Strawberry – Brownie Mischief

Bakery-Style PB & J Cookies

Posted on August 23, 2025February 12, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

Many of us think of peanut butter & jelly as nostalgic comfort food. It brings back happy memories of childhood. A peanut butter & jelly sandwich in my school lunch box was a welcome favorite in the sandwich rotation. I created my ideal PB & J cookies with those nostalgic flavors in mind. These deluxe jumbo peanut butter cookies are worthy of packing in a grown-up lunch or enjoying as a comforting snack with a tall glass of ice-cold milk or with your favorite coffee drink.

These cookies are a generous 3-inch size, but you can make them smaller if you wish. Keep in mind that the baking time will be shorter for smaller cookies. My favorite way to make these cookies is with blueberry jam and fresh blueberries. The strawberry ones took a few attempts to get right due to the juiciness of the strawberries. The instructions for the strawberry version of these cookies are in the notes below. Feel free to use your favorite jam flavor and have fun experimenting with different fruits or berries.

Bakery-Style PB & J Cookies

Jumbo bakery-style peanut butter cookies filled with jam & fresh fruit

Print Recipe

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 12 3-inch cookies

Ingredients

1 cup (128g) all purpose flour, sifted
½ cup (57g) cake flour, sifted
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, room temperature
¾ cup (191g) creamy peanut butter
½ cup (100g) granulated sugar, divided
½ cup (100g) packed brown sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¼ cup (76g) blueberry jam or preserves
35-45 fresh blueberries

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper.
In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the all purpose flour, cake flour, baking powder and salt until well blended.
In a large bowl, beat the butter and peanut butter together, with an electric mixer on medium speed, until smooth. Place 2 tablespoons (25g) of the granulated sugar in a small, shallow bowl and set aside. Beat the remaining granulated sugar and the brown sugar into the butter mixture until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, then the vanilla extract until well incorporated. On low speed, beat in the flour mixture just until combined.
Chill the cookie dough in the refrigerator, just until easier to work with, about 15 minutes. Divide the dough into 12 equal portions, (about 60g each). Form the portions into balls, then roll them in the reserved granulated sugar. Place them about 2 inches apart onto the cookie sheets. Make indentations in each ball using a 1-inch pastry tamper or use your thumbs. Fill each indentation with about a teaspoon of jam, then top with blueberries.
Bake the cookies until the edges start to turn golden brown and the jam begins to bubble, about 14-15 minutes. (The cookies will spread, but if your cookies spread too much, you can shape the hot cookies when they come out of the oven by immediately placing a large round cookie cutter onto the cookie sheet over each cookie and slide it around in a circular motion a couple of times. (Or you can refrigerate the dough balls until firm prior to baking to help reduce spreading.) Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheets for 1 minute, then transfer them to a cooling rack.

Notes

To make the strawberry version of these cookies, replace the blueberry jam with strawberry jam. Optional: Cut out 12 strawberry hearts (as shown in the photo). Place the strawberries in a small bowl. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of sugar and let macerate for 20-30 minutes to draw out the excess juices. If you skip this step, the juice from the strawberries may make the centers of your cookies soggy. Drain the strawberries, pat dry, then place them on the cookies with the jam before baking.

Keyword cookies, jam, peanut butter

Chocolate Chip Strawberry Shortcakes

Posted on June 30, 2025March 20, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

Did you know that classic strawberry shortcakes have a tender biscuit-like texture? If you like vintage-style strawberry shortcake, you’ll love my grandma’s Chocolate Chip Strawberry Shortcakes. The addition of chocolate chips makes them extra delicious! Top them with a cloud of fresh homemade whipped cream and you’ll have the most delightful dessert to share with family and friends. They’re perfect for a spring or summer brunch and they make a delightful, refreshing dessert.

Chocolate Chip Strawberry Shortcakes

by Mari Vasseur

Soft, tender chocolate chip shortcakes topped with fresh sweetened strawberries and homemade whipped cream.

