Soft Strawberry Sugar Cookies Recipe
Dec 20, 2024 • Updated Feb 05, 2025
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These delightful strawberry sugar cookies are every strawberry lover’s dream. They have a soft, chewy texture and a vibrant berry flavour. These chewy cookies are vegan, gluten-free, and have a real strawberry flavor – making them the perfect cookies for everyone to enjoy. Happy baking!
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love These Chewy Strawberry Sugar Cookies
I’m a strawberry lover which is why I have so many strawberry desserts up on the blog – strawberry cashew bliss balls, gluten-free strawberry matcha cookies, and a 2-ingredient strawberry froyo recipe, to name a few. Just like those recipes, these cookies are a delightful fusion of comfort and a fresh, fruity flavor. The homemade strawberry syrup infuses each bite with natural sweetness, while the vegan and gluten-free ingredients, easily sourced from your local grocery store, help make sure they’re suitable for a variety of dietary preferences.
These cute pink cookies are perfect for Valentine’s Day, baby showers, or just to keep on your counter. They offer a perfect balance of softness and chewiness that’s hard to resist!
Ingredient Notes
Strawberry Syrup
- Fresh strawberries: Give the cookies a natural sweetness and a fresh berry flavour. They also give the syrup its beautiful colour. Frozen strawberries can work if fresh ones aren’t available but I recommend fresh ones.
- Organic cane sugar: This balances the tartness of the berries and helps thicken the syrup as it cooks. Coconut sugar can be swapped for a deeper, caramel-like taste.
Cookie Dough
- Vegan butter: Keeps the cookies soft and tender and helps with the overall flavour. Stick-style vegan butter works best, but softened coconut oil can be a substitute. If you aren’t vegan, regular unsalted butter works here.
- Organic cane sugar: Sweetens the dough while contributing to that classic crisp edge and chewy center. Feel free to try maple sugar for a slightly different depth of flavor.
- Vanilla extract: Helps enhance the taste with its warm, aromatic flavour. Almond extract can add a nutty twist if you want to try something a little different. Let me know if you try this!
- Gluten-free 1-1 flour: This makes this recipe completely gluten-free without any extra adjustments. Regular all-purpose flour can replace it if gluten isn’t an issue.
- Cornstarch: Helps create that melt-in-your-mouth texture and keeps the cookies light – arrowroot powder is a great alternative.
- Baking soda: Ensures the cookies spread just the right amount and develop a soft, chewy bite—avoid skipping this ingredient!
- Baking powder: Adds a gentle lift, keeping the cookies fluffy rather than dense—if you’re out, a little extra baking soda with vinegar can do the trick.
- Kosher salt: Balances the sweetness and enhances the flavors, making every bite more vibrant—sea salt or pink Himalayan salt will also work.
- Unsweetened almond milk: Moistens the dough just enough to create a smooth consistency – any other plant-based milk, like oat or soy, can easily replace it.
- Red food dye (optional): Gives the cookies a pop of color for extra fun, but you can skip it or use beet powder for a more natural touch.
For exact ingredient amounts and instructions, see the printable recipe card below.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Make the strawberry syrup. In a blender or food processor, blend the strawberries and sugar until smooth. Pour the mixture into a saucepan and heat over medium heat, stirring continuously until the sugar fully dissolves. Reduce the heat to low and let it simmer, stirring often, until the syrup thickens and reduces to about ½ – ¼ cup. Be sure to keep stirring to prevent burning. Once it’s thick and glossy, remove it from heat and let it cool completely.
Step 2: Prepare the cookie dough. In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, add and beat your wet ingredients – vegan butter and sugar – together until light and fluffy, about 2–3 minutes. If you don’t have a mixer, you can cream them by hand with a spatula or use a hand mixer. Once smooth, mix in the vanilla extract and ¼ cup of the cooled strawberry syrup until fully combined.
Step 3: Sift in the dry ingredients – flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Pour in the almond milk and stir until the dough comes together. If you’re adding food dye, mix it in now until evenly colored. The dough should feel soft but hold together well. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel to keep it moist, and chill in the refrigerator for at least one hour.
Step 4: When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees f. Line your baking sheets (or cookie sheets) with parchment paper and set aside a small bowl filled with organic cane sugar for rolling.
