Description
These fresh strawberry cheesecake cookies are studded with fresh strawberries and white chocolate in a light yet cakey cream cheese cookie dough base. They are not too sweet and make the perfect light and fresh Summer dessert recipe.
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh strawberries, chopped into little pieces
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour + 3 - 4 extra tablespoons for coating the strawberries
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 8oz plain cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 2 eggs, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- zest from 1 lemon, about 1 heaping tablespoon
- 8oz chopped white chocolate, or white chocolate chips
Instructions
- Start by lining two large rimmed cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Combine the chopped strawberries with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir to combine.
- Using a stand mixer, or a large bowl and an electric mixer, beat together the cream cheese, butter, and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 – 4 minutes. Add the vanilla and then the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add remaining lemon juice, and lemon zest.
- Slowly add the flour mixture to the cream cheese mixture in 3 parts. Combining well after each addition. Stir in the white chocolate.
- Drain and dry the strawberries as best you can, then toss them with 3 tablespoons of flour – this will prevent the cookies from turning pink and keep the strawberries floating in the batter rather than sinking to the bottom of your cookies. If the strawberries are still too wet, add 1 tablespoon of flour at a time until they are coated and not wet.
- Gently fold the strawberries into the cookie dough. Do not overmix.
- Drop rounded tablespoons of batter onto ONE of the prepared cookie sheets. Refrigerate the dough for 30 – 60 minutes to allow dough to firmly set.
- When you’re ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350F degrees.
- Using the other prepared pan, work in batches of 12. Evenly space out the cookie dough balls on your cookie sheet and bake for 15 – 18 minutes. The edges should be golden brown, but not burned. Keep the remaining dough in the fridge until you’re ready to bake.
- Allow the strawberry cheesecake cookies to cool for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Repeat steps 10 + 11 until you’ve baked all your strawberry cheesecake cookies.
- Serve the cookies the same day. Do not store in the refrigerator.
Notes
Make sure that your cream cheese, butter, and eggs are all room temperature prior to starting, this will help them combine fully into the batter.
Don’t skip draining the strawberries and coating them in flour. You don’t want to add that extra moisture to the dough…plus your cookies will be pink! When working with fruit in any kind of dough or batter, tossing it with a little flour helps suspend the fruit in the dough and will help prevent it from sinking to the bottom.
Keep the extra dough refrigerated between batches. You want to bake the strawberry cheesecake cookies from cold, so they don’t spread too much while baking.
I do not recommend refrigerating strawberry cheesecake cookies. Because they are cakier, refrigerating them will make them stiff and crumbly. Generally, cookies made with cream cheese do not need to be refrigerated.
I recommend fresh strawberries, but to use frozen strawberries, make sure you thaw them completely and drain off as much liquid as possible before dicing. Tossing them with the lemon juice will help pull out more moisture as well. Previously frozen strawberries might not keep their shape as well either.
I don’t recommend using freeze dried strawberries in this recipe. They will make your cookies pink and won’t yield the same bright fresh strawberry flavor.
- Prep Time: 1 Hour
- Cook Time: 45 Minutes
- Category: Desserts
- Method: Baking
Keywords: Strawberry Cheesecake, Cookies, Strawberry Shortcake, White Chocolate, Fresh Strawberries, Cream Cheese, Recipe