Strawberry sugar cookies are soft and chewy and full of real strawberry flavor. You will love that this homemade cookie dough is made with melted butter and mixes up in one bowl without a mixer.
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I've been on a strawberry kick lately. From strawberry snack cake to strawberry filled cupcakes to strawberry white chocolate cookies, I can't seem to get enough strawberry flavor!
As a lifetime baker and busy mama, I've got decades of sugar cookie making behind me and close to two dozen sugar cookie recipes on two sugar bugs. AND I love an easy sugar cookie recipe; especially one that yields soft cookies, mixes in one bowl and doesn't need to chill. That's a triple win in my book!
🍓 why you will love this homemade cookie recipe
- Quick and easy ~ from start to finish should take 30 minutes.
- Melted butter = soft and chewy cookies {and no planning ahead}.
- No mixer required ~ this recipe mixes up in one bowl with a whisk and spatula.
- No chill time required!
- The cookie dough is made with freeze dried strawberries, which can be found year round. Making them the perfect festive cookie for Christmas or Valentine's Day!
how do you jazz up sugar cookies?
In my opinion, playing with flavors is the best way to jazz up sugar cookies. In this recipe we add strawberries, but freeze dried strawberries like in my strawberry crumb cake. I also have strawberry lemonade sugar cookies, tiramisu sugar cookies and chocolate chip sugar cookies if you are looking for other flavors.
If you are looking for a decorated cut-out flavored sugar cookie, try my marbled sugar cookies.
🛒 ingredients and substitutions
Please scroll to the printable recipe card at the end of this post for the full list of ingredients and baking directions.
- Unsalted butter ~ gets melted, so no planning ahead. If you only have salted butter, eliminate the salt in the recipe.
- Sugars ~ granulated {or white} sugar brings that classic sugar cookie flavor.
- Egg ~ two large egg yolks bring the dough together and add structure. You can use the egg whites to make meringue cookies.
- Vanilla ~ I prefer a pure vanilla extract for the best flavor.
- Baking powder ~ helps to create thick and chewy strawberry sugar cookies.
- Kosher salt ~ balances the flavors. If you only have table salt, use half the amount.
- All-purpose flour ~ be sure to spoon and level the flour or use a kitchen scale for the most accurate measuring.
- Strawberries ~ this recipe uses freeze dried strawberries. Fresh strawberries can be substituted, see the recipe card notes for instructions. Do not use frozen strawberries as they will add too much moisture to the cookie dough.
🥣 how to make cookie dough with freeze dried strawberries
Preheat the oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
Then chop the freeze dried strawberries into small bite size pieces, set aside.
In a medium bowl, add the granulated sugar, the melted butter and kosher salt and stir until well combined.
Now stir in the egg yolks and vanilla, making sure everything is very well combined.
Next add the baking powder and mix to combine.
Finally stir in the flour until a few streaks of flour remain.
Then mix in the chopped freeze dried strawberries until just combined.
In a small bowl mix granulated sugar and crushed freeze dried strawberries. Then take about two tablespoons of dough {I use a size 30 scoop} and roll it in the sugar, then roll between your hands and roll a second time in the strawberry sugar.
Place the cookie dough balls on the prepared baking pans. Then lightly flatten each cookie with a flat bottomed cup. Bake for 9-12 minutes, until the edges are set and the centers still look soft.
💬 frequently asked questions
how many days will sugar cookies stay fresh?
Strawberry sugar cookies will stay fresh in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days.
My favorite way to store homemade cookies is in the freezer! Once the cookies are cool, store them in an airtight container in the freezer for up to three months. These chewy sugar cookies will defrost on the counter in about 15 minutes.
can I make the cookie dough with fresh strawberries?
Yes! I tested this recipe with fresh strawberries in the cookies. My testers preferred the texture and overall flavor of freeze dried strawberries, but both versions are yummy.
To make the recipe using fresh strawberries, prepare the strawberries like you do for strawberry blondies {which taste like strawberry sugar cookie bars} and know the cookies may take a few more minutes to bake.
can I use frozen strawberries?
No, frozen strawberries will add too much moisture to the cookie dough and make the cookies soggy.