Step 5: Scoop the dough using a small cookie scoop and roll each portion into a ball. Coat the dough balls in cane sugar, then gently press them down on the prepared baking sheet, leaving about 2 inches of space between each one. Bake for 10 – 13 minutes, until the tops start to crackle and the edges look just barely golden. Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool on the baking sheet or a wire rack for 5 – 10 minutes. They’ll continue to set as they cool.
Secrets to Success
- Chill your dough. Refrigerating the dough for at least an hour helps prevent excessive spreading during baking, ensuring a perfect cookie shape.
- Keep a close eye on the strawberry syrup while it reduces, stirring continuously to prevent burning and achieve the desired thickness.
- Use precise measurements with either a measuring cup or a kitchen scale. Epecially for the flour and liquids, to maintain the ideal cookie texture.
Serving Tips
These cookies pair well with a glass of plant-based milk or a cup of herbal tea. You could also serve them on a cookie dessert platter with:
- Easy vegan matcha crinkle cookies (this pairing will look very wicked themed!), salted caramel cookies, and Taylor Swift’s chai cookies recipe!
Storage Tips
Leftover cookies will stay fresh in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Place a small piece of parchment paper between layers to keep them from sticking.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! You can freeze the cookie dough balls before baking. Roll them in sugar, freeze on a baking sheet until firm, then transfer them to a freezer-safe bag. Bake directly from frozen, adding 1-2 minutes to the baking time.
I recommend using fresh strawberries but you can use frozen strawberries if that’s all you have. Let them thaw first, then drain any excess liquid to keep the syrup from becoming too thin.
Yes! The cookies will still have a lovely natural pink tint from the real strawberries. If you’d like a brighter colour without artificial dye, try beetroot powder or dragon fruit powder.
Of course! A hand mixer works just as well, or you can mix the dough by hand using a mixing bowl and a sturdy spatula. Just make sure to cream the butter and sugar thoroughly for that chewy cookie texture.
More Strawberry Dishes
If you make this recipe, be sure to let me know what you think with a star rating and comment below! Follow me on Instagram for more delicious recipes!
Soft Strawberry Sugar Cookies Recipe
Equipment
- small saucepan
- 2 baking sheets
Ingredients
Strawberry Syrup
- 1 1/2 cups fresh strawberries chopped
- 2/3 cup organic cane sugar
Cookie Dough
- 1/2 cup vegan butter softened, room temp
- 3/4 cup organic cane sugar more for coating
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cup gluten free 1-1 flour
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt kosher
- 3 tbsp unsweetened almond milk room temp
- red food dye optional, as desired
Instructions
Make Strawberry Syrup
- Add sugar and berries to a blender and blend until smooth. Transfer the mixture to a saucepan over medium heat, stirring until all of the sugar dissolves. Lower the heat and reduce the mixture down until you have about 1/2-1/4 cup of mixture in the pot. Be sure to stir continuously and avoid burning the mixture. It will thicken up significantly. Set aside and let cool.
Prepare the Cookie Dough
- Add the vegan butter and sugar to a stand mixer and beat until smooth, about 2-3 minutes. Alternatively, use a spatula to cream it by hand. Once smooth, add vanilla extract and 1/4 cup of the strawberry syrup and mix again until combined.
- Sift in the dry ingredients (flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, salt). And add almond milk. Stir to combine until a dough forms. If using food dye, add it in at this point as well. Dough should hold together nicely. Wrap the bowl with saran wrap or a kitchen towel to keep the dough moist and chill in the refrigerator for at least one hour.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350F. Line your baking sheets with parchment paper and prepare a small bowl with some organic cane sugar.
- Using a small cookie scoop, roll dough into balls, then roll in can sugar. Gently press down on the baking sheet, leaving 2" in between each cookie. Bake for 10-13 minutes, tops should slightly crackle and edges will look verrryy slightly golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for another 5-10 minutes to continue to cook.
Notes
- Chill your dough. Refrigerating the dough for at least an hour helps prevent excessive spreading during baking, ensuring a perfect cookie shape.
- Keep a close eye on the strawberry syrup while it reduces, stirring continuously to prevent burning and achieve the desired thickness.
- Use precise measurements with either a measuring cup or a kitchen scale. Epecially for the flour and liquids, to maintain the ideal cookie texture.
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
