These strawberry shortcake cookie bars combine a thick, soft sugar cookie with strawberry shortcake toppings and the result is absolutely HEAVENLY! The dough for the sugar cookie bars comes together in minutes with simple ingredients and requires zero chill time before baking into the ideal soft and chewy sugar cookie bars. Once cooled, they’re topped with cloud-like whipped cream cheese frosting and homemade strawberry sauce that lends the ideal tart strawberry flavor. If you love strawberry shortcake, these cookie bars will be your new obsession!
The Best Soft Sugar Cookie Bars
Adapted from my beloved sheet pan frosted sugar cookie bars recipe, these sugar cookie bars are baked in an 8-inch baking pan to yield thick, chewy sugar cookie bars that are completely irresistible. The only difference is that this version of the recipe omits the cornstarch to make the bars perfectly dense and fudgy, yet still so soft. I love that this recipe uses simple ingredients, comes together in minutes, doesn’t require any dough chilling, and bakes beautifully every time.
The keys to making these sugar cookie bars the ideal soft and chewy texture is 1) adding an extra egg yolk for supreme moisture, and 2) taking the bars out of the oven as soon as the edges are set and slightly golden. The bars will continue cooking in the pan as they cool, so slightly underbaking them in the oven is the best move.
Easy Homemade Strawberry Sauce
I originally created this recipe for my strawberry shortcake sheet cake and it’s since become a staple in my house for all sorts of things – pancakes, waffles, ice cream, and now these cookie bars! It’s the perfect amount of tart and sweet, bursting with fresh strawberry flavor, and beautifully thick without being jammy. Since it takes some cooling time to thicken, I do recommend making it a few hours ahead of time, or up to five days ahead if you want to space things out.
This strawberry sauce comes together with just five ingredients: fresh or frozen strawberries, lemon juice, a little sugar, and cornstarch dissolved in water (aka a cornstarch slurry) for thickening the sauce. To make it, you’ll hull and quarter the strawberries, then add most of them into a medium saucepan with the lemon juice and sugar (reserve about ⅓ of the strawberries for adding later).
The strawberries will release their juices while you bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat and stir occasionally for about 10 minutes. Then, you’ll add the cornstarch slurry and cook until the sauce thickens to the point where it coats the back of your spatula (1-2 minutes longer). Finally, fold in the reserved strawberries into the strawberry sauce. Since most of the cooked strawberries get mashed up in the simmering process, adding in some fresh ones guarantees bigger chunks.
Silky Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
I’ll be honest, I can’t stop making this whipped cream cheese frosting! I’ve been pairing it with my summer cakes like berries & cream sheet cake and strawberry shortcake sheet cake, and it was the first thing I thought of when I was dreaming up the frosting for these strawberry shortcake cookie bars. This is essentially a whipped cream frosting with cream cheese added, which helps stabilize the frosting and makes it thick, silky, and perfect for frosting the cookie bars. The flavor is incredible too – basically imagine a whipped cream frosting with subtle yet rich notes of cream cheese!
I love that this whipped cream cheese frosting comes together with just four ingredients in about five minutes. The only thing you’ll need to do as prep work is place the bowl of your stand mixer (or the large metal or glass bowl you’re making the frosting in) in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes so it’s cold when you get started. Then, you’ll whip the cold cream cheese until creamy, mix in the powdered sugar and vanilla, drizzle in the heavy whipping cream, and then beat it until stiff peaks form.
Note: it’s super important to use full-fat brick-style cream cheese in this recipe. Other kinds of cream cheese (low-fat or the spreadable kind in tubs) contain too much water and will ruin the consistency of the frosting. If you can’t find full-fat brick-style cream cheese, mascarpone cheese makes the best substitute for the cream cheese in this recipe or you can make ½ batch of the stabilized whipped cream frosting from my Black Forest Cake recipe instead!
How to Assemble Strawberry Shortcake Cookie Bars
Step 1: Make the whipped cream cheese frosting. Once the sugar cookie bars have cooled to room temperature and the strawberry sauce is room temperature or colder, make the whipped cream cheese frosting. Place the bowl of your stand mixer (or the large metal or glass bowl you’re making the frosting in) in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes so it’s cold when you get started. Then, whip the cold cream cheese until creamy, mix in the powdered sugar and vanilla, drizzle in the heavy whipping cream, and then beat it until stiff peaks form.
Step 2: Frost the sugar cookie bars. You can keep the sugar cookie bars in the pan for assembly or remove them and place on a serving platter. Pile all the whipped cream cheese frosting on top of the sugar cookie bars and use an angled spatula to spread the frosting in an even layer. You can be as rustic as you want with this.
Step 3: Top with strawberry sauce. Top the whipped cream cheese frosting with the strawberry sauce, stopping about ½ inch from the border of the frosting. For extra texture, I added a few fresh strawberry slices and quarters on top of the strawberry sauce.
Recipe FAQs
- Can I make and assemble these cookie bars ahead of time? You can make the sugar cookie bars up to 2 days ahead of time and the strawberry sauce up to 5 days ahead of time. Once assembled, the cookie bars must be stored in the refrigerator and I recommend assembling no more than 1-2 days ahead of serving. For best results, assemble the day you’re serving.
- How long can the strawberry sauce be stored? Up to 5 days in the refrigerator or up to 2 months in the freezer.
- Can I make the whipped cream cheese frosting ahead of time? For best results, make the whipped cream cheese frosting right before you’re ready to assemble the cookie bars. It comes together really quickly with cold ingredients, so it won’t add much to the assembly time.