Print Recipe

Course Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 6 shortcakes

Ingredients

Macerated Strawberries

4 cups (567g) strawberries, hulled and sliced
¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar

Chocolate Chip Shortcakes

1 ¾ cups (223g) all purpose flour, sifted
3 tablespoons (38g) granulated sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
6 tablespoons (85g) cold, unsalted butter, cubed
¾ cup (177ml) cold buttermilk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
½ cup (85g) mini semisweet chocolate chips
Heavy cream or buttermilk for the tops of the shortcakes
Coarse sugar for the tops of the shortcakes

Whipped Cream

1 cup (237ml) cold heavy whipping cream
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons (15g) powdered sugar

Instructions

Macerated Strawberries

In a medium-sized bowl, stir the strawberries and sugar together. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes or up to a few hours.

Chocolate Chip Shortcakes

Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together until well blended. Work the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or with your fingertips until small pea-size pieces are formed. Stir in the mini chocolate chips.
In a small bowl, whisk the buttermilk and vanilla extract together. Stir this mixture into the dry ingredients just until a shaggy dough forms.
Turn the dough out into a lightly floured surface. Fold the dough over into itself a few times. Do not overwork the dough. Form the dough into a 1-inch thick, 6-inch diameter round. Cut out 6 rounds with a 2 3/4-inch floured biscuit cutter. Place them about 1 inch apart on the baking sheet. (It’s important to keep the dough cold. If your kitchen is warm, freeze the rounds for 5-10 min. before baking.)
Brush the shortcakes with heavy cream & sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake until golden, about 17-22 minutes. Immediately transfer the shortcakes to a cooling rack. Split the cooled shortcakes and top with strawberries and whipped cream.

Whipped Cream

In a large bowl, mix the heavy cream and vanilla, with an electric mixer on low speed. Sift the powdered sugar into the heavy cream and mix until combined. Turn the speed up to medium-high and beat until medium peaks form. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Keyword chocolate chip, shortcakes, strawberry

Little Chocolate Donuts

Posted on February 1, 2025February 12, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

Little chocolate donuts are a fun, nostalgic treat from my childhood. I’m talking about the ones at the local market that come in a plastic sleeve. I remember sharing the waxy little donuts with a friend, and at the time we thought they were delicious. Now that I’m an adult, I realize that homemade ones taste soo much better and they’re surprisingly quick and easy to make. They’re delicious with either naturally pink strawberry icing or chocolate glaze. I shared the recipe for both options below.

For Valentine’s Day, I used a heart-shaped mini donut pan for the donuts shown in the photo, but a standard round mini donut pan works too. A sprinkle of pink sparkling sugar makes them extra special, especially for Galentine’s Day.

Little Chocolate Donuts

Print Recipe

Course Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert

Servings 14 mini donuts

Ingredients

Little Chocolate Donuts

⅔ cup (85g) all purpose flour, sifted
3 tablespoons (17g) unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ teaspoon fine seat salt
¼ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup (100g) packed brown sugar
½ cup (115ml) vegetable oil or neutral oil of your choice
1 large egg
½ cup (128ml) buttermilk
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Strawberry icing or chocolate glaze recipes below
Pink sparkling sugar, optional

Pink Strawberry Icing

1 ½ cups (181g) powdered sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons (30ml) puréed strawberries, strained fresh or frozen
1 tablespoon (14g) unsalted butter, melted
1 pinch fine sea salt
1-2 tablespoons (15-30ml) whole milk, room temperature

Chocolate Glaze

6 tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter
4 ounces (113g) semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 teaspoons light corn syrup

Instructions

Little Chocolate Donuts

Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Spray a mini donut pan with nonstick spray. (I used a heart-shaped mini donut pan** but a standard round mini donut pan***works too.)
In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder and baking soda until well combined.
In a large bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, oil, egg, buttermilk and vanilla until smooth. Add the flour mixture and stir just until combined.
Transfer the batter to the donut pan, using a piping bag or a plastic food storage bag with the corner cut off. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the centers of the donuts comes out clean, about 6-8 minutes. Do not over bake or the donuts will dry out. Transfer the donuts to a cooling rack. Clean the pan and repeat with the remaining batter.

