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Butterbeer Cheesecake tastes just like the drink in creamy cheesecake form! Cream soda syrup, butterscotch sauce, and butter extract flavor this cheesecake with beautiful butterscotch flavor. Top with luscious salted butterscotch sauce and swirls of whipped cream for a stunning dessert!
Why you’ll love this Butterbeer Cheesecake:
- Creamy Butterscotch Cheesecake – Ultra creamy cheesecake is flavored with cream soda syrup, butterscotch sauce, and butter extract to give it delicious butterbeer flavor!
- Crisp Graham Cracker Crust – The filling is baked atop a crisp graham cracker crust!
- Luscious Butterscotch Sauce – Top the cheesecake with luscious salted butterscotch sauce and fresh whipped cream!
Ingredient Overview:
As always, the full recipe with measurements & directions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post. Use the table of contents (back at the top, below the first image, to navigate).
- Butter – I always use salted buter because in my experience, it lends the best flavor, but feel free to use unsalted butter if that’s what you prefer.
- Graham Cracker Crumbs – Buy ready made or make your with whole graham crackers in the food processor. If you use the second option, you’ll need to add 1-3 extra tbsp butter as this option is always drier for some reason.
- Cream Cheese – Use full fat cream cheese, in the block style. This needs to come to room temperature before you bake.
- Eggs – Use large eggs at room temperature.
- Sour Cream – Use full fat sour cream, at room temperature.
- Vanilla extract – Use real vanilla extract for best results.
Recipe Substitutions & Variations:
- Gluten-free – Use gluten-free graham crackers to make this recipe gluten-free.
- Dairy-free – I have not experimented with dairy-free cheesecakes so I can’t recommend anything with confidence here, except to check out a vegan baking blog, like The Banana Diaries or Little Blog of Vegan!
- Whipped Cream – If you don’t want to pipe on the whipped cream, you can always make it and let people dollop it on to their individual slices. However, it does make for a stunning centerpiece dessert!
How to Make this Butterbeer Cheesecake:
Step 1: Make the Butterscotch Sauce. Melt butter in a medium saucepan, then add brown sugar and cream of tartar (this prevents a grainy butterscotch sauce, which is SO common!). Add the heavy cream and let the mixture boil for 5 minutes without touching it. Then stir in the vanilla and salt.
Step 2: Make the Crust. Stir together graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and a pinch of sugar. Press this into a 9-inch springform pan and bake for 10 minutes.
Step 3: Make the Cheesecake Batter. In a large mixing bowl, beat your cream cheese on high speed with an electric mixer, until creamy. (You can also do this in the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment.)
Then, mix in the sugar, eggs, vanilla, and sour cream. Mix in the butterscotch sauce and butter extract. You’ll have a silky batter. If there are a few tiny lumps, that’s ok.
Step 4: Bake. Pour batter into your prepared crust and bake as directed in the recipe card below. Let cheesecake cool in the oven with the door cracked for 1 hour, then let it cool to room temperature before refrigerating.
Refrigerate for at least 6 hours or preferably overnight before serving.
Step 5: Decorate. Top the cooled cheesecake with more butterscotch sauce and whipped cream!
Serving + Storing:
Once the cheesecake has chilled and been decorated, slice and enjoy! Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Bake my Butterbeer Cookies with Salted Butterscotch Frosting or my Butterscotch Cake next!
Expert Baking Tips:
- Oven Thermometer – An oven thermometer will tell you if your oven is actually running at the temperature you set it to. Your oven may not be accurate. Accurate oven temperature is crucial for most bakes, so I leave an oven thermometer in at all times to keep an eye on my oven’s calibration.
- Kitchen Scale – A food scale is the best way to make sure your ingredients are at the proper weight, since amounts will vary based on how you measure, as well as the measuring cup you use, as they are not standardized.
- Room Temperature Ingredients – It is imperative that you let your cold ingredients come to room temperature. Cold ingredients will create a lumpy batter.
- Don’t Over Mix – Over mixing the cheesecake batter when you’re adding the eggs can cause the cheesecake to buckle a little bit in the oven. It will still taste great, but won’t look as pretty.
