Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies
These strawberry cheesecake cookies are soft, sweet and so delicious! The cream cheese filling tastes exactly like creamy cheesecake. Make these any time of the year for the best little dessert. These cookies are over the top delicious and great for holidays and birthdays!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- These strawberry cheesecake cookies are gooey, creamy and delicious!
- The cream cheese filling is so smooth and creamy.
- They are bright and fresh.
- Great for any season, any occasion and any holiday.
- The fresh strawberries add a pop of color and flavor.
- They are very similar to these Raspberry Cheesecake Cookies and these Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies!
- They are way better than the similar Subway cookies!
- This recipe can be made gluten free or not.
- Use gluten free flour for gluten free cookies.
- Check out these Raspberry White Chocolate Cookies for another fun fruit filled cookie!
Ingredients & Substitutions
These are the main ingredients and substitutions for strawberry cheesecake cookies. See recipe card below for full ingredients list and instructions for strawberry cheesecake cookies.
Regular cream cheese or light cream cheese can both be used. I have not tried this recipe with dairy free cream cheese, but I have never had trouble using dairy free cream cheese in the past.
The butter must be cold. Slightly softened butter will yield cookies that spread while baking. Use butter straight from your fridge. The stand mixer will do the work to beat it into the sugars.
Brown sugar creates perfectly sweet cookies without being gritty. Coconut sugar or Keto sugar can be used, but may yield slightly more gritty and grainy cookies.
Applesauce is a great egg substitute if and only if absolutely necessary. For each egg, replace with 1/4 cup applesauce. Since these cookies are made with 2 eggs, use 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce. See these Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookies for more tips about egg free baking.
Both gluten free 1 to 1 flour and all purpose flour will work. I do not suggest using any other flours.
Use fresh ripe strawberries for best results. I do not recommend using frozen strawberries. Even thawed frozen strawberries contain too much liquid and will yield very runny strawberry cheesecake cookies. For frozen berries, try these Strawberry Cookies.
For the pumpkin version, make these Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookies!
Cream Cheese Filling
The cream cheese filling is made from cream cheese and powdered sugar. It is smooth, creamy and sweet.
Use either regular cream cheese or light cream cheese.
Beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar until completely mixed. Beat until no clumps of cream cheese remain.
The mixture will be a little sticky so use a spoon to scoop balls of mixture onto parchment lined pan.
Allow the balls to freeze for at least 30 minutes. This will help firm them up and they will become easier to work with.
For another fun idea, check out these Stuffed Cookies!
Taste & Texture
These strawberry cheesecake cookies taste like strawberry shortcake! The cream cheese filling tastes like vanilla cheesecake. The strawberries add a pop of fresh fruit flavor.
For a chocolate chip version, check out these Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Cookies.
These cookies are soft and thick. They are not dry! These cookies are also buttery.
How to Make
Step 1
First, make the cream cheese filling. In a stand mixer, beat softened cream cheese and powdered sugar until creamy.
Step 2
Scoop out 1 teaspoon sized balls of cream cheese mixture. Place on parchment lined baking pan. Repeat for all cream cheese mixture. Place pan in freezer while making the cookie dough.
Step 3
To make the cookie dough, add cold butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar to a clean stand mixer. Beat for 2 to 3 minutes or until no clumps of butter remain.
Step 4
Add in eggs. Stir until combined.
Step 5
Add in remaining ingredients except strawberries. Stir until a thick cookie dough is formed.
Step 6
Carefully fold in diced strawberries. Place bowl of cookie dough in the fridge for 30 minutes to firm up.
Step 7
After 30 minutes, remove dough from fridge. Remove cream cheese balls from freezer. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line baking pan with parchment paper.
Step 8
Use spoon to scoop large balls of cookie dough. Place on lined baking pan. Use thumb or back of spoon to press an indent in the center of cookie dough. Place a ball of cream cheese mixture into indent.
Step 9
Form the dough into a ball around the cream cheese. Be sure it is completely sealed inside.
Step 10
Continue for all cookie dough and cream cheese balls. Space at least 3 inches apart on baking pan.
Step 11
Bake strawberry cheesecake cookies for 11 to 12 minutes or until cookies are just set in the middle.
Step 12
Finally, remove strawberry cheesecake cookies from oven. Allow strawberry cheesecake cookies to cool on pan for 10 minutes before carefully transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Expert Tips & Tricks
Use softened cream cheese for best results. It creams easily, yielding no clumps of cream cheese in the filling.
Use a spoon to scoop balls of cream cheese mixture onto lined pan. Freeze for at least 30 minutes.
Cold butter is vital. Softened butter and especially melted butter will yield cookies that spread too much while baking.
Use fresh ripe strawberries for the best flavor and texture.
When forming the stuffed cookies, fully enclose cream cheese balls in the cookie dough.
Bake until strawberry cheesecake cookies are just set in the middle. These are meant to be slightly gooey!
How to Serve & Store
Serve strawberry cheesecake cookies once they are cool enough to handle. They are delicious both warm and chilled. They are great with a tall glass of milk!
These are great served with ice cream. For a delicious dessert, try them with chocolate ice cream. The chocolate strawberry combination is so tasty. Try these Strawberry Brownies too!
Since they contain cream cheese, store cookies in the fridge for up to 4 days.
These cookies also freeze well! Freeze for up to 1 month.
They can be eaten pretty frozen solid. Or, let them thaw.
Frequently Asked Questions
Regular or light cream cheese are both great options.