Strawberry Icing

In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, pureéd strawberries, melted butter, salt and 1 tablespoon (15ml) of milk until well combined. Add additional milk as needed to reach your desired consistency. Whisk until smooth. Dunk the top surface of the cooled donuts into the icing.

Chocolate Glaze

In a heat safe bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water, melt the butter, chocolate and corn syrup together, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly. Dunk the top surface of the cooled donuts into the glaze or spoon it over the tops.

Notes

*To find pink sparkling sugar, click here.

**To find the heart-shaped mini donut pan I used, click here.

***To find a standard mini donut pan, click here.

Keyword chocolate, donuts

Strawberry Blondies

Posted on April 19, 2024February 12, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

These golden, buttery bars have soft, chewy centers and crisp edges. They’re studded with fresh strawberry chunks and white chocolate chips. They’re perfectly delicious as is, but I drizzled them with fresh strawberry icing, which is the supreme finishing touch. They contain the perfect amount of salt which balances the sweetness of the white chocolate chips. Macerating the strawberries before baking draws out the excess liquid and helps to prevent soggy blondies, so don’t skip this step.

Strawberry Blondies

Golden, buttery blondies with fresh strawberries and white chocolate chips

Print Recipe

Course Dessert

Servings 16 2-inch squares

Ingredients

Strawberry Blondies

1 cup (142g) chopped strawberries 1/2-inch pieces
¼ cup (50g) plus 2 teaspoons granulated sugar, divided
1 ½ cups (193g) all purpose flour
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
¾ teaspoon baking powder
1 cup (200g) packed brown sugar
¾ cup (170g) unsalted butter, melted
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
½ cup (85g) white chocolate chips

Strawberry Icing

3 medium or 2 large strawberries, hulled
¾ cup (90g) powdered sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon (14g) unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Tiny dash fine sea salt

Instructions

Strawberry Blondies

Place the chopped strawberries in a medium bowl. Sprinkle with 2 teaspoons of sugar and mix well. Let stand for 30-45 minutes, then drain the excess juices.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving a couple of inches of overhang to serve as handles to lift the blondies out of the pan.
In a separate medium-size bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt until well combined.
In a large bowl, whisk together the remaining 1/4 cup (50g) of sugar, the brown sugar, melted butter and vanilla until smooth. Add the egg and the egg yolk and whisk until smooth and well combined, about 2-3 minutes. Stir in the flour mixture, just until combined. Fold in the white chocolate chips and the strawberries.
Transfer the batter to the prepared baking pan. Bake until the top looks golden brown all over and a toothpick inserted into the center of the blondies comes out with a few moist crumbs on it, about 28-33 minutes. Let cool completely in the pan.
Remove the cooled blondies from the pan and cut into squares.

Strawberry Icing

Finely chop, then mash the strawberries. Press the mashed strawberries through a sieve, using the back of a spoon or press the strawberries through a food mill. Whisk together the strawberries, powdered sugar, melted butter, lemon juice and salt until smooth. Drizzle over the cooled brownies.

Keyword blondies, strawberry

Strawberry Swirl Cake

Posted on April 10, 2024February 12, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

This soft, incredibly moist cake is a happy experiment that successfully combines my favorite strawberry cake with cinnamon roll cake. Instead of cinnamon sugar, it has a swirl of strawberry sugar. It’s bursting with fresh strawberry flavor and it’s so good it doesn’t even need frosting. But of course, I added strawberry cream cheese icing, in the tradition of cinnamon roll cake, which takes it over the top.

