I am excited to share this delicious recipe with you today. It will make you say “Mmmmmm” out loud! It is Strawberry Mascarpone Shortbread Bars.
Strawberries. There are so many things you can do with them. You can eat them fresh, frozen, sliced, in pie, in a smoothie, in salad, in muffins, in bread, oh the list can go on and on. How do you eat your strawberries?
For this recipe I started with a classic shortbread and then layered mascarpone, then strawberries, and topped it off with real whipped cream and sliced almonds.
The shortbread is a nice stable base for this dessert. You can pick it up and eat with your hands or you can use a fork.
For the mascarpone I added almond extract, powdered sugar and some half and half. I whipped it for a couple of minutes to get some air in it to lighten it up. I’m really into almond extract right now. It adds a little something extra to whatever it is you are making. The almond extract is a nice compliment to the strawberries.
Mascarpone (pronounced mahs-car-POH-nay) is an Italian cream cheese. You can get it at any grocery store. I get mine at Trader Joe’s. They have it for a good price of $2.99 for 8oz.
You might also like this recipe for Pecan Shortbread.
I try to make all my recipes easy to make and not require a lot of time. This recipe hits that mark. What I like about this recipe is it can be made in stages and assembled when you have the time.
The Strawberry Mascarpone Shortbread Bars are a great dessert for Easter, Mother’s Day, a BBQ, or any day of the week. It is nothing fancy but your family and friends will think it is and they will ask you for the recipe and to make it again.
This recipe has gotten rave reviews from my family and my kids can’t get enough of it! That’s the best compliment to get! It is pretty darn good, but you be the judge. Leave me a comment and let me know how you liked it.
How to Prepare
- To make this dessert efficiently (I’m all about making the most of my time) I first prepare the shortbread.
- While it is baking I make the strawberry filling so it has time to cool.
- After I finish the strawberry filling I make the mascarpone filling.
- Once the shortbread has cooled I spread on the mascarpone filling. By this time the strawberry syrup has cooled so I stir in the strawberries and pour on top of the mascarpone.
Let it set for at least three hours and you have a wonderful dessert. Enjoy!
- 3/4 cup butter, unsalted
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 cup all purpose flour
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 8 oz mascarpone
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 1 Tbsp half & half
- 1 1/2 cup water
- 3/4 cu granulated sugar
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch
- pinch of salt
- 2 lb strawberries, washed and cut into bit sized pieces
- 3 oz powdered strawberry jello
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 Tbsp powered sugar ( add more or less depending on how sweet you like it)
- Preheat oven to 300°. Grease a 9x13 baking pan
- In a mixer, beat together butter and sugar for 2 minutes. Add in vanilla extract. Slowly add in flour and mix until combined.
- Pour dough into prepared pan. Using your hands spread the dough evenly throughout the pan.
- Bake for 30-40 minutes or until edges are slightly browned. Remove from oven and cool completely. Set aside.
- In a mixer beat together mascarpone, almond extract, and powdered sugar for 1 minute. Add in half & half and beat for another minute.
- Spread on top of shortbread once the shortbread has cooled completely.
- In a medium saucepan combine sugar, salt, cornstarch, and water. Cook on the stove on medium high heat until the mixture has thickened and coats the back of a spoon, stirring occasionally. Turn off heat and stir in jello.
- Remove from heat and let cool for 30 minutes.
- Stir in vanilla extract and strawberries. Pour this mixture over the mascarpone filling.
- Put in the refrigerator to set at least 3 hours or overnight.
- In a mixer with your whisk attachment whip the cream, vanilla, and sugar until stiff peaks form.
- To Serve: Cut into squares and top with whipped cream and sliced almonds.
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