This sprinkle sugar cookie cheesecake is a creamy classic cheesecake baked on a rich and chewy homemade sugar cookie crust. Decorate it with swirls of funfetti whipped cream and even more cookies!
I love mashing up my favorite desserts with homemade cheesecake, like cannoli cheesecake and banana blondie cheesecake, and these no-bake cookie dough cheesecake bars.
This sprinkle sugar cookie cheesecake makes my heart throw a party. You only need 4 ingredients to make the creamy, classic cheesecake filling. That gets baked on top of a thick sugar cookie base loaded with colorful rainbow sprinkles, and topped with festive swirls of sprinkle-filled whipped cream. What’s next? Chai sugar cookie cheesecake? Someone stop me.
Why This Sugar Cookie Cheesecake Is a Slice of Heaven
- Cheesecake, but make it festive. This sprinkle sugar cookie cheesecake is the perfect EASY way to level up my classic cheesecake for a special occasion. Or, you know, the average Tuesday. I think it would make a great twist on a traditional confetti birthday cake!
- Homemade cookie crust. Rather than crushing sugar cookies or shortbread cookies like you would for a graham cracker crust, I went all out with a thick, chewy homemade sugar cookie dough base. You can always take a shortcut with store-bought cookie dough, too.
- Classic cheesecake filling. I’ve seen a lot of sugar cookie cheesecakes with chunks of sugar cookies or cookie dough inside the filling. I like to leave the 4-ingredient filling rich, creamy, and perfect, so the cheesecake flavor shines through.
Ingredients You’ll Need
The key to a great cheesecake mostly comes down to good-quality, room-temperature ingredients. I’ve covered what you’ll need to make this recipe, along with some notes below. Scroll down to the recipe card for the printable recipe with the full amounts and details.
- Sugar Cookie Dough – I adapted my easy sugar cookies recipe for the cookie crust. You can make your cookie dough from scratch, or, if you’re short on time, an easy shortcut is to buy a tube of ready-to-use sprinkle sugar cookie dough from the refrigerated section.
- Sprinkles – You’ll want to use jimmies (rods) or quins (discs) as they’re least likely to bleed color into the cookie dough and whipped cream. Avoid nonpareils if you can.
- Cream Cheese – Original Philadelphia Cream Cheese is my all-time favorite. It always has the best flavor and freshness and makes the creamiest cheesecake! Make sure to buy the cream cheese that comes in bricks, and not the spread that comes in tubs. Let it soften to room temperature before you start.
- Sugar – I recommend granulated sugar for the filling.
- Eggs and Vanilla – Bring the eggs to room temperature if you can.
- Whipped Cream – I make a simple homemade whipped cream with heavy cream, powdered sugar, and rainbow sprinkles. You could also fold sprinkles into store-bought whipped cream or Cool Whip.
How to Make Sugar Cookie Cheesecake
This is a short overview of the steps to make your creamy sprinkle sugar cookie cheesecake. You’ll find the printable recipe instructions in the recipe card after the post.
- Prepare the crust. To make the sugar cookie crust, start by creaming together butter and sugar, then add the egg, vanilla, salt, and baking soda. Lastly, mix in the flour and fold in the sprinkles. Press the cookie dough into the bottom of a greased springform pan.
- Mix the cheesecake filling. Next, combine the cream cheese and sugar, then add vanilla. Mix in the eggs one at a time while scraping down the bowl as you go. Pour the cheesecake batter into your prepared cookie crust.
- Bake, then cool. Bake the cheesecake at 325ºF for 55-60 minutes until it’s just set, with a little jiggle in the center. Allow the cheesecake to cool to room temperature. Afterward, move it to the fridge to chill for at least 4 hours. I usually make my cheesecake the day before and let it chill overnight.
- Prepare the whipped topping. Before serving, you’ll beat heavy cream and powdered sugar in a cold bowl until stiff peaks form. Fold in the sprinkles.
- Decorate. Finally, pipe or spread the whipped cream over the chilled cheesecake and garnish the top with crushed cookies (these slice-and-bake refrigerator sprinkle cookies work great here).
Baking for a Crowd? Make Bars Instead!
Follow the directions for my Sugar Cookie Cheesecake Bars to bake your cheesecake in a crowd-friendly 9×13-inch baking pan. Fold the sprinkles into the crust and prepare the whipped cream topping as directed here.
Cheesecake Baking Tips
- Use room temperature ingredients. Use room-temperature (not melted) butter when making your cookie crust, and take the cream cheese and eggs out of the fridge, too.
- Don’t overmix the cookie dough. After adding the flour, stir everything together until the dough is just combined. Overmixing results in a tougher crust.
- Get a nice, even crust. Use the bottom of a glass or the back of your measuring cup to firmly press the cookie dough into the bottom of the pan.
- Don’t overmix the cheesecake batter. Too much mixing adds air to the batter, which can make the cheesecake rise in the oven and collapse as it cools, creating cracks.
- Know when it’s done. The cheesecake is done when it’s set at the edges, and the inside still has a slight wiggle. If it’s set completely through when it comes out of the oven, it’s overbaked.
- Chill the finished cheesecake. I recommend at least 4 hours for the cheesecake to set, but it’s even better if you can chill it in the fridge overnight. This gives the flavors a chance to come together while it fully sets.
