Sugar Cookie Sandwiches: These frosting filled cookie sandwiches are filled with a strawberry buttercream that’s easy to make, using simple ingredients!
Quick Overview: Use a sugar cookie mix to speed things up and make this homemade frosting using only butter, strawberry fruit spread (or jam), and powdered sugar. (And sprinkles if you prefer!)
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Tastefully Simple®, however, the opinions and text are all mine!
At Christmas time, sandwich cookies are super popular but I absolutely LOVE them for any time of year, and even Valentine’s Day! If desired, they’re an easy recipe and so fun to customize with sprinkles to match a party or special occasion that you’re hosting or to use Christmas sprinkles for a holiday theme!
For this recipe, we wanted to tie in our favorite strawberry flavors, to make a strawberry buttercream filling but if you prefer chocolate filling, you can use this chocolate buttercream recipe!
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Ingredients
You can make your own sugar cookie recipe but honestly, for sugar cookie sandwiches, I prefer the Tastefully Simple® Ah, Sugar Sugar!™ Cookie Mix because:
- It’s easier.
- They’re the perfect combo of a crispy edge and create soft sugar cookies (which is important because when you’re biting in to a cookie sandwich that has cream filling, you don’t want a super hard, crispy cookie that will be hard to bite in to, causing the cream to go everywhere).
COUPON CODE: Use code FTS10 on Tastefully Simple® to get 10% off of online purchases until December 31, 2021.
See the full recipe card with ingredient amounts and instructions toward the bottom of the post!
Sugar Cookies
So if you’re using this sugar cookie mix, you’ll need:
- sugar cookie mix (plus required ingredients)
- butter (Tastefully Simple® sugar cookie mix ingredient)
- milk (Tastefully Simple® sugar cookie mix ingredient)
Cookie Filling Ingredients
For the strawberry filling, there is nothing better than this quick, homemade strawberry buttercream recipe. It’s smooth, is the perfect consistency for a cream center and the flavor is out of this world!
Here’s what you’ll need:
- strawberry spread or jam (We used Tastefully Simple® Rhubarb Strawberry Fruit Spread)
- powdered sugar (or confectioners’ sugar)
- butter
- sprinkles, if desired
Again, we prefer the Tastefully Simple® Rhubarb Strawberry Fruit Spread for this recipe too because it’s really smooth to work with, and it’s not SUPER sweet like some brands you get from the store.
Tastefully Simple® Fruit Spread Powdered sugar, fruit spread, butter
See the recipe card for full details, ingredients, and instructions, all in one place!
Instructions
- First, preheat your oven to the temperature recommended by your sugar cookie recipe or sugar cookie mix. For the Tastefully Simple® Ah, Sugar Sugar!™ Mix, it’s 350°.
- Next, prepare your baking sheet. We use the Tastefully Simple® Baking Mat but you can use parchment paper or place the cookies right on a baking sheet.
(The orange cloth you see pictured below, is the cleaning cloth that comes with the baking mat for best results for caring for the mat.)
- Mix together the sugar cookie mix, according to package directions.
- Roll out SMALL sugar cookies, in to about 1 inch balls. (It may feel a little odd to make them so small but when filling with frosting, and topping with another sugar cookie, you’ll be glad you made the cookies smaller.)
- Place the sugar cookie balls on the baking sheet, about 2 inches apart and bake cookies according to package directions.
How to Make Strawberry Buttercream
- Making sure your butter is softened, add the butter and fruit jam (or spread) to a mixing bowl and cream butter with jam until evenly mixed, using a stand mixer or a hand, electric mixer until evenly combined.
Butter and Fruit Spread Butter and Fruit Spread Mixed
- Next, add in the powdered sugar and mix together on low speed, until you no longer see powdered sugar and it is evenly mixed. (You may need to stop the mixer so you can scrape down the sides of the bowl of a stand mixer half way through, mixing to incorporate all of the powdered sugar.)
Add in powdered sugar Strawberry Frosting
How to Assemble Sugar Cookie Sandwiches
- When the cookies are finished baking, allow them to fully cool on cooling rack, before piping on the filling, or this could cause the buttercream to thin out and/or melt.
- When ready, place the strawberry frosting in to a piping bag (or you can simply spread on the filling if you do not feel comfortable using a piping bag), and pipe about a tablespoon of frosting on to the bottom of one cookie.
Sugar cookies for filling Strawberry Frosting on Cookie
- Next, grab the second cookie and place the bottom side of the cookie on top of the buttercream, creating a frosting-filled cookie sandwich.
- Gently push down to allow the creamy filling to push to the edges, so the buttercream is flush with the sides of the cookies.