Strawberry Swirl Cake

Fresh strawberry cake with a strawberry sugar swirl and strawberry cream cheese icing

Print Recipe

Course Dessert

Servings 6 servings

Ingredients

Strawberry Swirl

⅓ cup (10g) freeze dried strawberries Not dried strawberries
⅓ cup (66g) granulated sugar
2 teaspoons all purpose flour
3 tablespoons (43g) unsalted butter, melted
Small dash fine sea salt
1 tablespoon (15ml) lemon juice

Strawberry Cake

¾ cup (170g) puréed strawberries
1 cup (128g) all purpose flour, sifted
¾ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
¼ cup (55ml) vegetable oil or neutral oil of your choice
1 large egg
1 large egg white
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
½ teaspoon pure strawberry extract
1 drop pink gel food coloring Optional
⅓ cup (75g) sour cream

Strawberry Cream Cheese Icing

2 tablespoons (28g) cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon (14g) unsalted butter, softened
½ cup (60g) powdered sugar, sifted
2 teaspoons strawberry reduction Reserved from cake recipe
1 tablespoon (15ml) buttermilk or whole milk

Instructions

Strawberry Swirl

In a small food processor or a clean spice grinder, pulse the freeze dried strawberries to break them up a bit. Add the sugar and process to a fine consistency. Strain the sugar mixture through a sieve into a bowl. Mix in the flour, melted butter, salt and lemon juice until well combined.
Transfer the mixture to a piping bag fitted with a medium round tip. I used an Ateco #12 tip.** Alternately, you can snip the corner off a disposable piping bag or food storage bag, creating a 3/8-inch wide opening.

Strawberry Cake

In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, simmer the puréed strawberries until reduced by half. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Line the bottom of an 8-inch round cake pan*** with parchment paper. Grease and flour the inside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
In a large bowl, beat the sugar, oil, egg, egg white, and extracts, with an electric mixer at medium speed, until smooth. Alternately, you can whisk the mixture together by hand until smooth. Stir in 1/3 cup of the cooled strawberry reduction and the food coloring. (Reserve the remaining strawberry reduction for the icing.)
Stir the flour mixture into the batter, in 2 additions, alternating with the sour cream. Mix just until combined. Transfer the batter to the cake pan.
Pipe the strawberry swirl mixture onto the batter in a spiral pattern. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 25-30 minutes.
Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer it to a cooling rack.

Strawberry Cream Cheese Icing

In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter together until smooth. Add the powdered sugar and strawberry reduction and beat until smooth and well combined. Whisk in the buttermilk a little at a time until your desired consistency is reached. Drizzle over the cooled cake.

Notes

*To find the food coloring I used, click here.

**To find the piping tip I used, click here.

***To find the cake pan I used, click here.

Keyword cake, strawberry

Strawberry Crumb Cake

Posted on February 12, 2024February 12, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

Strawberry Crumb Cake

Tender vanilla crumb cake topped with fresh strawberries, plenty of crumb topping and fresh strawberry icing

Print Recipe

Course Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert

Servings 8

Ingredients

Crumb Topping

¾ cup (96g) all purpose flour
⅓ cup (66g) granulated sugar
2 tablespoons (25g) packed brown sugar
⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
4 ½ tablespoons (64g) cold, unsalted butter, cubed

Cake

1 ¼ cups (160g) all purpose flour, sifted
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
⅜ teaspoon fine sea salt
6 tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, softened
¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
⅓ cup (78ml) whole milk
¼ cup (57g) sour cream
1 cup (142g) chopped strawberries (1/2-inch pieces)
fresh strawberries for garnish optional

Fresh Strawberry Icing

¾ cup (90g) powdered sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons puréed strawberries
1 tablespoon half and half

Instructions

Crumb Topping

In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, sugar , brown sugar and salt together.
Work in the butter with your fingertips until the mixture looks like wet sand. Press it together to form chunks. Set aside in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Cake

Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Line the bottom of an 8-inch cake pan with a removable bottom or an 8-inch springform pan, with parchment paper. Grease and flour the insides or line with a strip of parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed, until light and fluffy.
Beat the egg, egg yolk and vanilla into the butter mixture in 3 separate additions, making sure each addition is incorporated before adding the next.
In a small bowl, whisk the milk and sour cream together. On low speed, mix the flour mixture into the batter in two additions alternating with half of the milk mixture. Beat just until combined.
Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Smooth the batter with a spatula. Place the strawberries evenly on top of the batter. Sprinkle the crumb topping over the top.
Bake until the topping is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 48-55 minutes. Do not over bake. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove it from the pan and transfer it to a cooling rack.

