Glazed Strawberry Lemon Sugar Cookie Bars

Nothing quite screams summer like fresh strawberries. Sure, you can usually find them year round. But in the summertime, they're perfectly juicy and sweet. Not like those off-season berries that are water-based. And packing them into a sweet treat makes them even more enjoyable!

The combination of strawberries and lemon in these bars makes an amazingly refreshing and light summer treat. The base of the bar is a sugar cookie, so it has a texture that just melts in your mouth. Then it's topped with a basic powdered sugar glaze that adds a special touch of extra sweetness. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

Bars:

• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup of room temperature butter
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 tbsp. lemon zest
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 cup diced fresh strawberries (don't use frozen) 

Glaze:

• 1 cup of confectioners sugar
• 2-3 tbsp. water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 8x8" pan with cooking spray and set aside.

For the bars: In a large bowl sift together flour, baking powder and salt.

In the bowl of your electric mixer cream sugar and butter together.

Mix in egg, lemon juice, zest and vanilla.

Mix in flour mixture.

Blot the diced strawberries with a paper towel to remove any excess moisture. Fold in diced strawberries by hand.

Press dough into the bottom of the prepared pan.

Bake for about 35-45 minutes or until a toothpick is inserted and comes out clean.

Let the bars cool before cutting and glazing.

For the Glaze: Whisk together powdered sugar and water, or enough water to get to your desired consistency. Pour over cut and cooled bars.

Source: Adapted from Bakaholic Mama