Strawberry Lemon Blondies ~ these easy strawberry blondies are moist and dense, (think soft shortbread) with plenty of little jammy pockets thanks to a cup of diced fresh strawberries in the batter. A hint of lemon gives these strawberry bars a bright, tangy vibe.
We’re baking strawberry lemon blondies on repeat right now!
If you could only have one strawberry dessert this season, these fruity little strawberry bars would have to be the one, they’re ridiculously easy to throw together and completely irresistible…take it from me, I had my fork in one before I could finish my photo shoot. That’s always a sign of a good recipe 🙂
TIP: baking softens, sweetens, and brings out the best in pre-season berries, so even before the really good strawberries start showing up at market, you can make fabulous strawberry desserts.
If you like your desserts soft and moist, I know these strawberry lemon blondies will appeal to you.
There’s nothing dry or crumbly about them, they melt in the mouth like a great blondie should. Only instead of nuts and chocolate you’ve got juicy strawberries and tart lemon. Yum.
Blondies are an art form here at tvfgi, and there’s a special place in my heart for unique recipes like my Banana Blondies with their amazing caramel frosting, or my Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Blondies. But sometimes you just need a little chocolate, am I right? In that case head straight for my Outrageous Chocolate Hazelnut Blondies or decadent Almond Butter Skillet Blondies.
The plush batter for these strawberry lemon blondies is thick but easy to work with. Take a minute to spread it out evenly in your pan so it bakes up nice and flat.
The pretty pink glaze is naturally colored
Blondies are pretty unassuming when they come out of the oven, but just wait. Let them cool down a bit, then drizzle on the tart glaze (I use a tablespoon of strained strawberry puree to create that pretty color naturally)…things are about to get interesting…
This is one strawberry dessert that is more than meets the eye. It’s all about that party in your mouth!
tvfgi recommends: a 9″ square ceramic baking dish
I recommend the 9″ size, and look for something with weight to it, like the one above. The side handles help when you’re trying to get it in and out of a hot oven.
Reader Rave ~
“You have gained a few fans! Made this for our Sunday night family gathering and everyone kept going back for more. I cut them into smaller pieces so everyone felt less guilty splurging 🙂  Thank you for a very yummy recipe.”  ~  Jen
Strawberry Lemon Blondies
Equipment
- 9x9 square baking pan
- parchment paper for easy removal optional
Ingredients
blondies
- 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
- 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup diced fresh strawberries
glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted, measure out your sugar before sifting.
- 1 Tbsp strawberry puree, you'll need about 2 large strawberries, instructions below.
- lemon juice, about 1 Tbsp, or just enough to thin the glaze to a spreadable consistency
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Line a 9 inch square baking pan with parchment paper with long edges. This is optional but will help you lift out the blondies for easy glazing and slicing later.
- Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in the egg.
- When the egg is fully incorporated, beat in the lemon juice. The lemon juice will probably not completely incorporate at this point, that's ok.
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt, and add to the wet ingredients, mixing until no more dry flour is present.
- Gently fold in the diced strawberries. Spread the mixture into your pan and spread out as evenly as possible. The dough is thick, so take your time. I like to use a large offset spatula for this job.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, just until starting to turn golden around the edges and the center is set. A toothpick inserted in the center will be moist but not wet. Don't over-bake these, or they will dry out. Let cool on a rack.
- Trim the strawberries for the glaze and puree in a small food processor. Strain the puree through a small strainer to get 1 Tbsp of puree. Whisk together the sugar, puree, and lemon juice until no lumps remain. If your glaze is too thin, add a touch more sugar. If it's too thick, add more lemon juice.
- Spread the glaze over the cooled blondies. Let the glaze set before slicing.
Video
Notes
- When you measure out the flour, first fluff the flour, then scoop it with your cup, and then level it without compacting it. This method helps insure an accurate amount.
- If you don't want to bother with the strawberry puree for the icing, just use lemon juice. I don't recommend using strawberry jam because it would be too sweet combined with the sugar.
- Do a little test before glazing your blondies. Â Spoon a bit of glaze on the blondies and see how it does...if it soaks right in it is too thin you can add more sugar. If it's too thick you can thin it down with more puree or lemon juice.
- For a variation, try this with diced rhubarb, blueberries, or raspberries. You could also use a combination of strawberries and rhubarb. Â
Nutrition
Thanks for pinning!
More strawberry desserts ~
Strawberry Shortbread Cookies
Easy Strawberry Cake
Strawberry Buttermilk Cake
The batter is a bit tough to spread out but it is worth the effort because the blondie is so perfect and yum. I reduced sugar to 110grams instead of 164. Still more than sweet enough. I only had 50g of icing sugar left so used less lemon juice and it was just fine, just not quite enough to cover the whole cake but I drizzled instead. Thanks so much.
Can’t wait to try! Question: Could frozen strawberries be used? Definitely prefer fresh, but they’re insanely expensive at the store right now, and I always keep frozen on hand.
Thanks!
Never mind, just saw that others asked the same thing and you answered, sorry :).
I made these and my batter was runny. I’m not sure where I went wrong but it just wont cook and the whole thing is just molten. Was so looking forward to eating this!
Did you use one stick or two of butter? This is actually confusing because the recipe says one cup OR two sticks…which are different amounts of butter. My guess is that this may have been the cause.
Each stick of butter is a half cup Kat, so it’s correct. Sticks can be confusing, especially if you live outside the US.
I converted the flour to King Arthur Gluten Free Cup for cup and they turned out beautifully. They did need the full 35 minutes as per the low and slow GF baking Motto. Great recipe!
Thanks SO much for that info Mary, other gf readers will love to know.
I just made these blondies but have yet to try them (although I am very excited!) I just taste tested my glaze and it tastes off even though I followed the recipe exactly. Any tips on how to make it taste better? Thanks!
Your recipe was very easy to follow. It was delicious and pretty. I just love to make anything with lemon. Anyway, I used baking powder from your ingredient list that you gave but on your video it said baking soda. Is either one ok? Thank you
Yes, the recipe is correct, Penn. I’m so glad you liked these 🙂
I really loved how these turned out! I typically only bake peanut butter or chocolate recipes and I’m so glad I tried something new. I can’t wait to bake these again and bring them to a spring or summer party!
Thanks for coming back to let us know Cassie!
I ended up with lemon extract and don’t know what to use it for. Do you think I could use it here instead of fresh lemons? What would the measurement be? And I would probably have to add in milk or something for moisture right?
I haven’t tried this, but you might try adding 1/2 teaspoon to milk and substitute it for the lemon juice. It’s not ideal, but might work.
Can I use frozen strawberries in the lemon strawberry Blondie’s?
You’ll need to chop them, so they will be quite juicy after thawing. You may need to drain them first.
I was afraid I overcooked the bondies, but after reading the comments it sounds like they r fine ?, thanks ?.
These were so moist and flavorful, just the right amount of sweet and tart.