Strawberry Frosted Sugar Cookies – a copycat of those soft sugar cookies you find in your favorite supermarket. Frosted with a delicious strawberry buttercream, and are the perfect cookie for summer!
This has been one crazy week.
Our oldest son…wait, he’s our only son.
Why on earth would I say oldest? See, it’s been such a busy week that I can’t keep track of my children or even know their birth order. Oy vey. haha
He graduated from high school this past Thursday. Kids graduate from high school every year. It’s a common occurrence and they all deserve to be congratulated for their achievement and hard work, however, this kid rocked it!
No, I’m not here to brag because he wasn’t his class valedictorian, didn’t receive a full academic scholarship, sports scholarship or any scholarship for that matter to college, nor did he win an award for perfect attendance.
He didn’t win any awards.
Yet, he worked just as hard, if not harder than any of his classmates to make sure he would be one of the 600 students walking across that stage last Thursday to be handed his diploma.
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This kid of ours completed both his junior AND senior year at once, taking 17 courses since school started back in August.
So, I’m sure you’ll believe me when I say we are certainly glad this year is OVER!
As you may or may not know, we moved from the Arizona desert to the mountains of New Hampshire in August ’13. Our son was attending the local high school but decided that November that he really wanted to be homeschooled.
Months later, he decided that he wanted to return to Arizona to start his senior year in August so that he could graduate with his friends and former classmates. Mr. 365 and I agreed that we would return so that he could do that however, we were committed to our jobs until the middle of October.
This meant that if it was something our son truly desired that he would have to figure out a way to make it happen. He called his best friend, and his family so graciously agreed to have him live with them until the Mr. and I would be moving back.
So, in the first week of August, our oldest daughter and our son drove across the country so that she could return to live where she’d been before we all moved and her brother could settle in at his new temporary home.
Soon after his arrival, he registered for school only to find out from the counselor that the homeschooling credits he’d taken for his junior year wouldn’t transfer after we had been told they would. Needless to say, he was devastated and graduating with the Class of 2015 was something no one believed would happen.
Then…he became motivated – very motivated and very self-disciplined.
Without his mother or his father around to physically to support him (or cook him meals 😉 ), he drew upon a will inside of himself and completely matured.
The mental and emotional growth inside of this kid was pretty doggone awesome and was something that would not have happened for a long, long time had we never moved to New Hampshire.
Be sure to check out all the other fabulous frosted cookies from other wonderful bloggers in the Cookie of the Month group!
Frosting Stuffed Cookies from Jen’s Favorite Cookies
Chocolate Chip Sandwich Cookies from That Skinny Chick Can Bake
Oatmeal Maple Cream Pies from Cookie Dough and Oven Mitt
Twix Cookies from Kelli’s Kitchen
Oreo Whoopie Pies from Tastes of Lizzy T
There were plenty of instances from August through May 28th when he struggled and was ready, but not quite willing to give up and take a few courses over the summer or become a “super senior”. The thought of extending his schooling just made him work that much harder.
Sometimes we have to go through a lot of pain and suffering if there’s to be growth and that is exactly what happened with our son.
Watching him walk across that stage on Thursday meant so much more to me than any accolades, scholarships or acceptance letters he could have gotten.
He graduated!!!
AND with the friends and the classmates, he’d known for 13 years.
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Granted the grades weren’t the best he’d ever earned as he was taking 17 courses and also participating in cross country and track, but he accomplished what he’d set out to do and gained so much more in the process – responsibility, self-confidence, courage, a higher sense of self-esteem, and independence. He also became much more appreciative of the world around him and those who are closest to him.
My little boy became a man…and one I couldn’t be more proud of.
Now I’m going to dry my eyes while you check out these cookies. Thanks for reading. I used this recipe for the cookie dough from Michelle.
Strawberry Buttercream Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
Cookies
- ½ cup 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup sour cream
- 3 cups flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Strawberry Buttercream
- ¾ cup 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups confectioners sugar see note
- ⅛ teaspoon Kosher salt
- ¼ cup finely chopped fresh strawberries
Instructions
Cookies
- In an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes.
- Add eggs, one at a time, completely incorporating each.
- Mix in vanilla and sour cream.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients with the mixer on low speed.
- The dough will be sticky, but that’s ok.
- Divide the dough in half onto separate sheets of plastic wrap. Form each half into a rectangle about 1 1/2 inches thick. Cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
- When ready to bake, preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Prepare two cookie sheets by lining them with parchment paper.
- Flour your work surface well and remove one of the dough halves from the refrigerator. Flour the top of the dough and rolling pin.
- Roll the dough out so that it is about 1/4-inch thick.
- Using a 2 1/2-inch round cookie cutter, cut the dough into circles and place on cookie sheets about 1 inch apart.
