Sopapilla Cheesecake Pie

When our family goes out to our favorite Mexican restaurant in town, one of my favorite parts of dinner is at the end, when they bring out a little plate of sopapillas…one for each person.  Since my hubby is usually too full to eat anything else at this point, our daughter and I usually end up splitting his.  So, I couldn’t help but to wonder if I could make them at home, and the researching began.  I was looking for actual sopapilla recipes, but came across this one.  The combination of a sopapilla mixed with cheesecake?  Oh, snap!  As I started reading through the ingredients and the process, it became clear that this was easy to make, and was sure to be a big hit.  As I was putting it together, my husband asked what I was making, so I told him.  “What in the heck is that?” he asked.  After explaining the layers, he chuckled and said, “Sounds healthy.”  Well, let’s not try to break this down nutritionally, because you may not want to think about that…  Plus, when you take a bite of one of these bad boys, your concern for the nutritional value could possibly fly out the window.

After this was pulled out of the oven and cooling on the counter, I hear the ole hubster downstairs call out, “Can I go ahead and eat this?”  Couldn’t help but to giggle.  I cut him a good sized piece and had it on a plate for him when he came back into the kitchen a minute later after taking the dogs outside.  As he inhaled it, I heard, “Mmm, this thing is awesome!”  The next day when I pulled all of the pieces out of the original container and put it back in the fridge, all he saw was the leftover container…empty.  “You didn’t give it ALL away, did you?!”  Of course not.  He has enjoyed a couple more pieces today, along with my daughter’s teachers.

Sopapilla Cheesecake Pie Recipe

2 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 (8 oz) cans refrigerated crescent rolls

3/4 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 stick of butter, melted

1/4 cup honey

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Prepare a 9×13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.  Beat the cream cheese with 1 cup of sugar and the vanilla extract in a bowl until smooth.  Unroll the cans of crescent roll dough, and use a rolling pin to shape each piece into 9×13 inch rectangles. Press one piece into the bottom of a 9×13 inch baking dish. Evenly spread the cream cheese mixture into the baking dish, then cover with the remaining piece of crescent dough. Stir together 3/4 cup of sugar and cinnamon. Pour the melted butter over the top layer of crescent rolls, then sprinkle the cinnamon/sugar mixture on top.  Bake in the preheated oven until the crescent dough has puffed and turned golden brown, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and drizzle with honey. Cool completely in the pan before cutting into squares.  Store in refrigerator.