These iced strawberry sugar cookies feature a burst of strawberry flavor in both the cookie dough AND icing. The rich flavor and pretty pink color come courtesy of freeze dried strawberries which allows us to add more flavor without compromising the deliciously soft and chewy texture of the cookie.
where to find freeze dried strawberries
Using freeze dried strawberry powder in both the dough and icing allows us to get a strong concentration of flavor without watering down any of the cookie components.
You can either purchase the whole freeze dried strawberries and grind them into a fine powder in a food processor or just buy a bag of powder. Most of the bags I've been able to find are the larger strawberry pieces, so I always just buy that and grind my own.
I know Amazon and Whole Foods each sell freeze dried strawberries, but I'm sure you could find them in other grocery stores. If you live near a Trader Joe's, I've heard they also have them.
Keep an eye out for the grams listed on the package so you know how many bags to purchase. This recipe needs a little under 40 grams of freeze dried strawberries, so I usually just buy 2 bags to have some extra on hand.
how to make iced strawberry sugar cookies
1. Grind freeze dried strawberries into a fine powder. You can skip this step if you can get your hands on pre-ground powder.
2. Whisk together dry ingredients with freeze dried strawberry powder and set aside. It's best to do this as soon as you finish grinding up the strawberries because, if there's any moisture, it'll cause the powder to start to clump. Mixing it into the flour right away helps keep it dry and easy to work with!
3. Cream together butter, sugar, and vanilla.
4. Whisk in egg and egg yolk until combined.
5. Add in all your dry ingredients. Mix until you have a thick cookie dough and you no longer see any streaks of flour.
6. Scoop and chill. The WORST part: waiting! This cookie dough needs about 30 to 60 minutes in the fridge before baking to give them perfectly thick and chewy centers. You can put them super close together because they're not being baked, just don't let them touch or they may not chill evenly.
7. Bake and cool. Transfer batches of the chilled cookie dough onto a baking sheet and bake until spread out and puffed in the centers. Cool completely to room temperature before icing. You'll need to bake these in batches, so keep any cookie dough you're not working with in the fridge. If you want to use the same baking sheet for the next batch, make sure to let it cool completely before adding the next round of cookies.
8. Make the icing: Mix together icing ingredients until smooth and combined.
9. Decoration! Dip each cooled cookie, face first, into the icing and allow any excess to drip off. Top with some more freeze dried strawberries if desired before enjoying!
the best pan for baking cookies
Cookies are a delicate treat, and the baking pan you use can actually impact the final appearance, texture, and rise of your cookies! Cookies are best baked on a light colored aluminum baking sheet (like these 2 baking sheets).
Aluminum baking sheets will heat at the perfect rate (when compared to something like glass or ceramic, which takes longer to heat through). This ensures perfectly browned bottom and edges with a moist cookie center.
Light colored aluminum is best because it doesn't heat as rapidly as dark aluminum - which has a tendency to burn the bottoms before the cookies can fully cook through. It's also why it's important to buy a sturdy baking sheet that doesn't have any bend to it (because the bendy baking sheet will be much thinner and (again) more prone to burning your food).
more tips
- measuring flour: Flour is one of the easiest ingredients to accidentally mismeasure, so it's always best to use a kitchen scale to measure. If you don't own one and prefer to use cups, the best way to measure flour is by lightly fluffing the flour in the bag and then spooning it into your measuring cup. Never scoop the cup directly into the flour, otherwise it can cause extra weight to pack in and dry out the cookies!
- room temperature: It's important to allow all of the refrigerated ingredients in this recipe to come up to room temperature so they combine more smoothly and easily. It typically takes about 30 to 60 minutes on the counter for most ingredients to warm to perfection (depending on the season and how warm your home is).
- mixing: Take care not to overmix the dough for perfectly tender cookies!
- chilling: this cookie dough needs to be chilled before baking for 2 main reasons: 1) it helps prevent overspreading, and 2) it allows the wet ingredients to absorb the flour. This chill gives us a perfectly thick cookie with those classic crisp edges and chewy center!
