Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies are made with cream cheese and dehydrated strawberries for a soft and sweet cookie version of a strawberry cheesecake. This recipe is simple, the dough does not require refrigerating, and the cookies can be stored on the counter for up to 5 days.
Using dehydrated strawberries gives you all the intense flavor of strawberries without the extra water content that comes with fresh strawberries, which will impact the texture of the cookie and complicate making the dough.
Using cream cheese in these cookies creates a rich cheesecake-like cookie. If you want more than a cookie's worth of cheesecake, try this Cheesecake without a Springform Pan or this Loaf Pan Basque Cheesecake.
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🌟 Why You'll Love This Recipe
Made with Real Strawberries: These cookies are made with real dehydrated strawberries. This means you’re getting the taste real of strawberries, rather than imitation flavors like in cake mix.
Minimal Effort: These cookies are made by incorporating cream cheese into the dough for a cheesecake-like cookie without any extra effort. No shaping cookies around a second cheesecake filling and no chilling or refrigerating. Just mix all the ingredients in one bowl and you’re done.
🛒 Buying Dehydrated Strawberries
Dehydrated strawberries and other berries and fruit are becoming easier and easier to find. They are readily available at Trader Joe's. One 1.2oz bag at Trader Joe's amounts to 1½ cups, perfect for the cookie dough. Buy a second bag if you’d like to use extra strawberries to decorate with. Target also has dehydrated strawberries at a reasonable price.
You can also find dehydrated strawberries at Whole Foods or a typical grocery store, but they tend to be significantly more expensive than at Target or Trader Joe's.
✏️ Ingredients:
Below are the ingredients needed to make Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies.
- Cream Cheese: Use full-fat cream cheese bars (not whipped).
- Butter: I use salted butter, softened. You can soften the butter by taking it out early to soften on the counter or you can microwave at 20% power for 30 seconds at a time until softened.
- Granulated Sugar: There is quite a bit of sugar in this recipe. I’ve tried making it with less sugar but it affects the consistency of the cookie. These cookies use only granulated sugar, rather than brown sugar which allows the cookies to stay a nice bright pink when adding the dehydrated strawberries.
- Salt: The salt balances the sweetness and brings out the flavor of the butter and the strawberries.
- Baking powder: To help the cookies rise.
- Vanilla Extract: Use real vanilla extract which enhances the flavor of the cookies, particularly the strawberry. If you bake somewhat regularly consider buying a large bottle of vanilla extract from Costco.
- Egg Yolk: Adds richness. Leaving the egg white out prevents the cookies from being too poofy.
- Dehydrated Strawberries: Also sometimes called freeze-dried strawberries. Using real dehydrated strawberries adds strawberries to the cookies without impacting the consistency of the cookies (which would happen with fresh strawberries). It also makes it easier to mix the dough.
- Flour: Use all-purpose unbleached flour.
To learn more about these cookie ingredients, see my Guide to Cookie Ingredients.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
Dehydrated Strawberries: You can try different variations of these cookies by substituting dehydrated strawberries for the following:
- Dehydrated Blueberries
- Dehydrated Mixed Berries
Vanilla Extract: If you don't have real vanilla extract and you do not want the added expense, leave this ingredient out.
📝 How to Make Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies
Below are the step-by-step photos and instructions for how to make Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies.
Note: The recipe card with instructions, ingredient list, and quantities is included further below these step-by-step photos.
Step 1. Preheat the oven to 325℉. Add the softened cream cheese, softened butter, and granulated sugar to a large mixing bowl. Using a hand-held or stand mixer beat to combine, or this can also be done by hand.
Expert Tip: If you have not softened your cream cheese and butter ahead of time, add it to the large mixing bowl that you plan to use and microwave at 20% power for 30 seconds at a time, flipping the butter over each time until softened. The amount of time that it will take will depend on your microwave and the size of your bowl.
Step 2. Add the salt, baking powder, vanilla extract, and egg yolk and mix to combine.
Step 3. Add dehydrated strawberries to a blender and blend until it forms a fine powder.
Step 4. Add the dehydrated strawberry powder to the bowl and mix to combine.
Step 5. Add the flour and combine.
Step 6. Shape the cookies into balls using two tablespoons of dough and flatten slightly.
To decorate the cookies, which is optional, there are two options using dehydrated strawberry powder. The first option is to make additional strawberry powder by blending ½ cup of additional dehydrated strawberries. Dip the raw cookies in the strawberry powder. Then bake the cookies. The second option is to decorate the cookies using the dehydrated strawberry powder after baking. See Step 8 below for details.
Expert Tip: The raw strawberry cheesecake cookie dough is a medium shade of pink before baking. After baking the color fades slightly. Decorating the cookies with extra strawberry powder compensates by making the tops of the cookies bright pink.
Step 7. Bake the cookies at 325℉ for 9-10 minutes. The photos above are before (left) and after (right) baking the cookies.
Expert Tip: The cookies are baked at 325℉ which is slightly lower than typical for cookies. This is to prevent the cookies from browning. It keeps them soft while ensuring they are cooked through.
Step 8. To decorate the cookies after baking, dip the still-warm, but not hot, cookies in the dehydrated strawberry powder. Or use your fingers to sprinkle some on top.
Expert Tip Decorating the cookies:
- Before Baking: deeper red color on top
- After Baking: lighter bright pink color on top
❄️ How to Store and Freeze Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies
To Store: Because these cookies are made with simple ingredients (flour, butter, granulated sugar, cream cheese) and dehydrated strawberries, they last on the counter for quite a while. Wrap the strawberry cheesecake cookies in plastic or put them in a plastic baggie and they can be stored on the counter for 5 days.
To Freeze: To freeze these cookies, shape them into balls, then flatten the cookies slightly. Place in a freezer bag and freeze for up to three months. They can also be frozen after baking, but I'd recommend freezing before baking if possible.
You May Also Love These Cookie Recipes:
Strawberry Shortbread Cookies: Dense buttery cookies also made with dehydrated strawberries.
Lemon Curd Cookies: Sweet and gooey lemon sugar cookies filled with a tart lemon curd.
Bakery Style White Chocolate Chip Macadamia Nut Cookies: Thick chewy cookies filled with white chocolate chips and chopped macadamia nuts.
If you tried these Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. I'd love to hear from you!
Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies
Ingredients
- 4 oz cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup butter, softened
- 1½ cups granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1½ cups freeze dried strawberries plus extra for decorating
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325℉.
- In a large bowl beat together the cream cheese, butter and sugar. Add the salt, baking powder, and vanilla and beat to combine. Add the egg yolk and combine.
- Blend the freeze dried strawberries in a blender, about 10 seconds. Add to the bowl and combine. Add the flour and combine.
- Shape each cookie using 2 tablespoon of dough into a round ball and flatten slightly. **See details below about optional cookie decorating prior to baking.
- Bake for 9-10 minutes. Remove the cookies before they start to brown.
Decorating the Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies
- To decorate the cookies (optional), puree an additional ½ cup of freeze dried strawberries in a blender. Scrape into a small bowl.
- Prior to Baking:Press each flattened ball of cookie dough into the freeze dried strawberries. Then bake. This results in a darker pink/red color on top of the cookies.
- After Baking: Dip the still warm cookies in the freeze dried strawberries after baking, or sprinkle on top. This results in a light pink color on top of the cookies.
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