These Strawberry Sugar Cookies combine my grandma’s sugar cookie recipe with chopped fresh strawberries for the most delightful treat. Each cookie is like a mini strawberry cake!
My French Strawberry Cake is one of my most popular recipes, with hundreds of 5-star reviews. And I happen to be famous for my Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies – click on the recipe for the full story. So it seemed natural for me to develop a recipe for strawberry cookies. It wasn’t hard to do. I’d already re-worked my Grandma’s sugar cookie recipe for the holidays (Santa Sugar Cookies). All I had to do was add fresh, chopped strawberries to her classic recipe. The result is wonderful. Soft sugar cookies, bursting with fresh, sweet strawberry flavor!
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More cookie recipes
- White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
- Chocolate and Peanut Butter Chip Cookies
- Santa Sugar Cookies
- Espresso Cookies
- Thumbprint Cookies with Icing
Why this recipe works
This vintage cookie recipe includes cream of tartar, which if you did not know, is a by-product of wine making. When added to cookie dough, it keeps the cookies chewy. Cream of tartar precludes the sugar in the dough from crystallizing, which would make a crispy sugar cookie.
Since I was adding fresh, chopped strawberries to the dough (instead of freeze-dried strawberries like some other recipes use), I wanted a chewy, softer cookies. Each cookies bakes up like a mini fresh strawberry cake. They are so fragrant and full of fresh strawberry flavor. I know you’re going to love them!
Ingredients for strawberry sugar cookies
- Strawberries – I highly recommend using organic strawberries. I did not wash mine. If you do choose to wash or rinse your strawberries, be sure to thoroughly dry them before chopping and adding them to your cookie dough.
- Sugar – One cup of granulated sugar for 24 cookies.
- Butter – Be sure your butter is softened before creaming it together with the sugar.
- Flour – Use all-purpose white flour for these cookies.
- Egg – Use one large egg, preferably at room temperature.
- Vanilla Extract – I prefer to use pure vanilla extract instead of imitation.
- Cream of Tartar – Keeps the cookies chewy instead of crisp.
- Baking Soda – Helps to ensure the cookies are evenly baked.
- Salt – Balances the sweet flavors of the cookies.
- Variations – You could add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice or fresh lemon zest to the dough. Or you could melt some white chocolate chips and drizzle the freshly baked cookies with melted chocolate.
Instructions for strawberry sugar cookies
Using a hand-held blender or standing mixer, beat together softened butter and sugar until it is pale and fluffy. Beat on high for several minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl halfway through. Add the egg and vanilla extract, beat again until well combined.
In a separate large bowl, combine the all purpose flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Whisk until the dry ingredients are well combined. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat one low speed until a cohesive dough is formed.
Use a spatula or wooden spoon to gently fold the fresh strawberries into the sugar cookie dough until just combined. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Use a cookie scoop to drop balls of cookie dough onto baking sheets. Bake the cookies at 350 degrees F for about 12 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned and the cookies have puffed in the center. Be sure to rotate the baking sheets halfway through. Allow cookies to cool on pans for about 10 minutes, Use a spatula to gently remove cookies to cooling racks to finish cooling.
If you’d like to see a video for how to make these cookies, click HERE to watch my Instagram reel.
Expert tips for baking cookies
- Use a cookie scoop so each cookie is uniform. This ensures they bake evenly.
- I use this cookie scoop every time I bake a batch of cookies.
- Line the baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper so your cookies don’t stick to the baking surface.
- Allow the cookies to cool a full 10 minutes on the baking sheets.
- Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack and allow them to cool completely so they are set up and ready to enjoy.
Storage directions
These cookies are best served the same day as you bake them. The moisture in the fresh strawberries will cause the cookies to become very soft the longer you store them. Place a piece of sandwich bread along with the cookies in an airtight container to help absorb the moisture. Store them for no longer than two days. I do not recommend freezing these cookies.
Serving suggestions
These cookies would be perfect for a wedding or baby shower. Or bake them as part of a dessert table for Valentine’s Day. If serving them at a girl baby shower, you could add a bit of red food coloring to the dough to tint the cookies a light pink color. They would also be great in the summer when strawberries are in peak season. Serve them at a cookout with grilled burgers and corn on the cob. Or as part of picnic spread with chicken salad sandwiches and pasta salad.
Kitchen tools
I have been baking cookies for many years. These are my favorite, time-tested tools…
- Nordic Ware Commercial Half Sheet Pans
- Silpat Silicone Baking Mats
- OXO Medium Cookie Scoop
- Chopnotch Measuring Cups and Spoons
- OXO Bent Icing Spatula (for leveling off flour and sugar)
- OXO Cookie Spatula
Strawberry Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups fresh organic strawberries finely chopped
- 8 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp cream of tartar
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking pans with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
- With a hand or stand mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until well combined.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt until well combined.
- Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix on low until a smooth cookie dough is formed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as needed.
- Gently fold the chopped strawberries into the cookie dough using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon. Be careful not to over mix.
- Use a small cookie scoop to form the dough into balls. Place 12 cookie dough balls on each prepared baking sheet.
- Bake the cookies for 12 - 14 minutes, until the edges are starting to lightly brown and the middles are nice and puffy.
- Be sure to rotate the baking pans halfway through baking - front to back and upper rack to lower rack.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the pans for 10 minutes. Use a cookie spatula to gently remove the cookies from the pans to a cooling rack.
Nutrition
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Sara Welch says
Whipped up a batch of these this afternoon and they did not disappoint! Turned out moist, fluffy and delicious; easily, a new favorite treat!
foodtasticmom says
So great to hear this. I’m glad you loved the cookies!
Ieva says
I love that these cookies use fresh strawberries. I tried a bunch of recipes with freeze-dried strawberries and they just don’t have the same summer strawberry flavour. These cookies were absolutely 10 out of 10!
foodtasticmom says
Oh wow, thank you!! I really appreciate this glowing review. 🙂
Charla says
Very different and it’s nice to see a sugar cookie recipe with a twist. Thanks for sharing!
foodtasticmom says
You’re welcome. Enjoy!
Alison Corey says
I love how these cookies manage to capture the essence of a strawberry cake in such a compact form. The addition of fresh strawberries not only adds a pop of color but also infuses each cookie with a juicy, fruity goodness that is absolutely irresistible.
foodtasticmom says
For sure. Love your description and appreciation for my cookie recipe!
Lana says
I’ve never made fresh strawberry cookies before and I’m absolutely saving this to make again! So good and simple, thank you.
foodtasticmom says
You’re welcome. Enjoy!