Scrumptious Strawberry Cream Cheese Cookies

May 2, 2023

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • ¾ cup granulated sugar
  • ¼ cup brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 teaspoon McNess Champion Madagascar Vanilla Compound
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 2¾ cup all-purpose flour
  • ½-⅔ cup fresh strawberries, diced small

Cream Cheese Filling

  • 8 oz. cup cream cheese
  • 1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
  2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a small bowl, use a whisk or mixer to mix the cream cheese with powdered sugar until smooth and combined.
  3. Place 10-12 rounded teaspoons of cream cheese on the baking sheet. Freeze for at least one hour, or until almost frozen.
  4. When the cream cheese is frozen almost solid, line two large baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Whisk together flour, salt, and baking soda then set aside.
  5. In the bowl of a handheld mixer or stand mixer, beat the butter and sugars together until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). Mix in the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract.
  6. Add in the flour, salt, and baking soda, and mix until just combined.
  7. Dice the strawberries and gently fold them in. Don’t mix them in too hard or they will disinigrate and the color will bleed into the dough.
  8. Scoop 12 rounded tablespoons of dough onto each baking sheet. They should be medium sized. Press the back of a teaspoon slightly into the top of half the balls of dough to create an indentation.
  9. Remove the cream cheese filling from the freezer and place one into each of the cookies. Take a second ball of dough and place it over the cream cheese, pinching the sides to seal the cream cheese inside, but making sure to not squish the cream cheese into the cookie dough. The dough may start to get sticky and a bit crumbly, and a bit harder to work with because of the strawberries. Wipe your hands clean before moving on to the next cookie. You should have tall balls of dough.
  10. Refrigerate the prepared cookie dough balls and repeat with the second cookie sheet and remaining dough.
  11. Bake the cookies in the preheated oven one sheet at a time for 10-13 minutes, or until the edges are slightly golden brown and the tops are set. Remove from the oven and leave them on the baking sheet for 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
  12. SERVE & ENJOY!