- Don’t Over Bake – Follow the doneness cues given in the recipe card below to avoid over baking the cheesecake. Don’t panic if it browns the slightest bit on top – that can happen without it being overbaked.
FAQs:
Yes, bake a half batch of this recipe in an 8×8 or 9×9 square pan lined with parchment paper. I think half the batter may still be a bit much for a 6-inch springform pan.
Yes! That’s the nature of cheesecake. Allow the cheesecake to come to room temp after it’s baked, and then transfer to the fridge to chill at least 6 hours or up to 1 day before serving.
Yes, I do not recommend skipping it. The hot water produces steam that fills the oven, which helps the cheesecake cook evenly and remain nice and creamy, without cracking. It also helps prevent the edges from cooking at a faster rate than the center, creating a silky dessert.
You have two options – place the roasting pan filled with water on the rack below your cheesecake, or place your cheesecake pan (still wrapped in aluminum foil) into a 10-inch cake pan inside of the roasting pan. Pour water into the roasting pan only. If you place the foil-wrapped cheesecake pan into the roasting pan and pour in water, it will almost always leak to some degree.
More Cheesecakes to Love:
- Strawberry Cheesecake
- Pecan Pie Cheesecake
- Bailey’s Chocolate Cheesecake
- Biscoff Cheesecake
- Triple Nutella Cheesecake
- Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake
Did you make this recipe? Leave a comment & star rating!
Click the little stars in the header of the recipe card below to leave a comment & star rating, letting me know how you liked the recipe. I take all feedback seriously, & leaving a rating helps my small business immensely!
Butterbeer Cheesecake
Ingredients
Butterscotch Sauce
- 1/8 tsp cream of tartar
- 1/2 tsp water
- 1/2 cup salted butter, 113 grams
- 1 cup dark brown sugar, packed, 220 grams
- 1 cup heavy cream, 236 mL
- 1 and 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- pinch of flaky sea salt
For the Crust:
- 3 cups graham cracker crumbs, 276 grams
- 1/2 cup salted butter, melted, 113 grams
For the Cream Soda Syrup:
- two, 16 ounce bottles of cream soda
For the Cheesecake Batter
- 32 ounces full fat cream cheese, softened at room temperature , 906 grams
- 1 and 1/2 cups light brown sugar, packed, 330 grams
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup full fat sour cream, at room temperature , 180 grams
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup butterscotch sauce, 153 grams
- 1/2 cup cream soda reduction, from above
- 1 tbsp butter extract
- 1/8 tsp salt
For the Whipped Cream
- 2 tsp cold water, optional, for piping the cream
- 1/2 tspq plain powdered gelatin, optional, for piping the cream
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream, 118 mL
- 3 tbsp powdered sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
For Decorating:
- remaining butterscotch sauce
Instructions
- Make Salted Butterscotch Sauce: Combine the cream of tartar and water in a small bowl. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the brown sugar, cream of tartar/water mixture, and heavy cream. Then, let the mixture come to a boil and let it boil for 5 minutes. Do not stir it at all during this time. When the time is up, remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla and a generous pinch of flaky sea salt (to taste). Transfer to a jar or bowl to cool before using.(Store any leftover in the fridge.)
- Reduce the Cream Soda: Add the cream soda to a large or medium saucepan and heat over high heat until bubbling – cook, stirring occasionally, until reduced to 1/2 cup. This will take about 25-32 minutes. Pour the reduced cream soda into a measuring cup and set aside to cool to room temperature. (You can speed this up in the fridge.)
- Make the Crust: Preheat oven to 350° F. Spray a 9-inch springform pan with nonstick spray and make sure the bottom is securely fastened. Stir together crust ingredients and press into prepared pan and up the sides of the pan (see photos above). Bake this for 10 minutes. Set aside. Keep the oven on at 350. Fill a large pot with water and set it on your stove, and get out a large roasting pan – you'll need this for your water bath later.
