43 Cream Cheese Recipes That Go Beyond Cheesecake
When you think about cream cheese recipes, classic cream cheese frosting probably comes to mind (piped perhaps onto a perfect vanilla cupcake?). Or perhaps your brain goes right to THAT cheesecake (you know the one), which is a pretty nice place for a brain to go. But the archives of Epicurious are full of ideas for making the most of a block of cream cheese, including a quick and luxurious summer pasta sauce, spicy party dips, a 3-minute chocolate cream cheese frosting, and a cotton-crumbed cake named for an iconic cheese brand. Just here for the cheesecakes alone? You’ll find a few below, but you might want to make this list of our all-star cheesecake recipes your next stop.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Sean Dooley1/43Carrot Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting
If you came to this collection of cream cheese recipes looking for preeminent versions of the classics, this fan-favorite carrot cake is a great place to start. A food processor will help you grate the carrots fast, but back away from the store-bought canned frosting—homemade cream cheese frosting is worth the time. Dust the edge of the cake with lightly toasted pecans or walnuts for crunch.
Photo by Elizabeth Coetzee, Food Styling by Sean Dooley2/43Pasta With No-Cook Zucchini Sauce
Perhaps you haven’t thought much about savory cream cheese dishes beyond spreading the stuff on an everything bagel. But it makes all the sense in the world to use cream cheese to add richness to this summer pasta, which is packed with thinly sliced, marinated zucchini. Parmesan on top? Yes, please.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Susan Ottaviano and Stevie Stewart4/43Original New York Cheesecake
You can’t beat a classic. (Though, from time to time, we also like to swap out the cake crust here for a graham cracker crust.)
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Anna Stockwell5/43Black Bottom Brownie Cookies
You’ll hide a dollop of cannoli-like chocolate-studded cream cheese filling into each of these chubby cookies. Your guests will be SO impressed, and you’ll just be like: What, these ol’ things?
Photo by Elizabeth Coetzee, Food Styling by Mira Evnine6/43Twice-Baked-Potato Casserole
Classic twice-baked potatoes are a bit fussy since you need to roast your spuds, mash the interior, and then stuff those mashed potatoes back into the skins one by one. This large-format version, enriched with cream cheese, sour cream, and sharp white cheddar, is just as delicious—but easier if you’re feeding a crowd.
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Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Anna Stockwell9/43Fudgy Cream Cheese Brownies
Can’t decide between baking a tray of brownies or a sheet pan of cheesecake? Why not both? These swirled delights also just happen to be gluten-free.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Beatrice Chastka, Food Styling by Anna Billingskog10/43Homemade Cheese Spread With Garlic and Herbs
Photo by Elizabeth Coetzee, Food Styling by Mira Evnine12/43Pumpkin Whoopie Pies
Tastes like a pumpkin pie, but better—and more fun. Want a whoopified chocolate pie? We’ve got you.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Rebecca Jurkevich13/43Philly Fluff Cake
This rich but fluffy variation on pound cake is a specialty of bakeries across the Northeast—now you can bake your own at home.
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