Fresh Strawberry Icing

In a medium bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar and puréed strawberries. Add the half & half a little at a time until your desired consistency is achieved. Whisk until smooth. Drizzle over the cooled cake.

Notes

To find the cake pan I used, click here.

Keyword cake, strawberry

Strawberry Iced Madeleines

Posted on February 10, 2024February 12, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

Strawberry Iced Madeleines

Perfect heart-shaped madeleines with fresh strawberry icing

Print Recipe

Course Dessert

Servings 20 madeleines

Ingredients

½ cup (113g) plus 2 tablespoons (28g) unsalted melted butter, divided
zest of 1 medium lemon
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons (110g) all purpose flour, sifted
¼ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
2 large eggs, room temperature
½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
1 cup (120g) powdered sugar, sifted
2 1/2-3 tablespoons puréed strawberries

Instructions

In a small bowl, mix together 1/2 cup (113g) of the melted butter with the lemon zest and vanilla extract. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside
In a large bowl, beat the eggs and granulated sugar, with an electric mixer at medium-high speed, to ribbon stage, about 8 minutes. The batter should look thick, voluminous and light in color.
Sift the flour mixture into the egg mixture in 2 additions, gently folding it in just until combined.
Gently fold the butter mixture into the batter in 3 additions. Cover and refrigerate the batter for 30-45 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Brush the molds of a heart-shaped madeleine pan* with melted butter, making sure to get butter into all of the crevices.
Scoop about a generous tablespoon of batter into each of the molds. Bake until the tops are puffed and springy and the edges start to turn light golden brown, about 8-10 minutes. Transfer the madeleines to a cooling rack.
To make the icing, whisk the powdered sugar together with 1 tablespoon of melted butter and 2 tablespoons of puréed strawberries in a medium bowl. Add more of the puréed strawberries until your desired consistency is achieved.
Brush the scalloped side of the cooled madeleines with the strawberry icing, using a small pastry brush. (Alternately, you can thin the icing with a bit of milk and dunk one side fo the madeleines into the icing.

Notes

To find the heart-shaped madeleine pan I used, click here.

Keyword madeleines, strawberry

Double Strawberry Mini Muffins

Posted on June 21, 2023February 12, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

These cute little pink muffins are the strawberriest muffins ever. I had to use a word that’s not even in the dictionary to describe them because these little gems are bursting with strawberry flavor. They’re made with fresh strawberry purée and finished with homemade strawberry sugar. The strawberry purée helps to make the muffins soft and moist on the inside and the strawberry sugar gives a nice crunchy texture and a bright strawberry flavor on the outside.

The strawberry sugar is made by pulverizing freeze dried strawberries together with sugar. Freeze dried strawberries are not the same as dried strawberries. You can find freeze dried strawberries at grocery markets, gourmet stores and online. They’re typically located near the nuts and dried fruit in most markets.

To watch the Instagram video of Double Strawberry Mini Muffins click here.

Double Strawberry Mini Muffins

Strawberry Mini Muffins Coated in Homemade Strawberry Sugar

Print Recipe

Servings 24 mini muffins

Ingredients

1 cup (200g) plus 2 tablespoons (25g) sugar, divided
½ cup (14g) freeze dried strawberries not dried
1 ½ cups (191g) all purpose flour, sifted
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
⅓ cup (74ml) vegetable oil
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
½ teaspoon pure strawberry extract
½ cup (118ml) strawberry puree
2 pea size drops pink gel food color optional
6 tablespoons (85g) butter, melted

