Sopapilla Cheesecake Bars

Name: Sopapilla Cheesecake Bars
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 70 min
Total time: 90 min
Yield: 12 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 2 tubes (8 oz each) refrigerated crescent dough sheets, or regular crescent rolls with the seams pinched shut; 2 blocks (8 oz each) cream cheese, fully softened; ¾ cup granulated sugar; 1 tsp vanilla extract + zest of ½ lemon + pinch of kosher salt; ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus a little for the pan; ½ cup granulated sugar + 1 tbsp ground cinnamon (mixed); Honey + flaky salt, to finish; Vanilla ice cream, optional, for serving

Two tubes of crescent dough from the dairy case, a sweet cream cheese middle and a brown butter cinnamon sugar crust that bakes crackly on top. It tastes like the honey-drizzled sopapillas at a New Mexico restaurant, and it starts with a can you pop on the counter.

Total time

90 min

Serves

12

Difficulty

Easy

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As seen on Episode 289

The pantry

kitchen

Essentials · serves 12

2 tubes (8 oz each) refrigerated crescent dough sheets, or regular crescent rolls with the seams pinched shut 2 blocks (8 oz each) cream cheese, fully softened ¾ cup granulated sugar 1 tsp vanilla extract + zest of ½ lemon + pinch of kosher salt ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus a little for the pan ½ cup granulated sugar + 1 tbsp ground cinnamon (mixed) Honey + flaky salt, to finish Vanilla ice cream, optional, for serving

·

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The preparation

8 steps, about 90 minutes start to finish.

01
1. Heat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9x13 pan.
02
2. Unroll one tube of dough into the bottom of the pan and press it to the edges, pinching every seam closed.
03
3. BEAT the cream cheese, ¾ cup sugar, vanilla, lemon zest and salt until completely smooth, about 2 minutes. Spread it evenly over the dough.
04
4. Unroll the second tube on the counter, press it to roughly 9x13, and lay it over the filling. Pinch the seams closed.
05
5. BROWN THE BUTTER: melt the butter in a light-colored pan over medium heat, swirling, until it foams, goes quiet, smells nutty and the solids turn deep golden, 4 to 6 minutes. Pour it evenly over the top dough.
06
6. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the butter in an even layer, all the way to the corners.
07
7. BAKE: 30 to 35 minutes, until the top is puffed, deep golden and crackly at the edges.
08
8. COOL at least 30 minutes before cutting. Drizzle with honey, add a pinch of flaky salt, and cut into 24 bars.

lightbulb The chef's notes

“The browned butter is the whole power up. Plain melted butter gives you a sweet crust; browned butter gives you something close to toffee. Pull it off the heat the second it smells like toasted nuts. The lemon zest and salt are there so the filling tastes like cheesecake instead of frosting. Warm bars with vanilla ice cream are the move, and leftovers are great cold.”