Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C), and grab a 9x13-inch baking dish. Give it a quick spray with non-stick cooking spray to ensure that your dessert comes out easily once it’s done. A quick spray will help everything bake evenly, and trust me, you don’t want to skip this step!

Open up the two cans of crescent roll dough and unroll one of the sheets of dough. Place it in the bottom of your baking dish, pressing it gently so it covers the entire bottom. Don’t worry about the dough not fitting perfectly—just press the seams together and spread it out a bit. If you have some gaps, don’t stress. Everything will come together beautifully once it’s baked.

Now, grab a mixing bowl and combine your softened cream cheese, ¾ cup of sugar, and vanilla extract. You can use a hand mixer or just a whisk to blend everything together until it’s smooth and creamy. This filling is the magic of the dessert, and it’s the key to getting that perfect cheesecake-like texture in the middle.

Take your cream cheese mixture and spread it evenly over the layer of crescent dough in the baking dish. Try to smooth it out as best as you can so it covers the dough completely. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but the more even you get it, the better the layers will look when you cut into it. If you’re like me and you can’t resist licking the spoon afterward, you’ll be happy to know this filling is just as delicious on its own!

Now, unroll the second can of crescent rolls and place it on top of the cream cheese filling. Once again, press the seams together and gently spread the dough to cover the entire surface. If you need to overlap a little, that’s totally fine. You’ll still get a great result, and the dough will bake up beautifully in the oven.

In a small bowl, melt the butter in the microwave or on the stove. Then, in another small bowl, mix the remaining ¼ cup of sugar with the cinnamon. Once the butter is melted, pour it evenly over the top layer of crescent dough. After that, sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar mixture on top, making sure to cover it generously. This step creates that gorgeous crispy topping that everyone loves about Sopapilla Cheesecake.

Pop your baking dish into the preheated oven and bake for about 30 to 35 minutes. Keep an eye on it toward the end—the top should turn golden brown, and the filling should start to bubble up a bit. The smell that fills your kitchen while this bakes is absolutely mouthwatering, so expect some eager faces peeking into the kitchen! Once it’s baked to perfection, remove it from the oven and let it cool for about 10 minutes before cutting it into squares.