This Fresh Strawberry Blondies recipe is the perfect way to combine fresh strawberries and chewy brown sugar blondies into one delicious dessert.
For the last few years, I’ve been on a mission to come up with the perfect strawberry blondie — one that’s packed with that rich, chewy, brown sugar flavor I love (and expect), but with a sweet and tangy punch of strawberry, too. And after more test batches than I probably ought to admit to, I think I finally nailed it.
These buttery, caramel-y blondies are loaded with strawberry flavor but without any of that sogginess that can sometimes sneak in. And because I just couldn’t leave well enough alone, I topped them with a super simple strawberry glaze. Once it sets, it gives the blondies this amazing little sugary crunch on top that takes them to the next level.
Why do I need to pull the moisture out of the strawberries?
When I first set out to make these strawberry blondies, I kept running into the same problem… soggy bottoms. And let’s be honest: nobody wants a soggy bottom, especially when it comes to dessert.
I figured the strawberries were the likely culprit. When they bake, they let off a bunch of juice, and all that extra moisture was wrecking the blondies. I thought about roasting the strawberries first to dry them out and amp up the flavor, but honestly, when I’m craving blondies, I don’t really want to feel like I’m starting a full-on kitchen remodel. Roasting strawberries felt like way too much sugar for a dime (man, I’m full of old sayings today!).
After a whole bunch of testing (I think we went through eight different versions… bless my family for eating all those test batches), we finally landed on a super simple fix: just press the diced strawberries between a few layers of paper towels. That’s it. No fancy steps, no extra mess. And it worked like a charm.
Sure, I could have thrown in some strawberry extract or swirled in a little jam, but I really wanted the fresh strawberries shining through. And with just that one extra step, you get blondies that are loaded with real actual strawberry flavor — and no soggy bottoms in sight.
Does the butter really have to be room temperature?
The short answer… yes! During my testing, I discovered that the temperature of the butter really did affect how these blondies turned out. Using soft, room temperature butter always yielded the best results. If it gets too warm/melted I found that often times the edges would bubble up and over on top of themselves, making for not-so-pretty blondies.
So, I wrote the recipe to specifically call for room temperature butter because it really does make a difference. If you forget to give your butter time to come to room temperature, you can speed up the process using one of these simple methods:
- Hold your butter: Doesn’t that sound like a funny Southern expression?! Maybe it is, but in this case, I quite literally mean to hold the stick of butter inside the packaging. If you swap the stick between your hands every few seconds, the warmth from your hands will help speed along the process.
- Microwave: You can soften butter quickly in the microwave, but be careful! Place the butter in a microwave-safe dish and heat in 5-second intervals, checking to make sure it’s not melting. You don’t want melted butter, just try your very best to get it as close to room temperature as possible.
- Grating or slicing: For quicker softening, slice the butter into thin pats or grate it with a cheese grater. The smaller pieces will soften faster than a stick.
Other Strawberry Dessert Recipes
Every time strawberry season rolls around, I start dreaming up ways to use my favorite berry (although it’s not actually a berry). Over the years I have accumulated quite a list of strawberry dessert recipes. And y’all, I truly love every single one. Give one or two or three of these a try. You won’t regret it!
- Strawberry Jam Pound Cake – This Strawberry Jam Pound Cake has the classic pound cake flavor and texture while also having loads of strawberry flavor and a perfectly sweet strawberry glaze.
- Strawberry Chess Bars – Strawberry Chess Bars combine the best features of a Gooey Butter Cake and sweet strawberries into a delicious, decadent, and simple-to-make dessert!
- Strawberry Pie – This Fresh Strawberry Pie features only 5 simple ingredients but is packed with sweet strawberry flavor. And, there’s a lower-sugar option too!
- Strawberry Cobbler – This Strawberry Cobbler is sweet, tart, and full of lots of the cakey-cobbler that’s my favorite part of any great cobbler. It’s easy to make and delicious!
