When I was at Cub a few weeks ago, I was perusing their extensive extract collection. As one does. I found some strawberry extract, and I was immediately intrigued. Ordinarily, I would say that a fruit extract is a terrible idea, especially for something like strawberry. I think orange and lemon extracts are horrific. But I was hung up on the idea of strawberry extract, because I think there’s a clear difference between strawberries and fake strawberry taste. So… into my basket it fell. And now, I’ve got Strawberry Shortcake Cookies.
For years, I’ve been trying to land on a recipe for an ice cream cake that’s inspired by those classic strawberry shortcake ice cream bars. I’ll save my waxing poetic on those bar for that post, when I figure out my recipe. These cookies are the first step towards finalizing it. I’ve had the idea for ages, but never gotten around to it, and felt overwhelmed by options for how to do it. I thought it would be great to do a very gourmet, true strawberry take on the classic bars, to really elevate the flavors.
But then, seeing the strawberry extract made me wonder whether doing a sort of “fake” strawberry taste might lend itself to the nostalgic nature of those bars. So I had to experiment. With each experiment, I’ll get closer to the final idea.
As great as a gourmet treat is, I think there’s something special about elevating those nostalgic “fake”-y flavors. That’s kind of the appeal of Milk Bar, an idea that Christina Tosi has made trendy. And I appreciate it. The clear vanilla flavor of birthday cake? Why wouldn’t fake strawberry also feel incredibly nostalgic?
So I turned to those classic clear vanilla sugar cookies, made the frosting with strawberry extract, and then found a recipe for some crumble that looks very reminiscent of the crumb on the outside of the ice cream bars.
The crumb is made with vanilla pudding mix and strawberry Jell-o mix, which also adds to that fake-ish nostalgia flavor profile! I think the crumb will work great for whatever ice cream cake recipe idea I land on.
These are a very sweet concoction, as is to be expected, but I think it works. I think I’m on to something for the strawberry shortcake ice cream cake. Just stay tuned. In the meantime, these are an excellent, non-frozen dessert! And more proof that those sugar cookies can provide endless iteration.
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PinIngredients
For the Cookies:
- 1 sticks unsalted butter, room temp
- 3/4 cups sugar
- 1 tbsp glucose
- 1 egg
- 2 tsp clear vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups flour
- 1/3 cups milk powder
- 1 tsp cream of tartar
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 3/4 tsp kosher salt
For the Crumble:
- 1 3oz. package strawberry Jell-O mix
- 1 3 oz. package vanilla instant pudding mix
- 1 stick unsalted butter, divided
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, divided
For the Strawberry Frosting:
- 1 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1.5 to 2 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
- 1⁄8 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoons heavy cream
- 1–1 1/2 tsp Strawberry extract
- Pink food coloring, if desired
Instructions
Make the cookies:
- Combine the butter, sugar, and glucose in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and cream together on medium-high for 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the sides, add in the egg and vanilla extract and beat for 7-8 minutes.
- Reduce mixer speed to low and add in the flour, milk powder, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Mix just until the dough comes together – no longer than 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Using a 2 3/4 oz. ice cream scoop (1/3 cup measure) portion out the dough onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet – you should get 15-20 large balls of dough. Pat the tops of the cookie balls flat – wrap the sheet pan tightly in plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour or up to 1 week. Do not bake the cookies from room temp – they will not bake properly!
- Heat the oven to 350°F. Arrange the chilled dough at least 4 inches apart on the baking sheet and bake for 18 minutes – the cookies will puff, crackle and spread. The cookies should look lightly browned on the edges (golden brown on the bottom) – the centers will show just the beginning signs of color. If they haven’t reached that color yet, leave them in a for an extra minute or two. Cool the cookies completely on the sheet pans before frosting.
Make the crumb:
- In a small bowl combine the strawberry gelatin mix, 4 Tablespoons butter, and 1/2 cup flour. Using a fork to mix ingredients together until crumble forms. In another small bowl, combine the vanilla pudding mix, 4 Tablespoons butter, and 1/2 cup flour. Use a fork to mix ingredients together until crumble forms.
- Spread both the strawberry and vanilla crumble onto a lined cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicon baking mat. Bake at 350°F for 10 minutes. Allow to cool before using on cookies
Make the frosting:
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until soft, about 1 minute.
- Add 1.5 cups of the confectioners’ sugar, the salt, and strawberry extract. Beat on low speed until the sugar is well incorporated. Add the food coloring, if using.
- Add another ½ cup sugar and the cream. Add more sugar as needed to thicken the frosting. Beat on medium speed until the frosting is smooth and fluffy, about 4 minutes.
- Frost cookies generously. Fill a bowl with crumb. Place cookies frosting side down into bowl of crumb and press firmly to coat.
Notes
Crumb from Deliciously Sprinkled