Soft, moist and chewy high altitude strawberry blondies, frosted with strawberry cream cheese frosting. Since these strawberry cookie bars are made with freeze dried strawberries, you can make them any time of year, even when strawberries aren’t in season.
Looking for more high altitude strawberry recipes? You might also love these heart shaped strawberry shortbread cookies, fresh strawberry pretzel pie, and strawberry orange creamsicles.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Perfectly Soft and Chewy. These really are the softest blondies ever, and they stay so moist for days after baking.
Loads of Strawberry Flavor. I love baking with freeze-dried strawberries. You can get a punch of tart strawberry flavor without the excessive moisture that fresh or frozen strawberries add.
Cream Cheese Frosting. These are honestly great plain, and I might actually prefer them without the frosting. But the fluffy strawberry cream cheese frosting adds an extra special sweet touch. You can spread the frosting on, or make the bars a little fancier by piping it on in ruffles and swirls.
High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. If you’re at a lower or higher elevation, please see my FAQs for guidance on adjusting recipes for your altitude.
See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.
Ingredients
Cookie Bars
- Unsalted Butter. Adds richness, moisture and flavor to the blondies.
- Sugar. A combination of granulated sugar and light brown sugar adds sweetness and moisture.
- Vanilla + Almond Extracts. The combination of vanilla and almond extracts add the most wonderful flavor to these strawberry blondies. The almond is subtle, but nicely complements the flavor of the strawberries.
- Eggs. Add structure and richness.
- All-Purpose Flour. Adds structure and thickens the cookie dough batter.
- Baking Powder. Leavens the cookie bars so they puff up as they bake.
- Coarse Kosher Salt. Balances the sweetness.
- Freeze Dried Strawberries. Strawberry flavor and pretty specks of color.
Frosting
- Unsalted Butter + Cream Cheese. Makes the frosting rich, flavorful and creamy.
- Powdered Sugar. Sweetness.
- Coarse Kosher Salt. Balances the sugar.
- Vanilla Extract. Flavor.
- Freeze Dried Strawberries. Color and flavor.
- Meringue Powder. Adds stability.
Instructions
Cookie Bars
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a 9×13 baking sheet with a piece of parchment/baking paper and snip the corners so the paper fits down into the pan. Alternatively, you can use aluminum foil, and spray the foil thoroughly with non-stick spray.
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or using a bowl and hand-held electric mixer), beat the softened butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add the vanilla and almond extracts, and mix in the eggs, one at a time, just until combined.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the dry ingredients and mix the dough on low, just until moistened, then stir in the chopped freeze dried strawberries. The dough will be very thick.
- Pile the dough into the prepared pan. Since the dough is so thick and sticky, it can be a little tricky to spread it out. The best way is to butter your hands or a spatula and just push the dough out to the edges of the pan as evenly as you can.
- Bake the cookie bars on the center oven rack for about 20-22 minutes, just until the edges are set and every so slightly browned, but the center still looks a little underdone. Be careful not to over-bake these bars, or they will end up dry. They will continue to bake and set in the hot pan after you take them out of the oven. It’s normal for the center of the bars to settle and sink down a little as it cools.
- Set the pan on a cooling rack and cool completely before frosting.
Frosting
- With an electric mixer, beat the softened butter and cream cheese until smooth, about 1 minute.
- Add the powdered sugar, crushed freeze dried strawberries, salt, meringue powder and vanilla. Beat for several minutes until very light and fluffy.
- Lift the cooled bars out of the pan by the paper, peel the paper off, and set the bars on a cutting board.
- Spread or pipe the frosting onto the cooled bars.
Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common baking questions, so that you can be successful in your own baking!
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use fresh or frozen strawberries instead of freeze dried?
No, only freeze-dried strawberries will work in these strawberry blondies.
What piping tip did you use for the frosting?
Wilton Tip 1M.
How should I store the leftover blondies?
Leftover strawberry blondies should be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or wrapped well and frozen for 3-6 months.
Can I make this recipe with gluten free flour?
Yes, you can make gluten free blondies by substituting your favorite measure-for-measure gluten free flour.
Can this recipe be cut in half?
You can certainly make just half the batter, and bake it in an 8×8 pan. The baking time will be about the same, or a minute or two less.
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High Altitude Strawberry Blondies with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- Electric Mixer (Stand or Hand-Held)
Ingredients
Cookie Bars
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- â…“ cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp almond extract, optional
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 1 ¼ tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- ¾ cup freeze-dried strawberries (about 1/2 oz or 17 grams), chopped into 1/4 inch pieces
Frosting
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 4 oz cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup freeze-dried strawberries, finely crushed (1 1/2 tbsp crushed)
- ¼ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- 2 tsp meringue powder, optional
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Cookie Bars
- Preheat the oven to 350F.Line a 9×13 baking sheet with a piece of parchment/baking paper and snip the corners so the paper fits down into the pan. Alternatively, you can use aluminum foil, and spray the foil thoroughly with non-stick spray.
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or using a bowl and hand-held electric mixer), beat the softened butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add the vanilla and almond extracts, and mix in the eggs, one at a time, just until combined.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the dry ingredients and mix the dough on low, just until moistened, then stir in the chopped freeze dried strawberries. The dough will be very thick.
- Pile the dough into the prepared pan. Since the dough is so thick and sticky, it can be a little tricky to spread it out. The best way is to butter your hands or a spatula and just push the dough out to the edges of the pan as evenly as you can.
- Bake the cookie bars on the center oven rack for about 20-22 minutes, just until the edges are set and every so slightly browned, but the center still looks a little underdone. Be careful not to over-bake these bars, or they will end up dry. They will continue to bake and set in the hot pan after you take them out of the oven. It's normal for the center of the bars to settle and sink down a little as it cools.
- Set the pan on a cooling rack and cool completely before frosting.
Frosting
- With an electric mixer, beat the softened butter and cream cheese until smooth, about 1 minute.
- Add the powdered sugar, crushed freeze dried strawberries, salt, meringue powder and vanilla. Beat for several minutes until very light and fluffy.
- Lift the cooled bars out of the pan by the paper, peel the paper off, and set the bars on a cutting board.
- Spread or pipe the frosting onto the cooled bars.
Your food photography is stellar!! You really capture food stories. I love the light color schemes too. Makes me want to bake some cake! 😋 Anyways looove your blog.
Thanks so much, Melanie!
Can I used frozen strawberries instead of freeze dried? 🙂
No, frozen (or fresh) strawberries will add too much liquid. This recipe will only work with freeze-dried strawberries.
Great texture and consistency!
My only suggestion is to find a way to add more strawberry flavor or pieces if you are not making the frosting. The bars themselves don’t have a ton of flavor, they’re tasty but not very strawberry forward with the suggested measurement!
Would it mess up the recipe if I added white chocolate chips? Thank you
I’m sure it would be fine.
I love the look of this recipe. I don’t live at a high altitude, what would I need to change to make this recipe work for me?
Please see my FAQs.
https://curlygirlkitchen.com/baking-faqs/