- baking: It's important to give the cookies enough room to breathe on the baking sheet so the warm oven air can properly circulate. Don't overcrowd the pan otherwise the cookies can spread into each other and flatten out. It's also best to only bake 1 sheet of cookies at a time, again, for the best air circulation.
iced strawberry sugar cookie storage
Since there's cream cheese in the icing, these cookies should be stored in the fridge until ready to serve. The cookies will harden slightly once they're chilled, so if you like a softer and chewier cookie, you can set them out at room temperature for about 30 minutes beforehand to allow them to soften before enjoying.
The plain cookies (without any icing) can be stored at room temperature. Plain cookies will keep for about 3 days at room temperature while the iced strawberry sugar cookies will keep for about 4 days in the fridge.
check out these other recipes!
• Giant Strawberry Pop Tart
• Gooey Strawberry Cheesecake Butter Cake
• Lemon Poppy Seed Cupcakes
• Gooey Lemon Cookie Bars
Lastly, if you made this or any of my recipes, be sure to leave a comment and review below! I love hearing your thoughts! Also tag me on Instagram @eatsdelightfulblog so I can see what you're making.
Print
Iced Strawberry Sugar Cookies
- Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes
- Yield: 16 cookies
Description
These iced strawberry sugar cookies feature a burst of strawberry flavor in both the cookie dough AND icing. The rich flavor and pretty pink color come courtesy of freeze dried strawberries which allows us to add more flavor without compromising the deliciously soft and chewy texture of the cookie.
Ingredients
For the strawberry sugar cookies:
- 2 & ¼ cups (270g) all-purpose flour, spoon and leveled
- ½ cup (30g) freeze dried strawberry powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (225g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 & ¼ cups (250g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
For the strawberry cream cheese icing:
- 2 ounces (60g) block cream cheese
- ½ cup (65g) powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons freeze dried strawberry powder
- 1 to 2 tablespoons milk, or more as needed
Instructions
Make the strawberry sugar cookies:
- In a medium sized bowl, combine flour, freeze dried strawberry powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk to combine and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine butter, sugar, and vanilla. Use an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a wooden spoon by hand to cream together until light and fluffy. This will take about 1 minute on medium speed with a mixer or 1 to 2 minutes by hand.
- Add your egg and egg yolk to the butter mixture. Whisk until combined.
- Add the dry ingredients in and mix together until you have a streak free cookie dough.
- Line a small baking sheet or wooden board with parchment paper.
- Use a large cookie scoop to portion the dough into about 16 balls of dough and place onto your parchment lined tray. They're not going to be baked yet, so it's ok if they're close together, just make sure they're not touching. Chill the dough balls for 30 minutes or until firm to the touch.
- Preheat your oven to 350F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Arrange the chilled cookie dough balls onto your parchment lined baking sheets, leaving at least 3 inches of space between each cookie. Keep any cookies you're not currently baking in the fridge until ready to use.
- Bake the cookies (one baking sheet at a time) in the center of your preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until slightly spread out and lightly golden brown along the edges.
- Cool the cookies for 5 minutes on the baking sheet then transfer to a wire rack and set aside to cool completely before icing. Continue baking the cookies in batches until all the dough is finished. If you want to use the same baking sheet for the next batch, make sure to let it cool completely before adding the next round of cookies.
Make the strawberry cream cheese icing:
- In a medium bowl, combine strawberry cream cheese icing ingredients. Whisk together until smooth and combined. If the icing is too thick, thin it out with a splash of milk. If it's too thin, mix in some more powdered sugar.
- Dip the face of each cookie in the icing and shake off any excess. Serve as is or top with an extra sprinkling of ground up freeze dried strawberries.
Notes
Storage: Since there's cream cheese in the icing, the iced cookies should be stored in the fridge until ready to serve. They'll keep for about 4 days in the fridge. The cookies will firm up slightly once chilled, so for a softer and chewier cookie, set them out at room temperature for about 30 minutes to allow them to soften before serving.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Bake Time: 10 minutes
Enjoy!
Lauren Barton says
I made these tonight and they were delicious and a huge hit! Thank you. ♥️☺️