Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies
If you are taking dessert to a Fourth of July barbecue, might I suggest strawberry cheesecake cookies in individual cookie boxes? These cookies are so delicious that the tiny boxes are completely unnecessary — but that has never stopped me.
I like to set some out on a platter for the party, and tuck a few extras into little boxes so that guests can take one home. A treat for the road, or even breakfast the next morning, because vacation rules apply on holidays. Who could resist a cookie in a tiny box tied up with twine?
Here is your shopping list of ingredients:
- Cream cheese
- Powdered sugar
- Vanilla
- Butter
- Eggs
- Granulated sugar
- Light brown sugar
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda, baking powder, and salt
- Freeze-dried strawberries
- White chocolate bar, chopped, or white chocolate chips
What are freeze-dried strawberries?
Freeze-dried strawberries are fresh strawberries with almost all the moisture removed, which concentrates their flavor into an intense, crispy little bite. For baking, they are a total game-changer. You can crush them into a fine powder for a smooth, even flavor throughout, or pulse them and leave a little texture. Either way, you get real strawberry flavor without any added moisture to mess with your dough. You can find them at most grocery stores, Trader Joe’s, or on Amazon.
How to make these yummy strawberry cheesecake cookies
- First, prepare the cheesecake filling and freeze it.
- Pulse the freeze-dried strawberries just a couple of times; you don’t want them to become dust, so only pulse a couple of times.
- Cream the butter and sugars until fluffy, then add eggs and vanilla.
- Add the dry ingredients and mix to combine, then mix in the strawberries and white chocolate by hand.
- Using a large cookie scoop, scoop balls and then insert a frozen bit of the cream cheese filling, and cover it with the dough.
- Place the stuffed dough balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 12-14 minutes.
Package individual cookies in tiny boxes
There is just something special about a cookie in a box. Not a box of cookies, but one cookie in a box! I’m using kraft small boxes with a window, cutting parchment squares to line the boxes, and tying them up with twine. It takes a few minutes to assemble, so I usually set aside some time while listening to a podcast — the kind of quiet, satisfying task that doesn’t feel like work at all. Although a few cookies may not make it into boxes.
Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies
These cookies are so delicious with a slight tang from the freeze-dried strawberries.
- Prep Time: 35 minutes
- Cook Time: 14 minutes
- Total Time: 49 minutes
- Yield: 20–24 1x
Ingredients
For the cheesecake filling:
- 1 package cream cheese (full size)
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
For the cookie dough:
- 1 cup butter at room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 package (about 1-ounce size) freeze-dried strawberries
- 1 cup white chocolate chips or 1 4-ounce white chocolate bar, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, cream the cream cheese (cold, not room temperature) with the powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth.
- Scoop teaspoon-sized dollops onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze, while you prepare the cookie dough.
- First, place the entire packet of freeze-dried strawberries into the bowl of a food processor and pulse a few times. You don’t want strawberry dust, so make sure to pulse only a few times.
- In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugars until creamy. Then add the eggs and vanilla and mix to combine.
- Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and mix just until combined.
- Mix in the strawberries and white chocolate by hand.
- Using a large cookie scoop, make cookie dough balls, then insert a frozen cheesecake filling and rework the cookie dough ball, covering it completely. Sometimes you will need to add a little more cookie dough to ensure the cheesecake filling is well surrounded by the cookie dough.
- Place the stuffed cookie dough balls on parchment-lined baking sheets spaced 2″ apart. Bake for 12-14 minutes. The cookies are pale in color. Remove from the oven and check the bottoms to make sure they are slightly golden in color. Let cool on baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring the cookies to a cooling rack.
- When completely cool, place in parchment-lined boxes.
You may also like these posts:
How I Decorate the Brownies for the Fourth of July
A Simple Summer Dessert: Sugared Basil Strawberries with a Creme Anglaise