Sprinkle Cookies
If you prefer to decorate your sugar cookie sandwiches, you can carefully (do not squeeze the cookie too hard, as too much of the buttercream frosting could “ooze” out and drip down) pick the cookie sandwich up, turn sideways and gently roll the sandwich sideways in to a small dish of sprinkles… where the sprinkles will “stick” to the frosting. (See images below.)
For Christmas, the red and green sprinkles look amazing paired with the pink frosting! Or, use your favorite colors of sprinkles for any type of look!
When you take a bite, the soft sugar cookie will “give”, allowing a delicious bite of cookie and frosting all in one bite!
Can I use different cookies for this recipe?
Of course! Tastefully Simple® also has my favorite Peanut Butter Bliss™ Cookie Mix that gives a soft, perfectly round cookie, that’s delicious with this strawberry buttercream filling.
You can also use other popular cookies such as snickerdoodle cookies or gooey butter cookies!
Storage
If you have leftover sugar cookie sandwiches, it is recommended to refrigerate them, in an airtight container, since the buttercream filling is made with butter and fruit spread, which normally recommends refrigeration.
Expert Tips and FAQ’s
- When rolling out the sugar cookies, try to keep them as close to the same size as possible. Since you will be assembling them in to “sandwiches” it’s easier if the two cookies are close in size, so the filling won’t overlap.
- Make sure the sugar cookies have fully cooled before assembling or the warm cookie could cause the buttercream to “thin out”, resulting in a mess.
You can use food coloring for the filling but we didn’t find it necessary as we loved the color the strawberry fruit spread provided.
Absolutely! Once assembled, simply freeze the cookie sandwiches in an airtight container and enjoy frozen!
If you prefer, you can leave them without sprinkles or use something else such as mini chocolate chips, nuts, or crushed candy pieces.
Sugar Cookie Sandwiches
Ingredients
- sugar cookie mix & the ingredients required on package You'll be making sugar cookies according to the package directions, as all cookie mixes can be different. (We use Tastefully Simple® Ah, Sugar Sugar® Cookie Mix)
- 1 cup butter 2 sticks (salted or unsalted)
- 1/2 cup strawberry fruit spread or jam We use Tastefully Simple® Rhubarb Strawberry Fruit Spread
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- sprinkles if desired
Instructions
Sugar Cookies
- Preheat oven to the temperature the sugar cookie mix directions call for.
- Make sugar cookie dough according to package directions. STOP following directions, once dough has been created, just before rolling.
- Using curved hands, roll sugar cookie dough in to about 1 inch balls, creating smooth, even balls of dough. (Ideally, you'll want them to be the same size as possible, as you'll be pairing them together for sandwiches.)NOTE: They may look and feel really small before baking but you don't want really large cookies when making sandwich cookies.
- Bake the cookies according to the package directions, (we baked them for 13 minutes for Tastefully Simple® Ah, Sugar Sugar!® Mix)
Strawberry Buttercream Filling
- While cookies are baking, using a stand mixer or hand mixer, mix together the butter and fruit spread until evenly mixed.
- Slowly, and in small batches, add in the powdered sugar to the butter/jam mixture, turn the mixer on "low", and gently mix together until evenly combined. NOTE: You may need to stop mixing halfway, to scrape the inside of the mixing bowl to incorporate any powdered sugar that needs mixed in.
Assemble the Cookie Sandwiches
- Remove the cookies from the oven and allow them to cool completely before adding frosting.
- If desired, place strawberry buttercream in to a piping bag with a wide tip. (This is not required. You can easily spread the frosting on to the cookies if that's easier.)
- Once cookies have cooled completely, turn one sugar cookie upside down, with the bottom of the cookie facing up. Pipe on (or spread on) about a tablespoon of strawberry buttercream in to the center of the cookie.
- Top with another cookie (placing the bottom of the cookie on top of the buttercream) creating a cookie sandwich.
- Gently push town to allow the buttercream to push to the edges, so the buttercream is flush with the sides of the cookies.
If Sprinkles are Desired
- If decorating the sugar cookie sandwiches, after piping, carefully roll sides of cookie sandwiches in to a small dish that's filled with your favorite sprinkles.
Rebecca Hubbell says
Had a box of this mix in the pantry and was looking for a fun way to spice it up, this was such a fun idea and my daughter loved making them with me!
Jessica says
Yay!! That’s so great to hear. Thank you so much for trying this sugar cookie sandwich recipe and for letting us know!
Stephanie says
Nice twist on a box mix! So cute and tasty!
Jessica says
Awww, thank you so much Stephanie! So glad you liked them too!
Dana says
The strawberry buttercream is truly delicious. I think these will look stunning on my Christmas cookie tray this year!
Jessica says
Oh good Dana!! Thank you so much for letting us know!