- Are these cookie bars okay in hot weather? You’ll want to store the cookie bars in the refrigerator and either serve them cold, or take them out about an hour before serving. They should be okay for an hour or two in warm weather as long as they’re in the shade (not directly in the sun).
- How do I store leftover strawberry shortcake cookie bars? Store leftovers in the pan, covered with plastic wrap, in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. After that they may begin getting a little soggy from the strawberry sauce.
Similar Recipes You’ll Love
If you love these strawberry shortcake cookie bars, here are some more recipes from my blog to add to your baking list:
- Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake
- Sheet Pan Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars
- Berry Fruit Pizza
- No-Churn Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream
- Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream Cake
Did you make these strawberry shortcake cookie bars? I want to know how it went! Let me know in the comments (don’t forget to rate it!) and feel free to tag @sugarandsparrowco on Instagram to show me a photo. I love to see what you create with my recipes!
Strawberry Shortcake Cookie Bars
Equipment
Ingredients
Sugar Cookie Bars
- 2 Cups + 2 Tbsp (283g) all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3/4 Cup (170g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 Cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
Homemade Strawberry Sauce
- 3/4 Lb (340g) fresh or frozen strawberries, hulled and quartered.
- 2 1/2 Tbsp (31g) granulated sugar
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp (8g) cornstarch
- 1 Tbsp (15ml) water
Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1/2 Cup (4oz, 113g) full-fat brick-style cream cheese*, cold see notes for substitution options
- 1/2 Cup (60g) powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 Cups (300ml) heavy whipping cream, cold
Garnish
- fresh strawberry halves and slices
Instructions
Make the Sugar Cookie Bars
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF (177ºC) and line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving a slight overhang for easy release once the cookies are baked. Spray any exposed sides of the pan with baking spray.
- In a medium bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk together and set aside.
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or with a large bowl and hand mixer) cream together the butter and sugar on high speed until pale and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.
- Turn the mixer to medium and add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla. Mix until combined, then add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until a uniform cookie dough forms.
- Press the cookie dough into the prepared pan in an even layer, all the way to the edges. If it feels too sticky, lightly wet your hands before pressing the dough down. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until the edges are just starting to brown (I took mine out at 18 minutes). It will continue baking as you cool it in the pan.
- Cool the sugar cookie bars in the pan for 30 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the Homemade Strawberry Sauce
- Because of the cooling time needed, the strawberry sauce is best made while the sugar cookies are baking/cooling, or you can make it up to 5 days ahead of time. Start by hulling and halving the strawberries. Reserve about 1/3 of the strawberries and set them aside. Add the remaining strawberries into a medium saucepan along with the granulated sugar and lemon juice.
- Stir the strawberry mixture to combine and cook over medium heat until the strawberries release their juices and the mixture begins to simmer. Reduce the heat slightly and continue to simmer until for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, stir together the cornstarch and water in a small bowl.
- Remove the strawberry mixture from the heat and stir in the cornstarch mixture, then continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the strawberry sauce is thick enough to coat the back of your spatula, 1-2 minutes. Remove the strawberry sauce from the heat and fold in the reserved strawberries, then place in an airtight container in the refrigerator to cool for about an hour, or up to 5 days ahead of assembling the cookie bars.
Make the Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
- For best results, make this right before assembling the cookie bars. Place the mixing bowl of your stand mixer (or the large bowl you'll be using with your hand mixer) into the refrigerator for about 20 minutes to chill before you begin.
- Into the cold mixing bowl, add the cream cheese and beat on medium speed with the whisk attachment until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the powdered sugar and mix on low speed until mostly incorporated, then turn the mixer to medium-high speed and mix for about 1 minute. Scrape down the bowl and whisk attachment as needed.
- Add the vanilla extract, then turn the mixer to medium-high speed and slowly pour in the heavy whipping cream. Once all the heavy whipping cream has been added, continue mixing on medium-high for just about 30 seconds longer, keeping a close eye on the mixing bowl to watch it thicken. It should come together into a thick, silky whipped cream frosting consistency at this point. To check the consistency, turn the mixer off and dip your spatula into the frosting. It should hold a peak when you hold it upright.
- Use the whipped cream cheese frosting immediately to assemble the strawberry shortcake cookie bars, or store it in the refrigerator in an airtight container for 1-2 days. It may deflate slightly if you make it ahead of time, which is why I recommend making it right before assembling the cookie bars.
Assembly
- Once you have all of your elements cooled and ready, transfer the sugar cookie bars cake to a serving platter (or remove the paper backing and place them back in the baking pan if you wish!). Add all of the whipped cream cheese frosting on top and use an angled spatula to smooth it to the edges. No need to be too detailed here – this cake is meant to look rustic with swoopy, imperfect frosting. Finally, top with the strawberry sauce, leaving a little room around the edges so the whipped cream cheese frosting can peek though. Garnish with fresh strawberry halves and slices.
Notes
- The sugar cookie bars can be made ahead and stored at room temperature in an airtight container or covered with plastic wrap, for up to two days. Alternatively, you can store them in an airtight container in the freezer for up to two months before thawing to room temperature.
- The strawberry sauce can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- The whipped cream cheese frosting is best served the day of assembly, but you can make it up to 2 days ahead of time and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
- The assembled strawberry shortcake cookie bars are best served the day of assembly, but you can assemble them up to 2 days ahead of serving and store in the refrigerator. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
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