- Add the sprinkles last. This goes for the cookie dough as well as the whipped cream. Fold the jimmies in right at the end, to avoid overmixing the dough/overwhipping the cream. It also keeps the colors from leaking.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to bake in a water bath?
Some recipes call for baking cheesecake in a water bath to prevent cracks, but I don’t find it necessary for this recipe. Mix gently after adding each egg, and allow the baked cheesecake to cool gradually to room temperature on the counter. And if your cheesecake does crack, don’t worry. It will still taste delicious! Cover any cracks with whipped cream and cookies, and no one has to know.
How can I soften cream cheese quickly?
If you forget to take your cream cheese out of the fridge ahead of time (who hasn’t?), a quick way to soften it is to pour boiling water into a glass or ceramic bowl. Wait 5 minutes, then empty the bowl and place it over the cream cheese. It should soften up nicely in about 10 minutes.
This same trick works for butter! You can also bring eggs to room temperature quickly by placing them in a bowl of warm water for 5-10 minutes.
How to Store
- Refrigerate. Store your sugar cookie cheesecake covered tightly in the fridge for up to 5 days. If you plan to make this cheesecake ahead, leave off the whipped topping until you’re ready to serve.
- Freeze. Freeze the baked cheesecake after it’s chilled in the fridge and before adding the toppings. Wrap it in a double layer of plastic wrap, then foil, and freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the fridge before serving.
More Cheesecake Recipes
Sugar Cookie Cheesecake
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 12 servings 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
This sugar cookie cheesecake is a creamy classic cheesecake baked on a buttery homemade sprinkle sugar cookie crust, decorated with swirls of funfetti whipped cream and more cookies!
Ingredients
Sugar Cookie Crust
- 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 cup flour
- 1/4 cup rainbow sprinkles
Cheesecake Layer
- 4 (8 ounce) bricks PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 4 eggs
Sprinkle Whipped Cream
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons powdered sugar
- 2 Tablespoons rainbow sprinkles
- Optional garnish: Sugar cookie pieces.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F.
- Crust: Lightly spray a 9 “ springform pan with cooking spray, set aside.
- Prepare the crust first by beating the butter and sugar together for 1-2 minutes until fluffy. Add in the egg and vanilla, mixing until smooth. Add in salt and baking soda and mix until incorporated, scraping sides as necessary.
- Finally, add in flour until just combined and stir in sprinkles.
- Press cookie dough into the bottom of the prepared pan.
- Filling: Clean a mixing bowl and beat cream cheese and sugar together until smooth. Add in vanilla and one egg at a time, mixing in between each until just combined. Don’t over-mix and don’t forget to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl during mixing.
- Pour the cream cheese mixture over the cookie base.
- Bake in oven for 55-60 minutes until center is almost set.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving.
- Whipped Cream: When cheesecake is chilled, you can make your whipped cream by mixing your heavy cream and powdered sugar in a mixing bowl with the whisk attachment until stiff peaks form. Add in sprinkles and mix until combined. Pipe or spread whipped cream on top of cheesecake, and garnish with sugar cookies if desired.
Just want to see comments, havent made it yet but looking foreard to trying it out.
Do I HAVE to use a spring form pan?
Well, you don’t have to, but getting the cheesecake out of the pan will be much easier if you do.
Can this be made in muffin tins? If so what is the cooking time?
This is my grandkids favorite cheesecake…my granddaughter likes “plaino” cheesecake as she calls it, and my grandson puts chocolate syrup on his… Easy and delicious. Cheesecakes are my favorite desserts to make, and usually the more complicated the better, but this is an exception….it doesn’t last long at their house.
It looks so awesome, normally when I make cheesecake I use a water bath. Did you use a water bath to bake yours?
Oh nevermind I actually found the answer already thanks lol
Hubby loves cheesecake, I love sugar cookies, perfect marriage right? Gonna make this for his birthday but have not tackled a cheesecake for more than a decade! Most cheesecake tips suggest either a water bath or putting a pan of water in oven while cake is baking. I read another post that questioned need for water bath and you replied that is is not needed but my question is why is it not needed and would it hurt or help to put some water in a pan on rack beneath cake? Looks so awesome and fun! Can’t wait to try it this weekend!
It certainty wouldn’t hurt, but no it’s not needed!
Came out great! The sugar cookie dough was a bit salty and dense, did not seem to rise too much like your picture, where might I have gone wrong?
Made this for a friend’s birthday & everyone devoured it! So smooth & perfect! I used a chocolate/butter mixture drizzle instead of the whipped cream & it looked beautiful, too!
Awesome!! So glad you liked it!
Made it this weekend and it turned out great. the only lesson learned is that I threw the rainbow sprinkles in with the whipped cream and powdered sugar while whipping which basically collapsed the sprinkles and made my whipped cream appear a pale mauve color. Next time I’ll add the sprinkles after whipping. I also made sugar cookie cups and used those for the garnish filled with the whipped cream.
Do you bake everything all at once? Or can you bake the crust for a bit first before pouring the cheesecake in? Does this taste just like a sugar cookie?
What kind of flour do you use?
nvm I just saw the answer!! Thanks