These strawberry cheesecake cookies are soft, buttery, and filled with real strawberry pieces in every bite. They are naturally flavored and stuffed with a delicious cream cheese filling!
I never knew I could love a cookie as much as I love these strawberry cheesecake cookies (and I LOVE cookies, so that’s saying something). Up until now my favorite cookie was a tie between peanut butter cookies or cookie butter cookies. But these strawberry cream cheese cookies take the cake.
They’re easy to make, so buttery, have slightly crispy edges, and are so soft and pillowy. The flavor from the tiny chunks of strawberry throughout the batter is just amazing, and the cream cheese filling in the middle stays gooey while providing a tang in every bite. They are truly summer in cookie form!
What kind of cream cheese should I use?
This recipe can be made with regular dairy ingredients if you aren’t dairy free. If using regular cream cheese, the full fat kind is best and you should increase icing sugar to ⅓ cup.
Regular (not vegan) cream cheese is firmer than vegan cream cheese alternatives, so it requires more icing sugar to achieve a softer filling.
If using dairy free/vegan cream cheese, be aware that every cream cheese brand is different. Some are made with a coconut base (which I prefer), others use tofu as a base. The time it takes to freeze the filling will vary based on the kind of cream cheese used.
Can I skip the filling?
Absolutely! You can totally skip the cheesecake part of these cookies and just make the most delicious strawberry butter cookies you’ve ever tasted.
Can I use frozen strawberries?
Yes but it’s not recommended. I tested these cookies many times with frozen strawberries and they work but you have to move really quickly because frozen strawberries hold water, that releases into the cookie dough as they thaw, making the cookie dough sticky and harder to work with. The color can sometimes bleed into the dough with frozen strawberries.
If you only have frozen strawberries, you can still use them. Be sure to dice them up before making the dough, then just work really quickly to assemble the cookies.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup strawberry jam
1/2 cup cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C).
In a mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg and vanilla.
In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add to the butter mixture, mixing until well combined.
Roll dough into 1-inch balls, and place on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
Using the back of a spoon, make a small well in the center of each ball and fill with a teaspoon of strawberry jam.
In a small bowl, mix the cream cheese until smooth and pipe or spoon a dollop on top of the jam.
Sprinkle graham cracker crumbs over the cookies.
Bake for 14-16 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden.
Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