Remember to pin this recipe to Pinterest! Use the button on the recipe card or the share buttons on the side or bottom of this page.
👩🏻🍳 tips for the best soft and chewy sugar cookies
- Follow the recipe ~ even one small change by you can change the outcome.
- Weigh your ingredients ~ I know I say this all the time, but weighing your ingredients is the most accurate and will give the best results. This is the scale I use in my kitchen.
- Use real butter, not margarine for the best tasting cookies; sugar cookie recipes are a good time to splurge on a premium butter.
- Do not grease your cookie pans, which can make your cookies spread more. Use parchment paper or silicone baking mats instead.
- Bake on lighter colored baking pans as the strawberry sugar cookies will bake more gently, which equals a softer cookie {these USA Pans are my favorite}.
- Roll the cookies in the strawberry sugar, then use your hands to roll into round ball. I like to then roll the cookies a second time in the strawberry sugar before setting on the baking pan.
- Don't over bake the cookies. In my opinion, this is the number one reason home baker's cookies don't come out like bakery cookies. This strawberry sugar cookies recipe never took longer than 11 minutes to bake in my oven. To keep the cookies soft and chewy we want the centers slightly underdone. They will continue cooking as they cool and the centers will firm up.
- "Scoot" the cookies when they come out of the oven with a large round cookie cutter or glass if you want perfectly round cookies.
🫙 how to store
Strawberry sugar cookies can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for 3-4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Remember to snap a picture and tag me on Instagram if you make these Soft Strawberry Sugar Cookies. It warms my heart to see you bring these recipes to life! Thank you for being here and happy baking!
more recipes using strawberries
If you make this recipe {or any recipe!} from two sugar bugs please come back and leave a review and a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star rating. I read every comment, and I LOVE hearing from you!
📖 recipe
Soft Strawberry Sugar Cookies
recipe created and tested by:
I highly recommend using weight (metric) measurements when available for more accuracy and the best results.
Please note
When using 2x or 3x ingredients, the grams DO NOT adjust, you will have to manually do that.
Ingredients
- freeze dried strawberries* chopped (approx. 1 cup/24g)
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar 300g
- 1 cup unsalted butter melted (226g)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 large egg yolks
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 ⅓ cups all-purpose flour 292g
- ¼ cup granulated sugar for rolling (50g)
- 8 g freeze dried strawberries crushed, for rolling
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Chop the freeze dried strawberries (approx. 1 cup/24g) into small bite size pieces, set aside.
- In a medium bowl, add the granulated sugar (1 ½ cups/300g), the melted butter (1 cup/226g) and kosher salt and stir until well combined. Now stir in the egg yolks (2 large), vanilla (2 teaspoons), making sure everything is very well combined.
- Next add the baking powder (½ teaspoon) and mix to combine. Finally stir in the flour (2 ⅓ cups/292g) until a few streaks of flour remain and then mix in the chopped freeze dried strawberries until just combined.
- In a small bowl mix the ¼ cup granulated sugar (50g) and crushed freeze dried strawberries (8g). You can use a food processor or just crush the berries with the back of a spoon pressed against the bowl.
- Take roughly 2 tablespoons of dough (I use a 30 scoop) and roll it into a ball, then roll in granulated sugar strawberry mixture, roll in your hands again and roll a second time in the sugar mixture. Place on the prepared baking pans, spacing 2 inches apart. Then lightly flatten each cookie with a flat bottomed cup. (The dough can be quite soft. If you are having trouble working with it, let it rest 2-3 minutes and it should be easier to work with).
- Bake for 9-12 minutes, the edges will be set and the centers may still look a little soft.
- Cookies can cool completely on the baking sheet or can be moved to a wire cooling rack after 5 minutes.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutrition information is based on third-party calculations, is an estimate only and may not be entirely accurate. Actual nutritional values will vary based on brands used and portion sizes.
Diane says
The cookies were a big hit. I made them for our neighborhood 4th of July party and several people asked for the recipe.
Jenny says
I took the cookies to a party and everyone loved them! They were soft and flavorful and really easy to make.
Tasia says
Hi Jenny, thank you for coming to leave a review. I am so happy to hear you loved the cookies!