Strawberry Jam Cookies are pretty, delicious cookies with a lemon shortbread cookie base swirled with creamy lemon cream cheese frosting dolloped with strawberry jam. And no chill time! They're the perfect sweet treat for Valentine's Day, your Christmas cookie platter, or just because.
Be sure to try Candy Cane Shortbread Cookies and Cut Out Sugar Cookies next.
Jump to:
Oh, these sweet little Strawberry Jam Cookies are my new favorite cookies. Which, I know, I know, I say that about EVERY cookie! But these little strawberry shortbread cookies really are the perfect cookies.
The tender shortbread cookies are lemony and classically crumbly, the lemon cream cheese frosting is sweet and tangy, and the strawberry jam is oozy and gooey. And they're SO CUTE, it's the perfect holiday cookie recipe or fun Valentine's Day treat.
❤️You're Going to Love These
- Easy cookie recipe with simple ingredients and no chill time!
- Lemon and strawberry flavor combo is out of this world
- Lemony, buttery shortbread cookies that melt in your mouth
- Impressive-looking jam-filled cookies for Christmas or Valentine's Day
🍓Ingredients
See recipe card at the bottom of the post for the full list of ingredients and exact amounts.
- Unsalted butter. Use room temperature butter for both the cookies and the frosting, which is firm enough to leave an indent when pressed, but not soft and squishy.
- Lemon juice and zest. Fresh lemon juice and zest flavors the buttery shortbread cookies and the cream cheese frosting. Use fresh if at all possible.
- Flour. Remember to spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level it off with a knife instead of scooping straight out of the bag or canister. Too much flour can make these cookies dry and crumblier than is normal for shortbread.
- Strawberry jam. I use store-bought strawberry jam, but, of course, homemade strawberry jam would be delish!
- Cream cheese. Let the cream cheese come to room temperature so it whips into the frosting smoothly without lumps.
🫐Variations
- Flavor the dough and cream cheese frosting with fresh lime or fresh orange instead of lemon. Both would taste amazing with strawberry jam!
- Instead of strawberry, use any kind of jam you love, like blueberry or raspberry jam. Or even lemon curd!
🥣How to Make Strawberry Jam Cookies
Step 1: Cream butter and powdered sugar in a large bowl. Mix in lemon juice, zest, and vanilla extract until incorporated. Mix in dry ingredients on low until just combined. Form a ball of dough with your hands and divide it into two portions.
Step 2: Working with half of the dough at a time, pat it into a thick disc and roll to ⅛" thickness between floured parchment paper or on a lightly floured surface.
Step 3: Cut dough with a 2" cookie cutter, re-rolling and cutting the scraps. Place on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Bake in preheated oven at 325 for 12-14 minutes or until the bottoms just start to turn light golden brown. Cool a few minutes on the pan, then completely on a wire rack.
Step 4: Whip cream cheese and butter in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Mix in lemon juice and lemon zest. Add powdered sugar and salt and mix until smooth and creamy.
Step 5: Pipe or spread ½ to ¾ tablespoons of lemon cream cheese frosting into an open circle on top of the cookies.
Step 6: Spoon a small amount of jam into the center of the frosting. Serve immediately or chill in a single layer until ready to serve. If desired, sprinkle with powdered sugar and fresh lemon zest before serving.
👉Top Tip: You don't need a fancy piping tip to make cute cookies. See the photo below. The one on the left, I spread the icing on with a knife and made a well in the center for the jam. The one on the right, I piped the frosting in a circle with a ziploc bag with the corner snipped off.
☑️Tips
- No chill time is needed, however, if the dough is too soft, chill it for 30-60 minutes.
- To roll out dough to an even thickness, use rolling pin guides or place two dowels or thin cutting boards on either side of your rolling pin.
- For tender, soft cookies, be careful not to overbake. Check the baking time early and bake until the bottom edges of the cookies just start to turn light brown.
- If the lemon cream cheese frosting gets too soft during piping, chill it for a few minutes in the refrigerator or freezer. It will firm as it chills.
🎁Storage
Store strawberry jam cookies in a single layer in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Once the frosting has firmed up, stack the cookies between layers of parchment paper.
Freeze cookies in a single layer in a freezer-safe container or freezer bag. Thaw in the refrigerator.
📅Make Ahead
- Cookies. Make the lemon shortbread cookie dough a day ahead of time and store it covered with plastic wrap in the refrigerator. Or bake the cookies a few days ahead of time and store them in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator.
- Frosting. Prepare the lemon cream cheese frosting a day ahead of time and store it in the refrigerator. You can also freeze it and thaw it in the refrigerator. If frozen, it may need to be re-whipped once thawed.
🎆More Easy Dessert Recipes
💌Let's Stay in Touch
Follow Midwestern Holidays on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest, and subscribe via email to receive all of the latest recipes!
📖 Recipe
Strawberry Jam Cookies
Ingredients
Lemon Shortbread Cookies
- 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks) room temperature
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup strawberry jam
Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
- 6 tablespoons butter, room temperature
- 6 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 ½ tablespoons lemon zest
- 1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
Lemon Shortbread Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
- Cream butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Start on low and increase speed to medium-high. Add lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla extract. Whip until fluffy and liquid has been incorporated.
- Mix in flour and salt on low speed until just combined. With your hands, gather the dough into a ball. Divide it into two portions and pat them into thick discs.
- Roll out each portion of dough onto a lightly floured surface or between two sheets of parchment paper to ⅛" thickness. Cut with 2" cookie cutters. Re-roll and cut the scraps.
- Place cutouts an inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake 12-14 minutes or until the bottoms turn light golden brown. Cool on the pan 2-3 minutes, then transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
- Whip butter and cream cheese at medium-high until smooth and fluffy. Mix in the lemon zest and lemon juice, then the powdered sugar and salt until smooth and creamy.
Assemble the Cookies
- With a piping bag and star tip or ziploc bag with the corner snipped off, pipe ½ to ¾ tablespoon frosting into a circle on top of each cookie. Dollop ½ teaspoon of strawberry jam into the center. Serve or chill until ready to serve. If desired, before serving, sprinkle with lemon zest and dust with powdered sugar. The powdered sugar will eventually dissolve into the jam but remain on the frosting.
Notes
- No chill time is needed, however, if the dough is too soft, chill it for 30-60 minutes.
- To roll out dough to an even thickness, use rolling pin guides or place two dowels or thin cutting boards on either side of your rolling pin.
- For tender, soft cookies, be careful not to overbake. Check the baking time early and bake until the bottom edges of the cookies just start to turn light brown.
- If the lemon cream cheese frosting gets too soft during piping, chill it for a few minutes in the refrigerator or freezer. It will firm as it chills.
Leave a Reply