 15 mins

Cook: 31 mins

Difficulty: Intermediate

Servings: 12 Servings

opapilla cheesecake takes its name from the popular Central and South American dish sopapilla, a fried quick-bread pastry that’s dusted with cinnamon sugar or drizzled with honey (or both!). But this easy-to-make dessert doesn’t contain real sopapillas and it isn’t really cheesecake.

Here, two layers of buttery crescent dough sandwich a layer of creamy cheesecake filling. The whole thing gets brushed with butter and showered with cinnamon sugar before baking. You end up with a delicious, crackly topped dessert that tastes like the perfect combination of cheesecake and the crispy cinnamon-sugar sopapillas I ate at Tex-Mex restaurants growing up. Here’s how to make it.

Ingredients

24 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
3 large eggs, at room temperature
Cooking spray
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 (8-inch) tubes refrigerated crescent roll dough
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons honey

Instructions

Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 350ºF. Coat a 9x13-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper.
Beat 24 ounces room temperature cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer (or large bowl if using an electric hand mixer) with the whisk attachment on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes, scraping down the bowl as needed. Add 3 large room temperature eggs, 1 cup of the granulated sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract, and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt. Beat until smooth and combined, about 1 minute.
Carefully unroll 1 tube of the crescent roll dough and gently stretch into the bottom of the baking dish. Pinch the perforated seams together to seal completely. Dollop the cheesecake filling over the dough and spread into an even layer.
Lightly dust a work surface with 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour. Unroll the remaining tube of crescent roll dough on the work surface. Using a rolling pin, roll out to smooth the seams into a rectangle slightly larger than the baking dish. Place over the filling. (It’s okay if the dough doesn’t quite reach the edge of the filling.) Refrigerate for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, cut 4 tablespoons unsalted butter into small cubes and place in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring in between each, until the butter is melted, 30 to 60 seconds total. (Alternatively, heat the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.) Place the remaining 3 tablespoons granulated sugar and 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon in a small bowl and stir to combine.
Brush the top layer of crescent dough all over with the melted butter, then sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar.
Bake until the crescent dough is puffed and golden brown and the center is nearly set when you jiggle the pan, about 30 minutes.
Place the baking dish on a wire rack and let cool for at least 1 hour. Drizzle with 3 tablespoons honey. Serve at room temperature or refrigerate until chilled to serve cold.