Start by letting butter fully soften at room temperature for about an hour – you should be able to easily press your finger into it but it shouldn’t be melty. This makes a huge difference in how your dough comes together.

While the butter’s softening, finely chop your fresh strawberries. You want pieces about the size of small peas – any bigger and they’ll make your cookies too wet. Put them on a paper towel and gently pat them to remove some moisture.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. This helps prevent any lumps of baking soda in your final cookies (trust me, those aren’t tasty surprises!).

In a large bowl, cream softened butter and sugar together until it’s light and fluffy – about 3-4 minutes. You’ll see the color change to a pale yellow and it’ll look almost whipped. Don’t rush this step – it’s key for getting that perfect cookie texture.

Beat in the egg and vanilla until they’re just combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula to make sure everything’s mixed evenly.

Gradually add the flour mixture, about a third at a time, mixing on low speed just until you see the flour disappear. Over-mixing here will make tough cookies.

Gently fold in the chopped strawberries with a spatula. The dough will be pretty soft at this point – that’s normal!

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours. I know it’s tempting to skip this, but the dough needs to firm up so your cookies don’t spread too much.

When you’re ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350°F and line your baking sheets with parchment paper.

Scoop out rounded tablespoons of dough (about 1½ inches across), roll them in extra sugar, and place them about 2 inches apart on your baking sheets. The sugar gives them a lovely sparkle and slight crunch.

Bake for 11-13 minutes, or until the edges are just starting to turn golden brown and the centers look set but still soft. The key is to look for cookies that are slightly puffed up and no longer look wet or shiny in the middle.

Let them cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes – they’ll be too soft to move at first. Then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.