- Strawberry Sheet Cake – This easy sheet cake version of a fresh strawberry cake with strawberry cream cheese icing is honestly my favorite strawberry cake ever!
Ingredients
- ½ cup diced strawberries
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup butter, room temperature (not melted)
- ½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated white sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the glaze:
- 1 cup powered sugar
- 2 tablespoons strawberry jam
- 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and spray an 8×8-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
- Place the strawberries between several layers of paper towels and press firmly to wick out some of the moisture. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, stir the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar together. Add the egg and vanilla and stir until incorporated. Add the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Add the strawberries and stir.
- Spread the mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 28 to 33 minutes or until golden brown and set. Allow to cool completely.
- Make the glaze by stirring the powdered sugar, strawberry jam, and water together until smooth. Spread over the blondies. Allow the glaze to harden overnight, if desired. Slice and serve. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 5.
Nutrition
* If nutritional values are provided, they are an estimate and will vary depending on the brands used. The values do not include optional ingredients or when ingredients are added to taste. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, I recommend grabbing your favorite brands and plugging those ingredients into an online nutritional calculator.
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Can these be made ahead and frozen?
I can’t say for sure, since I’ve not tried freezing them myself. I worry that they may get too dense/moist in the freezing process.
Hi Stacey I would like to quadruple this and bake in a sheet pan would the cook time be close to the same time?
Hi Karen! I’ve never done that quite that way, so I can’t say for sure. My best guess is that yes, you can quadruple it and bake it in a sheet pan, but the cook time probably won’t be exactly the same.
If you bake it in a standard half sheet pan, about 13×18 inches, the batter will likely be a little thinner than the original recipe, so I’d start checking it a little early. My best guess is that it will take somewhere around 30 to 40 minutes, give or take.
What I’d watch for more than the clock is for the edges to be lightly golden and the center to look set without being wet. A toothpick should come out with a few moist crumbs, but not raw batter. With fresh strawberries in the mix, the middle can stay a little extra moist, so that’s the part I’d keep an eye on.
They were very “doughy” tasting. Not sure what I did wrong
Hmmm… Do you think they were cooked long enough? Could your flour have been old?
Could I use frozen strawberres?
Perhaps. Just make sure they’re thawed and well drained.
I have a big jar of strawberry jam and all of a sudden everyone wants grape jelly. When your strawberry blondie recipe showed up I made them later that afternoon as I always have fresh strawberries on hand. DELICIOUS! They melt in your mouth. And the grape jelly eaters loved them. They didn’t make it to the next day. I’ll have to make a double batch next time. Thank you so much for all of your great recipes. And enjoy your new house. It’s beautiful.
Debbie, thank you so much!
Is it okay to use a mixer to stir the butter, sugar, eggs, etc. together? Weak wrists make stirring butter and sugar rather difficult.
Love all of your recipes; several are on our Mother’s Day cookout menu.
You can use a mixer for the butter and sugar and just mix until barely combined. But would not recommend a mixer when using the flour.
This sounds sooo delish! Can’t wait to make them! Thought though would it be worth saving the Juice that comes from squishing strawberries. Maybe use a strainer and reincorporate the juice back into the glaze maybe!?!?
And thanks for All the Great recipes!
Thank you so much! Unfortunately I’m not sure of way to get the juice out of the strawberries and be able to save it.
All I can say is OMG!!!! These are so delicious! With ori without the glaze (and vanilla ice cream). Strawberry flavor shines through but not overpowering . Again thanks so much for all the good recipes. BTW my hubby asked if you can do it with blueberries?
So glad to hear they turned out great for you! Yes, I do think it would work with blueberries, though I’m not sure about pressing the excess juice out of those.
My mom use to make a fruit cocktail cake, I’ve not been able to find that recipe like hers. What is yours?
We don’t have a recipe quite like that but will add it to our list!
I have that recipe. It was delicious. I can send it to you if you contact me.