When it comes to holiday desserts, there’s nothing quite as show-stopping as a cheesecake. Creamy, decadent and unexpectedly versatile, it’s the ultimate dessert for any special occasion.
And of course, a great cheesecake has to be made with Philadelphia Cream Cheese! The flavour and texture guarantee perfect results every time, even for a cheesecake-making novice!
But as good as cheesecake is, it can always be even better! So, in my hunt for the most decadent holiday dessert imaginable, I decided to combine two delectable desserts into one mouth-watering masterpiece…a Red Velvet Cheesecake Cake!
A half recipe of classic Philadelphia New York Cheesecake is layered between rich and flavourful Red Velvet Cake and covered in a cream cheese icing for a holiday dessert that’s simply irresistible!
While this cake isn’t my usual quick and easy style of cooking, it’s really not a difficult recipe in any way.
Cooking the separate layers takes time, but the baked cake comes together quite quickly and easily. I was surprised and pleased with how rich and red the inside of the cake was, and I loved how festive it looked contrasted with the snow-white filling and icing.
But the real pleasure of this cake comes with taking that first scrumptious bite! The creamy cheesecake is the perfect compliment to the tender cake layers and the overall flavour is simply sublime.
The icing is fairly creamy, so I didn’t worry about trying to smooth it to a perfect finish.
Instead, I swirled the icing to give my Red Velvet Cheesecake Cake a snow-covered look perfect for a holiday dessert.
The beautiful thing about cheesecake recipes is that they can be as simple or as complex as a person desires.
Choose between cheesecake squares, mini cheesecakes, a no-bake cheesecake or an elaborate traditional cheesecake with decadent fillings and toppings, for a dessert that’s perfectly suited to you!
Craving other tasty cheesecake desserts? Check out my No-Bake Berry Cheesecake or my Cookies and Cream Cheesecake!
No matter what cheesecake dessert you choose, rich and creamy Philadelphia Cream Cheese will help ensure you love the results of your cheesecake masterpiece!
Red Velvet Cheesecake Cake
A decadent and festive holiday dessert of creamy cheesecake layered between red velvet cake and iced with cream cheese frosting.
Ingredients
Cheesecake
- 2 1/2 250 g packages Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened
- 3 ⁄4 cup sugar
- 1 ⁄2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 ⁄4 teaspoon coarse salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ⁄2 cup sour cream, room temperature
Cake
- 2 1 ⁄2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1 ⁄2 cups sugar
- 1 1 ⁄2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 1 ⁄2 cups vegetable oil
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 3 tablespoons red food coloring
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1 ⁄2 teaspoons white distilled vinegar
- 2 oz. Baker's Unsweetened Chocolate, melted
Frosting
- 1 1/2 8 oz. packages Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 1 1 ⁄2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
Instructions
Cheesecake
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Set a kettle of water on to boil.
- Using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese on medium until fluffy, scraping down side of bowl.
- Gradually add sugar, beating until fluffy.
- Beat in lemon juice and salt.
- Beat in the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the side of the bowl after each addition.
- Beat in the sour cream.
- Grease a 9-inch round cake pan and line bottom with parchment paper.
- Pour in filling and place in a large, oven safe roaster.
- Pour in boiling water to halfway up side of the pan.
- Bake until just set in center, about 45-55 minutes.
- Remove pan from water. Let cool for approximately 10 minutes.
- Run a knife around edge and continue to cool completely.
- Carefully place a plate on top of cooled cheesecake layer and flip it over onto plate.
- Remove parchment paper, cover cheesecake in plastic wrap and freeze.
Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Mix flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
- Beat eggs, oil, buttermilk, food coloring, vanilla, and vinegar in a large bowl with an electric mixer until well combined.
- Add dry ingredients and beat until smooth, about 2 minutes.
- Stir in melted chocolate until combined.
- Divide batter evenly between 2 greased and floured 9" round cake pans and bake 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean.
- Let cakes cool 5 minutes, invert each onto a plate, then invert again onto a cooling rack. Let cakes cool completely.
Frosting
- Beat cream cheese, butter, and vanilla together in a large bowl with an electric mixer until combined.
- Add icing sugar one cup at a time, beating until frosting is light and fluffy, 5–7 minutes.
Assembly
- Place one red velvet cake layer on serving tray.
- Remove cheesecake from freezer, unwrap and place on top of the first layer of the red velvet cake.
- Place second layer of red velvet cake on top of the cheesecake.
- Coat cake with a generous layer of the cream cheese frosting to seal in any crumbs. Refrigerate approximately 30 minutes, until frosting is set.
- Frost cake with remaining frosting until fully coated.
- Refrigerate until ready to serve.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 12Amount Per Serving: Calories: 1082Total Fat: 76.6gSaturated Fat: 35.8gCholesterol: 191mgSodium: 777mgCarbohydrates: 93gFiber: 1.8gSugar: 68.5gProtein: 12.5g
The only thing I worry about with Red Velvet is the dyes in it.
I’m iffy on the dye too but I figure once in a while a little food dye isn’t going to do too much harm. I do know in the olden days, though, they used beet juice! I’d love to give that a try some day!
This looks so good. Would be perfect for the holidays
I love to bake so I will have to sure try this one.
Looks pretty complicated but I’d give it a try anyways.
yummy I love cheesecake and this i so unique I have pinned it to make. This would be a real hit for dessert after Christmas dinner
Oh my goodness, this looks amazing! Definitely need to make this one day! Thanks for the recipe :)
This sounds so delicious! Love red velvet.
Oh yum! I love a good cake and this one sounds really good.
Looks so so so good, but a tad bit hard for me to make, I’m not the best baker, but if someone could make this for me I would totally eat it!!
Wow! This looks sooo good :) It looks slightly tricky but I think I may be able to pull it off