Cookies• Holidays
Last updated June 30, 2021
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These delicious cookies start with a graham cracker cookie as the base before they are topped with a tasty vanilla cream cheese frosting. Finish them with a drizzle of chocolate or caramel to create the best cheesecake cookies!
This past week I was on Twin Cities Live for their 12 Days of Cookies that airs each year around the holidays.
I made this Cheesecake Cookies recipe, and wanted to include them here as well because they are so delicious.
On the show I didn’t add the chocolate drizzle, but I made them again this weekend and liked the added touch. They are good either way (you could even swirl in some jam or curd to the filling).
Other Cookie Recipes You Might Enjoy:
- Pan-Banging Molasses Espresso Cookies
- Cranberry White Chocolate Rosemary Cookies,
- Holiday Cut-Out Cookies,
- Pan-Banging Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Brown Sugar Cookies
* This recipe is inspired by one I found on Pinterest – I wasn’t able to locate the original author of it, as most of the sites linked to on Pinterest just included a photo of the recipe and piles of ads, and when I finally located the recipe it was on a ‘copycat’ site (their words).
I made quite a few tweaks to the recipe I found, but the two are still somewhat similar in structure so here is my attempt to credit to the original author.
Best Cheesecake Cookies Recipe
Servings: 2 dozen cookies
Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes minutes
Additional Time: 10 minutes minutes
Total Time: 37 minutes minutes
A graham cracker cookie base is topped with a vanilla cheesecake filling to make these cheesecake inspired cookies.
Sarah Kieffer
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Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup 125g graham cracker crumbs
- 1 cup 142g all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 9 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
- ½ cup [100g] granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Filling
- 8 ounces [226g] cream cheese room temperature
- 1/3 cup [65g] granulated sugar
- Pinch salt
- 1 to 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- *Melted caramelized white chocolate and bittersweet chocolate for decorating
Instructions
Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 350F [180C]. Line three baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the graham cracker crumbs, flour, baking powder, and salt.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, beat the butter for one minute until creamy. Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla and mix until combined, scraping down the sides as needed. Add the graham cracker mixture and mix until combined.
Make the cream cheese filling: in the bowl of a (clean) stand mixer fitted with a paddle, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the sugar and salt and beat again until creamy and perfectly smooth, 2 to 3 minutes. Add one teaspoon of the lemon juice and vanilla and mix until combined. Taste the filling; if you feel like the flavor needs to be ‘brighter’, you can add another teaspoon of lemon juice.
Scoop the dough into 1 oz balls, and use your thumb or a teaspoon and indent each dough ball, about ½ inch. Scoop a heaping teaspoon of the cream cheese into the center of each cookie.
Bake cookies 10 to 12 minutes, until light golden brown and fragrant. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and let the cookies cool on the sheets for 10 minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool.
When the cookies have cooled, drizzle the chocolates across the top in a pattern of your choosing (I melted 2 ounces each of caramelized white chocolate and bittersweet chocolate, placed the melted chocolate in a pipping bag, and then cut the teeniest tiniest snip at the end of the bag for the piping. Note that the chocolate will want to instantly start pouring out, so keep the bag end titled up until ready to use.)
cheesecake
Published December 7, 2019
by Sarah Kieffer
15
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15 Comments
Reply
Violet
Wednesday, July 20, 2022 at 2:40 pm
I believe these may be from Sandra Lee- New York Cheesecake Cookies. She uses brown sugar, though. She also has less topping, so I’m glad you changed that! The cookies you have made are beautiful.
Reply
maryann
Tuesday, November 3, 2020 at 2:56 pm
These love great! Did I miss it? How many cookies does this make? Sorry if I overlooked it in the recipe! ?
Reply
Akhil M
Tuesday, April 21, 2020 at 3:06 am
Wow, I’m already drooling. Thanks a ton for this recipe. I’m sharing this to my colleagues. 🙂
Reply
Sara Yousef
Tuesday, March 3, 2020 at 2:36 pm
Thanks for the help! Your blog helped me learn how to cook a bunch of stuff. Love it and keep it up!
Reply
Floranet
Tuesday, December 31, 2019 at 1:36 am
It’s nice when you see such a great work! Continue writing
Reply
Jess
Saturday, December 21, 2019 at 4:58 pm
These are really awesome cookies!! Got approval from my employees too! But I would really like to know if they should be refrigerated!! I wasn’t thinking about it until its probably too late! I served them the same day, but did not get them in the fridge afterward and I’m thinking because of the cream cheese filling it should be!
Reply
Sarah
Monday, December 23, 2019 at 6:16 pm
Yes, I will add that – I would suggest refrigerating the cookies, but if your kitchen is on the cooler side, they will be okay out for awhile.
Reply
Abby
Friday, December 13, 2019 at 7:35 am
Oh my gosh, Sarah, these cookies! They look so, so yummy, I wish I had one right now… and they’re so creative, I mean cheesecake in cookie form?! Looove.
Reply
Liz Tosti
Tuesday, December 10, 2019 at 3:59 pm
Im making the dough now and noticed the vanilla in the dough is not listed in the directions. I added it and hope that was the intention.
Reply
Sarah
Tuesday, December 10, 2019 at 4:37 pm
Sorry about that! I added it in the directions – it does go in the dough, with the egg.
Reply
Patty Kenny
Monday, December 9, 2019 at 9:57 am
This post is perfect timing! I have a party on Saturday and these are coming with me : ) Btw, I had been browsing the site this weekend and read an older post about snowflake sugar cookies. You included the lyrics to, “Snow,” from Sleep at Last. Made me a bit teary, as the lyrics really hit home. Thank you so much for sharing them. I listened to the recording on YouTube and it is so beautiful. Going to teach myself to play it on the guitar (and it will be a while, because I am not a gifted instrumentalist), my singing has to compensate for it. Hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday season. Thank you for investing in this blog. It really is a balm to my soul just when I need it.
Reply
june
Sunday, December 8, 2019 at 9:36 am
Sarah,
Saw you on TCL the other day…I cannot wait to make these cookies. I have shared the recipe with oodles of friends. I mean…who doesn’t love cheesecake?Happy Holidays !
june
Reply
Anabelle
Sunday, December 8, 2019 at 8:39 am
What’s the best way to store these cookies? These seem like good treats to give away for the holidays.
Reply
Jean
Sunday, December 8, 2019 at 7:25 am
Lovely little treat…how would you store these and how long do you think they would keep? Thanks
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