- Bake for 7-9 minutes until just barely golden. Remove cookies from sheets immediately and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
- Repeat process with remaining refrigerated dough.
Strawberry Buttercream
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and vanilla until light, about 4 minutes.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl and gradually add the confectioners' sugar and salt while continuing to mix on low.
- Add the finely chopped strawberries and mix on medium speed for two minutes.
- Frost cookies.
Notes
If the frosting is not creamy and appears to be a little too wet, add more confectioners' sugar ONE tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached. If too dry, add ONE teaspoon of milk.
Refrigerate the cookies before serving in a warm climate as the frosting will become extremely soft because of the butter content. Refrigerate any uneaten cookies (although I doubt there will be many).
These cookies were a BIG hit with the family.
Everyone like the soft sugar cookies, but when you put an awesome frosting on top – YOWZA!
I rate everything I make and these Strawberry Buttercream Sugar Cookies earned (trumpets, please) 4 rolling pins!!
Oh, my gosh were they good! I was actually eating the frosting out of the bowl. haha
It was just so doggone tasty!
They’re SO pretty, too and are absolutely perfect when strawberries are in season.
I would only recommend using fresh strawberries as opposed to frozen because the water content will be too high for the butter.
I played with this recipe and at one point used to many strawberries which made the butter look as if it was curdling, so I added more confectioners’ sugar to dry it out, but it wasn’t working and then started tasting funny. Fresh strawberries, all the way.
Comments & Reviews
Kelli's Kitchen says
These cookies look amazing! I love strawberry and so do most of the people in our family – so this would be a no-brainer for us.
I know you are so proud of your son – and you should be!
It’s not those for whom school comes easy that make something great of themselves, it is to those who learn to work hard during school that success awaits.
Seriously, think about those who are what Americans deem successful in life — see if they didn’t have to work very hard either in school or physically throughout their childhood and I am sure you will find they did.
Now you son can look forward to already understanding hard work which will give him a leg up on success!
Nici says
Your cookies look beautiful… and delicious! I’m sure they are much better than the store bought, as I can see real strawberries in the frosting! Pinned to my cookie board!
Blessings,
Nici
Lynne says
Nici, thank you so much! Those fresh strawberries definitely gave them lots of flavor.
Thank you for the pin!
Julie @ Tastes of Lizzy T says
What an accomplishment for your son! You should be proud. These cookies look melt-in-your-mouth good! Pinned!
Lynne says
Thank you, Julie, we are very proud. Thanks so much for pinning!
Liz says
What a proud moment for your family!! Your son proved that hard work does pay off—a big congratulations to him!!! Your soft sugar cookies would be a huge hit with my family—and they always approve when frosting is involved.
Lynne says
Thank you, Liz. It goes without saying that I was crying pretty hard when I saw him after it was over – both because I was so proud, but also because it was finally over. haha
Joan says
Lynne, congrats on your son’s graduation, that’s a wonderful accomplishment, and you both should be so proud! : ) And these cookies look INCREDIBLE, I can’t wait to make them!
Lynne says
Thank you, Joan, we are! He’ll aways remember it, maybe not with fond memories, but he’ll definitely remember it.
Thanks for the compliment on the cookies!
Miranda @ Cookie Dough & Oven Mitt says
Your son sounds like an amazing young man! I can see how you would be very proud of him! I love strawberry buttercream so, so much. I’ve never had it on sugar cookies, but I know I would be down for it.
Lynne says
Thank you, Amanda. I think I’ll keep him.
Strawberry Buttercream is pretty amazing. It was tough to not keep “tasting” it. haha
Jen @ Jen's Favorite Cookies says
Wow, I bet you are SO glad this school year is over! And strawberry buttercream is definitely an INSPIRED choice. What a great way to celebrate graduation!
Maureen says
Congratulations on your son’s graduation, Lynne! I know you are so proud of him. That is another achievement for your family. And I love the cookies by the way. I love the fresh strawberry on top. It looks so lovely!
Sandra @ A Dash of Sanity says
Sugar cookies plus strawberries sounds amazing!! We are talking perfect pairing here. Plus, the fresh strawberry topping makes them extra special for a party. Pinning, Stumbling and Yumming!
Lynne says
Sandra, you’re a rock star, thank you! They turned out to be a very delicious combination and a recipe I’ll definitely be making again.
Julie says
Wondering if you could roll dough into logs and then just slice the dough after chilling? I just dont have the space to roll out the dough.
Lynne says
Julie, that’s a good question and when doing a Google search, I haven’t been able to find anything. I’ve never done it, so my suggestion would be to try it. If you do, please let me know! Sorry I can’t be of any more help.
Julie says
Update: I chilled the dough in log shape, then broke off dough and rolled it in a ball. Flattend dough with bottom of glass dipped in sugar to prevent sticking. Sprayed hands wit olive oil when rolling to prevent sticking to hands. Turned out very good.