Italian Strawberry Filled Cookies

Soft, buttery and fruity, these Italian strawberry filled cookies are a sweet treat anytime of the year! Soft Italian cookies are sandwiched together with sweet strawberry jam and the result is melt-in-your mouth irresistible. 

Italian Cookies with a Strawberry Filling

A cross between my easy strawberry cookies and Italian sandwich cookies, these Italian strawberry filled cookies are the best of both worlds! Made with two buttery cookies sandwiched together with a sweet fruity strawberry jam filling, they are tender, flaky and delicious. 

True confession: I have never been much of a fresh strawberry fan except when I was pregnant with my daughter. After she was born, though, I went back to only liking them in sweet treats like this strawberry quick bread, strawberry cream cheese strudel and these strawberry jam sandwich cookies. 

These filled soft Italian cookies are perfect for strawberry season! They are made with a versatile buttery pastry dough that is often used for homemade Italian sweets like jam filled crostata pie, Italian apple pie and many of my easy summer desserts and then are filled with a fresh strawberry filling! They are perfect to celebrate spring, summer or enjoy anytime of the year. 

Why You’ll Love This Cookie Recipe

• Buttery: With a tender cookie crumb they just melt in your mouth!
• Fruity center: A yummy fresh strawberry jam filled fruity center is a sweet surprise when you take a bite!
• Crowd pleasing: Perfect for any holiday or gathering with friends and family.
• Simple ingredients: Made with a versatile soft Italian dough these delicious soft cookies are great to make anytime. 

Ingredients

• All-purpose flour: Adds structure to the cookies, with at least 11% protein, this will help keep the cookies from spreading.
• Sugar: White granulated sugar adds the best sweet taste.
• Baking powder: Gives the cookies a small lift and rise.
• Egg: One whole egg helps bind the ingredients together and an extra egg yolk adds moisture.
• Butter: Your butter will need to be softened to room temperature so remember to remove it from the fridge 45 minutes to an hour before using. 
• Vanilla extract: Pure vanilla extract for best taste. 
• Salt: Just a pinch, if you use unsalted butter add ¼ teaspoon salt.
• Strawberry filling: Chopped fresh strawberries, sugar and cornstarch. 

How to Make Strawberry Filled Cookies

In a large bowl, gently whisk together the flour, sugar and baking powder and salt. Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture and add the slightly beaten egg and yolk, the vanilla and cubed butter. 

Make your cookie dough by using a fork to mix together the ingredients until the dough slightly comes together, then turn out the mixture onto a lightly floured flat surface and work it gently to form a soft dough. Wrap your dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 30 minutes.

While the dough chills, make your strawberry filling. Add the strawberries, sugar and cornstarch to a medium saucepan and cook over medium heat until thickened. Remove from the heat to cool completely. 

Remove chilled cookie dough from the fridge to a floured surface and knead a couple of times to soften. Then working with only 1/2 the dough at a time, roll to ⅛ inch thickness and cut out with your preferred cookie cutters. 

In the middle of each cookie, add 1-2 teaspoons of strawberry filling and top with a second cookie. Seal the edges with fingers dipped in water.

Place your strawberry filled cookies on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake until lightly golden. Cool for 5-10 minutes on the baking sheet then move to a wire rack to cool completely, dust with powdered sugar before serving.

If you wish you could make individual tarts instead or some of each. Bake the tarts for a little longer.

Variations

• Make tarts: If you have leftover dough and filling, make small tarts similar to my strawberry puff pastry tarts. For reference, I made 10 jam sandwich cookies and three small tarts with the cookie dough. 
• Cut out shapes: If you would like the jam to peek out in your strawberry filled cookies, use a 1 inch cookie cutter to cut out shapes in the center of the top cookie. 
• Flavor of filling: Fill free to use a raspberry, apricot or peach filling.
• Thumbprint cookies: Not in the mood for a sandwich cookie then make a thumbprint cookie instead. Instead of cutting out your cookies, roll them into a small ball, make an imprint with your thumb and fill it with jam.
• Cookie base: Use a shortbread cookie, butter cookie or sugar cookie base instead.

Expert Tips

• Use your hands to mix the dough: Just like I once told my daughter when she helped make these strawberry filled soft cookies, you need to ‘use a little strength’ to gently knead the dough to come together, or you can make it with a food processor.
• Dust with powdered sugar: Right before serving dust with powdered sugar for a delicious melt in your mouth texture. 
• Cookie cutter shape: Use any shape you like! A heart for Valentine’s Day, a star for Christmas or use a round or fluted shape anytime of the year. 
• Use the tines of a fork to seal the edges: If you love a pretty presentation use the tines of fork to seal the edges. 
• Leftover cookie dough scraps: Make small jam sandwich cookies or small cut out cookies if you would like.
• Keep dough chilled: Work with only ½ the dough at a time and keep the other ½ chilled. It is not only easier to roll out the dough but helps keep the structure of the dough intact. 
• Amount of jam: Use up to 2 teaspoons of jam when filling these strawberry filled cookies. I find 1-2 teaspoons is optimal, but it really depends on the size of your cookies.

How to Store These Cookies

If they last that long you can store your baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days! I like to layer them with parchment paper to prevent sticking.

Strawberry Cookies FAQs

These cookies are perfect for serving at a party, sharing with friends, or simply enjoying as a special treat. Why not whip up a batch of these delicious cookies and savor the taste of summer or anytime of the year! Enjoy.

More Delicious Cookie Recipes to Try

If you love cookies then I am sure you are going to enjoy these Soft cherry cookies or Italian pinch cookies or one of our favorites Pistachio cookies!

Updated from May 17, 2015.