Strawberries and Cream Bars are made with a soft cookie like base, cream cheese fruit filling, and topped with a creamy glaze. Best fruit dessert bars ever!
I’ve made Strawberries and Cream Bars more times than I can count, with lots of variations. They make a full cookie sheet sized batch and are the BEST for parties and potlucks. This is such a cute Valentines dessert, but when I’m in the mood for something chocolate I make The BEST Fudgy Brownies. 
I start by slicing and dicing all of my strawberries and letting them sit with fresh lemon juice and sugar to release all of the yummy juices while I prepare everything else. Sometimes I do this ahead of time and refrigerate until I need them.
The dough is pretty simple, it’s a soft sugar-cookie like dough that easily rolls out. I lightly flour the rolling pin and top of the dough as I roll it straight into the pan. ALWAYS reserve a heaping cup of dough for the end to spread over the filling and strawberries! The nice thing is that if you forget and roll it into the pan, you can just remove some and roll the crust out thinner. No harm done!
Next, I make the creamiest filling to top the crust with. I found that using sour cream or plain greek yogurt worked better than using more cream cheese, it made the filling more creamy and less chewy and jelly like. 
After the strawberries have released their juices, I sprinkle them over the creamy filling and crust. I use the reserved cup of dough to spread in flattened pieces over the filling, it makes for less mess when serving. I like to make the icing while the bars are baking and put it in a small plastic ziploc bag. After the bars have cooled 15-20 minutes I snip a tiny hole in the corner of the bag and drizzle in an “X” shape across the bars for a pretty lattice glaze pattern. 
I kid not when I say that the Mancub has eaten his weight in these bars over the years. They’re one of his very favorite desserts!
How to customize these dessert bars:
- Try different fruits! Our favorites include raspberries, blueberries, peaches, and cherries.
- Use fresh citrus juice in the cream cheese filling and/or the glaze. I love to use lemon and orange juice.
- Top with walnuts, sliced almonds, or pecans for some extra crunch. So delicious!
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Strawberries and Cream Bars
Strawberries and Cream Bars are made with a soft cookie like base, cream cheese fruit filling, and topped with a creamy glaze. Best fruit dessert bars ever!
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, softened
- 2 cups white granulated sugar
- 3 eggs large
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 4-1/2 cups all purpose flour
For the filling:
- 4 cups diced strawberries
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 Tablespoons white granulated sugar
- 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt or sour cream
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 eggs large
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
For the icing:
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 Tablespoons whole milk OR lemon juice
- (optional) zest of one lemon
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare a standard cookie sheet by spraying with baking spray.
For the crust:
In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream together softened butter and white sugar 3-5 minutes until fluffy and creamy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each egg. Add vanilla and mix well.
Add salt, baking powder, and flour and mix on low speed until combined.
Reserve one heaping cup of dough for topping the bars.
Roll remaining dough into prepared cookie/baking sheet.
For the filling:
Combine strawberries, lemon juice, and 2 Tablespoons sugar in a medium bowl and let sit 5-10 minutes to release juices. Can be done ahead of time and refrigerated until ready to use.
In clean bowl of stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat cream cheese, plain greek yogurt, and sugar until smooth. Add eggs one at a time and mix well between. Add vanilla and mix well. Pour over crust and spread evenly.
Spread strawberry mixture evenly over cream cheese filling, being careful not to mix together. Spread 1 cup reserved crust dough evenly over filing in flattened pieces.
Bake @ 350 for 30 minutes, until middle is set and jiggly.
For the icing:
While bars are baking, combine powdered sugar, milk (or lemon juice), and vanilla. After bars have cooled for 15-20 minutes, drizzle over bars and allow to harden before slicing and serving. Best served at room temperature.
Recipe Notes
Store covered at room temperature for 1-2 days or refrigerated 2-3 days. Storing in the fridge can dry out the bars.
Inspired by The Recipe Critic
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