Yes, definitely! Make these cookies as written in the recipe and omit the cream cheese filling. It is still important to chill the dough before baking.
No. Frozen strawberries contain so much liquid which would yield runny cookies.
Use gluten free flour to make sure they are gluten free.
Sure! Blueberries, raspberries and blackberries work well.
These cookies taste like a soft sugar cookie with chopped strawberries. The filling tastes like vanilla cheesecake. For a stronger strawberry flavor, try adding in freeze dried strawberries to the cookie dough.
You May Also Like
If you make this strawberry cheesecake cookies recipe, I would really appreciate a review! You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. I would love for you to follow along! For more ideas, check out these Dessert Recipes.
Get the Recipe: Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies
Ingredients
Cream Cheese Filling
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup powdered sugar
Cookies
- 1 cup cold butter
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar, tightly packed
- 2 eggs
- 3 ⅔ cups gluten free 1 to 1 flour, or all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup finely diced strawberries
- pinch sea salt, optional
Instructions
- First, make the cream cheese filling. In a stand mixer, beat softened cream cheese and powdered sugar until creamy.
- Scoop out 1 teaspoon sized balls of cream cheese mixture. Place on parchment lined baking pan. Repeat for all cream cheese mixture. Place pan in freezer while making the cookie dough.
- To make the cookie dough, add cold butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar to a clean stand mixer. Beat for 2 to 3 minutes or until no clumps of butter remain.
- Add in eggs. Stir until combined.
- Add in remaining ingredients except strawberries. Stir until a thick cookie dough is formed.
- Carefully fold in diced strawberries. Place bowl of cookie dough in the fridge for 30 minutes to firm up.
- After 30 minutes, remove dough from fridge. Remove cream cheese balls from freezer. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line baking pan with parchment paper.
- Use spoon to scoop large balls of cookie dough. Place on lined baking pan. Use thumb or back of spoon to press an indent in the center of cookie dough. Place a ball of cream cheese mixture into indent.
- Form the dough into a ball around the cream cheese. Be sure it is completely sealed inside.
- Continue for all cookie dough and cream cheese balls. Space at least 3 inches apart on baking pan.
- Bake for 11 to 12 minutes or until cookies are just set in the middle.
- Finally, remove from oven. Allow cookies to cool on pan for 10 minutes before carefully transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Notes
- Softened cream cheese is much easier to beat than cold cream cheese. Beat until no clumps of cream cheese remain.
- The balls of cream cheese mixture do not have to be perfectly round.
- This recipe needs very cold butter. Use butter straight from your fridge. Softened butter will yield runny, thin cookies that spread too much while baking.
- This recipe can be made with either gluten free 1 to 1 flour or all purpose flour.
- The cookie dough will seem thick. This is purposeful so that the cookie dough can securely hold the cream cheese filling.
- Bake until cookies seem just barely set in the middle. They will be soft when they first come out of the oven.
- Due to the cream cheese filling, store cookies in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- These cookies are large!
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100 Comments on “Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies”
Hi! do you have this in grams measurement? Thank you
Yes! Just above the “Print Recipe” button there is a Metric button. If you toggle that on, it will be in grams. Enjoy!
hi! some measurements are in ml T^T idunno what to do
These are really really good. I added about 2 minutes of time on my second and third cookie sheet, because the first tray to come out was much too gooey for my personal liking. I would absolutely make these again. Addison, if you ever make a cookbook, I’ll be first in line to purchase it!
Thank you so much, Crystal! That is very kind of you!
i have a question, is there a way that u can minimize the mess when trying to mix cold butter with sugar? ill be using a hand mixed since I don’t got the other one
I don’t know of a way to minimize the mess! Hope you enjoy the cookies.
Used regular flour and let the dough sit in the fridge overnight. Would definitely reccomend doing so for the strawberry flavor to set in. I really liked them and received positive comments from the group I made them for. My personal opinion would be is to let them cook a minute longer than reccomended. I took mine out of the oven based on instruction but the day after I made them and tasted one again, they seemed underdone, even stored in the fridge. If you like a soft cake cookie, this recipe is for you!
So glad everyone liked them, Sierra! Thank you for the feedback and kind words!
These would’ve been perfect if the flour measurement was less, the whole cookie taste just like plain flour I even added some extra butter and an extra tea spoon of vanilla to the dough and it made no difference, use less flour if your going to make these and more vanilla!
I have mixed feelings about this one. Luckily, the people I brought them to said they were good. I feel like it’s missing something in the flavor. It may need more strawberry but not sure where/how to incorporate it. I also doubled the recipe and want to warn you all that the amount of cold butter changed the shape of my kitchen aid whisk attachment… 🙂
Hi Alysia! You could add some freeze dried strawberries to the cookie dough for a more intense flavor. Hope this helps!
I’m planning on doing this recipe, but I have a question. The butter, salted or unsalted?
Either works! If you use salted, you may want to omit the pinch of sea salt in the recipe.
I used this recipe but made the cookies smaller as I make them for a group who prefers smaller cookies.
I added a white chocolate drizzle. I think that adds the needed finish to both appearance and taste.
I received good feedback. Negative was that the cookies were too cakey. Next time I will reduce the flour a little.
Very tasty cookies! Just a heads up to people trying the recipe, bake the cookies for 18 minutes at 180°C.
Wow these are delish. They weren’t as hard to make as I thought. Thanks for the recipe. yum.
You are so welcome! Thank you for the kind words!