I’m so excited I can barely contain myself.
Just look at this.
Seriously.
This is the prettiest cheesecake I’ve ever seen — the perfect way to kick off summer. The flavors are pure sunshine: cold beer, grilled ribs, mojitos, caprese salad…and Coney Island cheesecake.
This stunning cake comes from my friend Rosie of Sweetapolita. If you follow her work, you know she’s the queen of beautiful, whimsical desserts — think sprinkles and impeccably styled confections. Her book, The Sweetapolita Bakebook, is full of that same charm, and when I flipped to this recipe I nearly fainted.
I adore cheesecake — I’ve said it here before — and I’m a little obsessed with sprinkles, colorful funfetti-style treats, so this recipe is basically made for me. For some reason I kept calling the sprinkles “sequins” while making this, which I kind of love.
Let’s talk about the components.
The crust might be my favorite part. It’s made from animal crackers, sugar cones, roasted salted peanuts, a little sugar, a pinch of salt and melted butter. The combination is unexpected and delicious — crunchy, nutty and just slightly sweet.
The cheesecake filling is incredibly decadent and creamy. The recipe actually calls for melted vanilla ice cream folded into the batter, which gives the cheesecake an extra-rich, silky texture. Then you stir in confetti sprinkles so it becomes a funfetti-style cheesecake — colorful and playful.
On top: cotton candy–flavored whipped cream. This light, fragrant whipped cream is made with a touch of cotton candy flavor oil stirred into sweetened whipped cream. If you want, divide the whipped cream and tint parts pale pink and blue for an extra carnival vibe, then pipe or dollop it over the chilled cheesecake and finish with more sprinkles.
This is one of the most indulgent things I’ve ever made — pure fun and very rich. Because it’s so decadent, serve it in small slices unless you want to dig into a glorious, oversized wedge (which I sometimes do).
If you prefer something easier, you can adapt this to a no-bake version in individual jars. Press the same crust into small jars, use a no-bake cheesecake filling, fold in the sprinkles, chill to set, and top with cotton candy whipped cream and extra confetti.
Or imagine scooped cheesecake in waffle cones — how adorable would that be?
Coney Island Cheesecake
1
(9-inch) cheesecake
2 hrs
Ingredients
Crust
- 2 cups animal crackers
- 3 sugar cones
- 1/2 cup salted roasted peanuts
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Cheesecake
- 4 (8-ounce) blocks cream cheese, softened and cut into chunks
- 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup full-fat Greek yogurt
- 1/4 cup vanilla ice cream, melted
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 5 large eggs
- 1/2 cup confetti sprinkles
Cotton Candy Whipped Cream
- 2 cups cold heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon cotton candy flavor oil (optional)
- 2 tablespoons confetti sprinkles
Instructions
Crust
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place a rimmed baking sheet filled with 1/2 inch of water on a rack in the oven. Spray a 9-inch springform pan with nonstick spray and tightly wrap the bottom and sides in aluminum foil.
- Pulse the animal crackers, sugar cones, peanuts, sugar and salt in a food processor until coarse crumbs form. Add the melted butter and pulse until evenly moistened. Press the mixture into the pan, coming up about 1 inch on the edges.
Cheesecake
- Beat the cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer until smooth. Add the powdered sugar, flour, salt, Greek yogurt and melted ice cream and beat until just smooth. With the mixer on low, add the eggs one at a time, beating about 30 seconds after each addition. Scrape the bowl well to remove any lumps.
- Strain the batter through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl, pressing it through with a spatula. Gently fold in the confetti sprinkles. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake 60 to 65 minutes. Turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake inside for 20 to 30 minutes more, until it’s set in the center and the internal temperature reaches about 150°F. Cool completely on a wire rack, then refrigerate overnight or at least 8 hours.
Cotton Candy Whipped Cream
- Beat the cold heavy cream on medium speed until soft peaks form. Add the powdered sugar and cotton candy oil, if using, and beat to stiff peaks. For a colorful effect, divide the whipped cream and tint portions pale pink and blue, then swirl or pipe on top. Sprinkle with extra confetti and serve.
Notes
The sprinkles have officially won my heart.