Sugar Cookie Cheesecake

Sugar Cookie Cheesecake takes classic cheesecake to the next level with soft, chewy cookie dough pieces baked right into the creamy filling. A buttery shortbread crust adds rich flavor and a perfect crunch, making it far better than the standard graham cracker base. It’s the kind of dessert that has friends and neighbors begging for the recipe after just one bite.

Love More Desserts Recipes? Try My Caramel Apple Pie Cheesecake or this Apple Crumble Cheesecake next.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Rich, creamy cheesecake layered over a buttery sugar cookie crust and topped with sweet cookie crumbles. It’s the ultimate celebration dessert, perfect for birthdays, holidays, or any special occasion. Each bite is indulgent, festive, and guaranteed to have everyone asking for seconds.

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Ingredients You’ll Need

For the Shortbread Crust:

• 1¼ cups (160g) all-purpose flour
• ½ cup (60g) powdered sugar
• Pinch of kosher salt
• ½ cup (110g) unsalted butter, cold and cubed
• 2 tablespoons milk

For the Sugar Cookie Dough:

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
• ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons milk
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup (130g) all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• 3 tablespoons jimmies sprinkles

For the Sugar Cookie Cheesecake Filling:

• 4 × 8-oz blocks full-fat cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¼ teaspoon almond extract (optional)
• ¾ cup (185g) sour cream, room temperature
• 4 large eggs, room temperature

For the Sour Cream Frosting:

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
• ⅓ cup (80g) sour cream
• 1½ cups (165g) powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Extra sprinkles for topping

Why These Ingredients Work

Okay, let me tell you why I chose each of these ingredients after way too many failed attempts. The shortbread crust happened because my first version with graham crackers got soggy and gross – this stays crispy and tastes like an actual cookie. Those raw cookie dough balls? Total game changer. I tried pre-baking them once and they turned into sad little hockey pucks.

The sour cream shows up twice for good reason – once in the filling to cut through all that richness, and again in the frosting because regular buttercream is way too sweet for this. My mother-in-law always skips the almond extract and says it tastes fine, but I think that tiny bit makes everything taste more like real bakery cookies.

Essential Tools and Equipment

You need a 9-inch springform pan – don’t even try this with a regular cake pan. I use my KitchenAid stand mixer but a hand mixer works fine too. Get yourself a big roasting pan for the water bath and some parchment paper. Oh, and a good rubber spatula for folding in those cookie dough pieces without beating them to death.

How to Make Sugar Cookie Cheesecake

1. Prepare the Shortbread Crust

Heat your oven to 325°F and get that springform pan ready with some grease and parchment paper on the bottom. Mix your flour, powdered sugar, and salt in a bowl. Cut in those cold butter cubes until everything looks like breadcrumbs – I use my fingers for this part. Add the milk and mix until it holds together but still looks crumbly. Press this into your pan like you mean it – really pack it down tight. Bake for 18-20 minutes. Leave the oven on because we’re just getting started.

2. Make the Sugar Cookie Dough

Use that same bowl to cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add milk and vanilla, then dump in flour and salt. Stir in those sprinkles last. Now comes the fun part – pinch off little pieces about the size of grapes and roll them into balls. I usually end up with around 30 little balls. Set these aside on a plate.

3. Create the Cheesecake Filling

Put a big roasting pan on your oven’s bottom rack and get some water boiling in a pot. Now beat that cream cheese with sugar and flour on low speed. Don’t rush this part or you’ll have lumps forever. Add vanilla, almond extract if you’re using it, and sour cream. Keep mixing gently. Add eggs one by one, just mixing until each one disappears. Take a rubber spatula and fold in all those cookie dough balls by hand.

4. Assemble and Bake

Butter the sides of your pan and pour in all that beautiful batter. Put your cheesecake on the middle oven rack, right over that roasting pan. Pour your boiling water into the bottom pan – this keeps everything moist and prevents cracking. Bake for 75 minutes or until the edges look set but the middle still jiggles just a tiny bit when you shake the pan.

