Strawberry Cream Cheese Shortbread Bars

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Strawberry Cream Cheese Shortbread Bars โ€” A buttery shortbread crust topped with cream cheese filling, frosting, and strawberries!! EASY and perfect for spring and summer parties!!

four Strawberry Shortbread Bars on white platter surrounded by fresh strawberries

Easy Strawberry Cream Cheese Shortbread Bars

A few years ago I made these Almond Cream Cheese Shortbread Bars and realized the bars are perfect with strawberries as well. My eyes were bigger than my stomach when I bought 5 pounds of strawberries, and using some in this dessert was a necessary move.

The easy bars consist of a buttery shortbread crust thatโ€™s topped with a cream cheese and almond-flavored filling before frosting the bars and topping with strawberries.

Juicy strawberries, sweet frosting, a filling that’s slightly tangy from the cream cheese, and a buttery crust is a perfect marriage of flavors and textures.

What’s in Strawberry Shortbread Bars? 

To make this strawberry cream cheese dessert, you’ll need: 

  • Unsalted butter
  • All-purpose flour
  • Confectioners’ sugar
  • Cornstarch
  • Salt
  • Cream cheese
  • Egg
  • Granulated sugar
  • Almond extract
  • Milk or cream
  • Fresh strawberries 

close up of Strawberry Shortbread Bars on white platter

How to Make Strawberry Shortbread Bars

First, you’ll need to make the shortbread dough. Once it comes together, press it into the bottom of a 8×8-inch baking pan and bake just until barely set (it’ll be going back into the oven later). 

While the crust bakes, beat together the filling. Once the crust has been in the oven for about 15 minutes, pull it out and spread the filling on top. Return the bars to the oven and bake until filling is no longer jiggly. 

Once the baked shortbread bars have cooled completely, make the frosting and drizzle over top. The bars needs to set for about 1 hour before you can garnish with strawberries and serve. 

How to Store Strawberry Shortbread Bars

These shortbread cream cheese bars will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 5 days (without strawberries added). Iโ€™m comfortable storing frosted items at room temperature, but store in the fridge if youโ€™re not, noting bars could become overly dry in the fridge. Or, store in the freezer for up to 6 months.

Strawberry Cream Cheese Shortbread Bars - A buttery shortbread crust topped with cream cheese filling, frosting, and strawberries!! EASY and perfect for spring and summer parties!!

Tips for Making Strawberry Shortbread Bars

I love almond extract, it’s used in both the filling and the frosting, and the flavor really shines though. If you’re not as fond of it, you can scale back the quantity or replace it with vanilla extract. But I can’t imagine doing either since I want to wear almond extract as perfume.

You MUST wait for the cream cheese shortbread bars to cool completely before frosting them. If you frost the bars while they’re still warm, the frosting will run all over. 

Note that the berries can run and bleed into the frosting, so if youโ€™re serving this for an important event make sure not to add strawberries until just before serving.

Strawberry Cream Cheese Shortbread Bars โ€” A buttery shortbread crust topped with cream cheese filling, frosting, and strawberries!! EASY and perfect for spring and summer parties!!

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4.72 from 7 votes

Strawberry Cream Cheese Shortbread Bars

By Averie Sunshine
A buttery shortbread crust topped with cream cheese filling, frosting, and strawberries!! EASY and perfect for spring and summer parties!!
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 34 minutes
Total Time: 49 minutes
Servings: 12
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Ingredients  

Crust

  • ยฝ cup unsalted butter, very soft (1 stick)
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • ยผ cup confectionersโ€™ sugar
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • ยผ teaspoon salt, optional or to taste

Filling

  • 4 ounces brick-style cream cheese, softened (lite is okay)
  • 1 large egg
  • ยผ cup granulated sugar
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 to 2 teaspoons almond extract, I used 2

Frosting

  • ยผ cup unsalted butter, very soft almost melting (half of 1 stick)
  • 1 ยผ cups confectionersโ€™ sugar
  • 1 to 2 teaspoons almond extract
  • about 2 tablespoons cream or milk
  • about 3/4 cup fresh strawberries, diced or sliced into small pieces

Instructions 

Make the Crust:

  • Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8-by-8-inch baking pan with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray; set aside.
  • In a large bowl, combine all crust ingredients and using two forks or a handheld electric mixer on low, cut the butter into the dry ingredients until evenly distributed and pea-sized lumps and sandy bits form. The softer the butter is, the quicker and easier itย is.
  • Turn mixture out into prepared pan and hard-pack it with a spatula to create an even, uniform, flat crust layer.
  • Bake crust for about 15 minutes, or just until barely set (pan is going back in oven so donโ€™t overbake or crust will be crumbly). While crust bakes, prepare the filling.
  • Make the Filling:ย 
  • In a large bowl (same one is fine, just wipe out with a paper towel), add all filling ingredients, and whisk by hand or beat with an electric mixer on medium until smooth and combined. I prefer a stronger almond flavor and use 2 teaspoons extract, if you donโ€™t, scale the amount back.
  • After crust has baked for about 15 minutes, remove pan from the oven, and evenly pour filling mixture over the crust. Filling will likely slide into place, but lightly spread it into corners using a spatula if necessary.
  • Return pan to oven and bake for about 16 to 19 minutes, or until filling is no longer jiggly in the center and edges have begun to set up; filling will set up more as it cools.
  • Remove pan from oven, and place on a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
  • Make the Frosting:ย 
  • In a large microwave-safe bowl (same one is fine, just wipe out with a paper towel), add the butter and heat for about 30 seconds in the microwave or until itโ€™s very soft and almost melting but not actually liquifying.
  • Add the confectionersโ€™ sugar, almond extract, and slowly drizzle in the creamย while whisking by hand or beating with an electric mixer.ย As necessary, add additional creamย (or sugar) to reach desired glaze consistency.
  • Evenly frost theย bars, smoothing frosting lightly with a spatula as necessary.
  • Allow bars to cool in pan uncovered for at least 1 hour (or overnight and cover with a sheet of foil) before slicing and serving so frosting canย set up.
  • Before serving, evenly sprinkle with strawberries.

Notes

  • Tip โ€“ The berries can run and bleed into the frosting, so if youโ€™re serving this for an important event, make sure not to add strawberries until just before serving.
  • Bars will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 5 days (without strawberries added). Iโ€™m comfortable storing frosted items at room temp; store in the fridge if youโ€™re not, noting bars could becomeย overly dry in the fridge,ย or store in the freezer for up to 6 months.
  • Adapted from Almond Cream Cheese Shortbread Bars.

Nutrition

Serving: 1, Calories: 282kcal, Carbohydrates: 30g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 17g, Saturated Fat: 10g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Cholesterol: 60mg, Sodium: 93mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 19g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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4.72 from 7 votes (5 ratings without comment)

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Please note: I have only made the recipe as written, and cannot give advice or predict what will happen if you change something. If you have a question regarding changing, altering, or making substitutions to the recipe, please check out the FAQ page for more info.

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Comments

  1. LOVE this!! I especially love the more dense base as a contrast to the brightness of the berries. Lovely presentation, too!

  2. These look delicious Averie! Strawberries just make everything better, don’t they? :)

  3. I always make your recipes in my home. The taste of your recipes always yummy and you decorate your recipe very beautifully. I gonna try to make it.

  4. Yum! That looks so good. I love strawberries, but don’t have any in the house right now. That’s a nice shortbread recipe. Thanks for sharing.

  5. Strawberry – almond is a nice fruit and nut pairing….and the strawberries really pop on the white frosting! These look lovely for.this time of year.