Strawberry Shortcake Cookies

Course: Simple Desserts

Cuisine: American

Diet: Vegetarian

Prep Time: 20

Cook Time: 30

Total Time: 50

Servings: cookies

Calories: 243kcal

Shared over 3,000 times, these strawberry shortcake cookies are soft, chewy, bursting with fresh strawberry flavor, and ready in under an hour.

In a small bowl, combine chopped strawberries, lemon juice, and sugar. Stir and let soak for 10 minutes. Strain off excess liquid but do not press the strawberries dry — some natural juice helps with both flavor and moisture.
Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
In a separate large bowl, cream butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla; mix until combined.
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, mixing until a soft dough forms.
Fold strawberries gently and minimally to avoid releasing extra moisture into the dough.

Using a 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop, portion dough into balls and place on the prepared baking sheet, 2 inches apart.
Bake for 18–20 minutes but oven temperatures vary, so begin checking at 15 minutes. The bottoms should be golden while the tops remain soft.
Let cool on the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.

Use ripe, sweet strawberries; out-of-season berries may be less flavorful. Add 1–2 tsp extra sugar to the strawberry mixture if using winter berries.
Butter should be fully softened, not melted. If mixing by hand, beat butter and sugars with a spoon until fluffy. Poorly creamed butter leads to dense, drier cookies.
Check for doneness by looking at the cookie bottoms—they should be lightly browned even if the tops are soft.
Dough can be frozen before baking; bake from frozen, adding 2–3 minutes to bake time.

Want to add cream cheese filling?

Mix 4 oz cream cheese with 2 tablespoons powdered sugar. Scoop teaspoon-sized dollops onto a parchment-lined plate and freeze for 10–15 minutes.
To fill: flatten a dough ball, place a frozen filling in the center, and wrap the dough around it. Chill filled cookies for 5 minutes before baking.

Note: Nutrition info reflects the plain cookie (no filling).