- Make the Cheesecake Filling: Remember that your cold ingredients need to come to room temp before you start. In a large mixing bowl, beat the softened cream cheese with electric mixer until creamy, about 1-2 minutes. Add the sugar & mix on high speed until well incorporated, about 1-2 minute. Scrape the sides & bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as you go – little lumps of cream cheese love to hide in the bottom of the bowl. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing on medium speed after each until just barely incorporated, and scraping the bottom of the bowl between each addition to catch any lumps. Do not over mix when adding the eggs – this can cause your cheesecake to puff up and inflate then collapse in the oven, or if you really over mix, it can overflow. Add the vanilla, sour cream, butterscotch sauce, cream soda reduction, and butter extract and mix until just combined. Tip: You can also do this in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.
- Prepare the Water Bath + Bake: Bring the large pot of water to a boil. Set your springform pan on a rack positioned in the center of the oven, and place the roasting pan on the rack below, or wrap the base of the cheesecake pan in foil and place it inside a 10-inch cake pan inside the roasting dish. Pour the boiling water into the roasting pan. Both of these methods ensure no leaks.
- Bake: Bake the cheesecake for 1 hour and 45 minutes to 2 hours. When done, the cheesecake will have only a slight wobble in the center, and a knife inserted into the edge will come out clean, and will have just a bit of thick batter when inserted into the center. An instant read thermometer should read between 170℉ and 176℉ when inserted into the center/towards the bottom of the cheesecake. Turn off the oven and crack the door open. Let the cheesecake cool in the oven for 1 hour before removing it.
- Cheesecake Cooling: Once the hour is up, remove the pan from the oven. It should be cool enough to handle. Remove the foil and set the springform pan on a wire rack. Let cool completely at room temp, then cover with foil and refrigerate at least 6 hours or up to 1 day before removing from the pan and serving.
- Make the Whipped Cream: Make the whipped cream just before you're ready to serve the cheesecake. It's best made fresh – not made ahead. If you plan to pipe on the whipped cream, I recommend stabilizing it. Add the water to a small bowl and sprinkle the powdered gelatin on top. Let stand for 3 minutes. Then, microwave for 4-5 seconds, just to re-liquify the mixture. Set aside while you begin the cream. Add the whipped cream ingredients to a medium bowl and beat on high speed until it begins to thicken. Or, use a food processor – this will make the whipped cream easier to pipe! Pulse 10-12, then run on low until cream is just starting to thicken. Stream in the liquid gelatin mixture while you mix on low in either method. Keep mixing/pulsing until cream is thick but still smooth. Add cream to a piping bag (I used a Wilton 6B tip) and pipe on the cheesecake as desired.
- Serve & Store: Serve with extra butterscotch sauce on top, and pipe on the whipped cream (or serve it on the side) then slice and enjoy! Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Absolutely worth the time it takes to make this. 100%, without question. I think I might reduce the amount of sugar in the recipe by the tiniest bit next time I make it, but that’s not a flaw on the recipe at all, just personal preference. You knocked it out of the park with this recipe, thank you for making and sharing this. Much appreciation!
So glad to hear this, CC! Thanks for your kind words.
This was amazing! My daughter has been frequenting Universal and fell in love with the butter beer drink, so I thought I’d surprise her with this for Thanksgiving when she came home from college. It was a HUGE hit (and she is hard to please with cheesecake) she said and I quoted ” this is the best one you’ve made” and I’ve made a lot of cheesecakes in her 20 years. Thank you for a great recipe. And yes whoever is reading this and saying the cook time looks so long… Cook it for as long as the recipe says. PERFECTION
So glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe, Staci! Thanks so much for your kind words!
Do you have any recommendations of which brand of cream soda to use?
Any brand should work fine! I used Sprecher. Let me know how you like the recipe!
Just wanted to confirm the baking time, 1hr 45min – 2 hours is long for a cheesecake… I’m sure it’s due to the extra ingredients in the filling, but just wanted to confirm before messing something up. Thanks!
Hi Dave! Yes, this bake time is correct. Let me know how you like the recipe!
I’m just curious, up in the write-up, you mention butterscotch pudding mix in the cheesecake batter, but it’s not mentioned anywhere in the ingredients or instructions down below. Is there meant to be pudding mix in this?
Hi Teri! Ah, I had used it in an earlier test of the recipe but felt it didn’t add enough to warrant asking people to buy another ingredient, so I cut it. Thanks for noticing that! Let me know how you like the recipe!