5. The Cool Down Process

Turn off your oven and crack the door open. Let the cheesecake sit in there for 45 minutes – this gradual cooling prevents those ugly cracks. Then take it out and let it cool on the counter for 30 minutes before putting it in the fridge overnight. Yes, overnight. Don’t even think about cutting into it early.

6. Make the Sour Cream Frosting

After your cheesecake has been chilling all night, beat that butter until it’s fluffy. Add sour cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla. Mix until smooth and spreadable. Spread this all over the top of your cheesecake and go crazy with the sprinkles.

You Must Know

Room temperature ingredients are everything with cheesecake. I learned this the hard way after three lumpy disasters. Take your cream cheese, eggs, and sour cream out at least two hours before you start baking. Cold ingredients will never mix smooth no matter how long you beat them.

Personal Secret: I always give the pan a few good taps on the counter after pouring in the batter. Gets rid of air bubbles that turn into weird holes later.

Pro Tips & Cooking Hacks

Don’t stress about wrapping your pan in foil for the water bath – if you have a decent springform pan, it won’t leak. I’ve never had an issue. Mix everything on low speed once you add the eggs. High speed whips in too much air and causes cracks. The center should still wiggle like jello when it’s done. A firm center means it’s overcooked.

Flavor Variations

My sister makes this with lemon zest in the filling and it’s incredible. You could also swap the rainbow sprinkles for mini chocolate chips in the cookie dough if your kids are chocolate obsessed like mine. For Valentine’s Day, I use strawberry extract and pink sprinkles.

Individual cheesecakes work great too – just use a muffin tin and bake for about 25 minutes. Perfect for parties where people want their own little cake.

Make-Ahead Options

This cheesecake actually tastes better after sitting in the fridge for a day or two. Something about the flavors mixing together. You can make it three days early and just add the frosting on the day you’re serving it.

I’ve frozen the plain cheesecake before (without frosting) and it worked fine. Wrap it really well and it’ll keep for two months. Just thaw it overnight in the fridge before adding frosting.

Recipe Notes & Baker’s Tips

Small cracks happen sometimes – don’t panic because that frosting covers everything up perfectly. I always run a knife around the edges before taking off the springform ring so the top doesn’t crack when it shrinks.

Those cookie dough balls puff up a little when they bake, which creates these perfect little pockets of sweetness in every bite. Some people ask me if they should be worried about raw flour, but honestly, the baking temperature kills anything nasty.

Perfect Serving Suggestions

This thing is gorgeous enough to be the star of any party table. I usually serve it with some fresh strawberries on the side, but vanilla ice cream makes it even more indulgent if you’re feeling extra.

For big parties, I cut smaller squares instead of huge wedges. Everyone feels like they’re getting their own special little celebration cake, plus you can feed more people.

How to Store Your Sugar Cookie Cheesecake

Keep it covered in the fridge for up to 5 days, though mine never lasts that long. You can freeze it without the frosting for about 2 months if you wrap it really well in plastic wrap and foil. Just thaw it in the fridge overnight before you add the frosting and serve.

Allergy Information

This recipe has dairy, eggs, and gluten in it. For gluten-free folks, you can swap the regular flour for a 1:1 gluten-free baking flour and it works fine. But honestly, making this dairy-free would be pretty much impossible since cream cheese is like 90% of what makes it good.

Questions I Get Asked A Lot

Can I use low-fat cream cheese?

No. You need the full-fat stuff or your cheesecake will be grainy and weird. Trust me on this one.

My cheesecake cracked, what did I do wrong?

Your cream cheese was probably too cold, or you beat the crap out of it after adding eggs. Also maybe you didn’t do that slow cooling thing.

How do I know it’s actually done?

Edges should look set, center should still jiggle when you shake it. If the whole thing is solid, you went too far.

💬 Made this recipe? Tell me how it turned out in the comments below!