Instructions

Combine the freeze dried strawberries and 2 tablespoons (25g) of sugar in a small food processor or a clean spice grinder. Process until finely ground. Add 1/2 cup (3 1/2 oz or 100g) of sugar and pulse a few times until well combined. Place the strawberry sugar in a shallow bowl and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Grease and flour a 24-serving mini muffin pan.** Do not skip this step and do not use liners. The muffins need to form a crust on the outside so they don't soak up too much butter in the final step.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt
In a large bowl, whisk together the remaining 1/2 cup (100g) of sugar with the oil, egg and extracts until smooth. Whisk in the strawberry purée until well combined.
Stir in the flour mixture with a rubber spatula, just until combined. The batter will be thick.
Transfer the batter evenly into the prepared muffin pan cups.
Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean, about 10-12 minutes. Do not over bake! Be diligent, since over baking can happen very quickly with mini muffins.
Let the muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Turn the muffins out onto a cooling rack. Place the melted butter in a small bowl. Dunk the warm muffins briefly in the melted butter, then roll them in the strawberry sugar.

Notes

To find the gel food color I used, click here.

To find the mini muffin pan I used, click here.

Keyword muffins, strawberry

Strawberry Sweetheart Brownies

Posted on January 18, 2023February 12, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

At the Brownie Mischief website, all types of brownies are welcome. We all know and love chocolate brownies. But there are other less common brownies in the universe, that deserve to shine too. Let me introduce you to Strawberry Sweetheart Brownies. These lovely pink creations aren’t strawberry cake or strawberry blondies. They contain white chocolate and they’re made with the same baking method as brownies. When you bake chocolate brownies, you want to be careful not to over bake them, to achieve the rich, fudgy texture. The same is true for these strawberry brownies. When you test for doneness, the toothpick should have a few moist crumbs attached to it. If the toothpick is clean, the brownies have baked too long and will likely be a little dry and cakey, although still edible. So make sure to test for doneness well before the end of the baking time!

The baking temperature for this recipe is 325ºF. I noticed that when baking in a heart shaped cake pan, things tend to bake unevenly because of the shape. So I used a lower temperature to help with even baking. If you don’t have an 8-inch heart shaped cake pan, you can also use an 8-inch round cake pan. To find the cake pan I used, click here.

To watch the Strawberry Sweetheart Brownies Instagram video, click here.

Strawberry Sweetheart Brownies

A heart shaped strawberry brownie made with fresh strawberries topped with strawberry icing.

Print Recipe

Course Dessert

Servings 8

Ingredients

Strawberry Brownies

7 tablespoons (3 1/2 ounces) unsalted butter, cubed
6 ounces white chocolate, finely chopped
¾ cup (5 1/4 ounces) sugar
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
1 large egg
2 large egg yolks
½ cup (4 ounces) strawberry purée, divided
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
½ teaspoon pure strawberry extract
1 petite pea size drop pink gel food color (optional) I used Americolor Deep Pink**
1 ½ cups (6 3/4 ounces) all purpose flour, sifted

Strawberry Icing

¾ cup (3 ounces) powdered sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons reserved strawberry purée
¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon pure strawberry extract
dash fine sea salt

Instructions

Strawberry Brownies

Preheat oven to 325ºF. Line the bottom of an 8-inch heart shaped cake pan*** with parchment paper. Spray the insides with nonstick spray.
In a large heat safe bowl, melt butter and white chocolate together on the stovetop over a pan of barely simmering water or in the microwave for 20 seconds at time, stirring at each interval. White chocolate overheats easily, so be vigilant.
Add the sugar and salt to the butter mixture and mix until well combined.
Add egg and egg yolks. Whisk until smooth.
Pass strawberry purée through a sieve to remove seeds. Set aside 2 tablespoons of strawberry purée for icing. Add remaining purée to batter. Mix until well combined.
Add extracts and food color. Mix until combined.
Stir in flour until combined, scraping bowl as needed.
Transfer batter to prepared pan. Bake until toothpick inserted in center has a few moist crumbs on it, (not batter), about 25-30 minutes. Do not over bake. Let cool in pan. Remove from pan and top with strawberry icing.

Strawberry Icing

Whisk all icing ingredients together until smooth and well combined.

Notes

*To make strawberry purée: Purée clean, hulled and quartered strawberries in a blender or food processor. **To find the food color I used, click here. **To find the heart cake pan I used, click here.

This recipe was updated on January 24th, 2023

Keyword brownies, strawberry