If you love the strawberry shortcake, then you will love the strawberry crunch topping recipe. Strawberry Crunch Topping can be made with just three ingredients and 5 minutes.
This recipe is a deliciously versatile dessert topping that can be used on everything from ice cream, yogurt, and protein fluff, to boxed cake mixes and cheesecakes.
This recipe guide will show you how to make strawberry crunch topping right from home and others tips you need to have a perfect recipe.
What is Strawberry Crunch Topping?

Strawberry Crunch Topping, also known as the strawberry shortcake crumbles, is easy to make crumble, perfect for adding to ice cream, cookies, cakes, pies, and more.
Moreover, this strawberry recipe uses only 3 ingredients and is ready in under 15 minutes.
It is fun reddish-pink color and adds a lovely pop of color and flavor to any of your desserts which does not use pudding mix or flour but golden Oreos.
The traditional strawberry shortcake crumbles look like the strawberry coating on the strawberry shortcake dessert bars from an ice cream truck day.
In addition, the toasty texture is delicious, and the strawberry flavor is more mellow.
This strawberry crunch topping recipe comes together in a matter of minutes in just one food processor bowl.
More so, they are delicious on just about any summer dessert or sweet treat, and you can use them as a topping for bowls of ice cream and Greek yogurt, stuff them in hulled strawberries, sprinkle them on strawberry crunch cakes, and more!
How to Make Strawberry Crunch Topping
In this section, we will talk about the equipment, ingredients, and how to make strawberry crunch topping.
Also, we will discuss two recipes types which are:
- Traditional Strawberry crunch topping, also known as oven-bake option
- No-Bake Strawberry crunch topping
Equipment Needed
You will need:
- Food Processor
- OR resealable bag and mallet or heavy rolling pin
Traditional Strawberry crunch topping, also known as oven-bake option
Ingredients Needed
- 22 Golden Oreos
- 1 Package Strawberry Jello Powder only!
- 4 to 6 tablespoons Salted Butter (melted and cooled, or more to taste)
- ¼ teaspoon of pure Vanilla Extract (optional)
Ingredient Substitution for Traditional Strawberry Crunch Crumbles
- Golden Oreos
This is a Vanilla shortbread with cream filling, the perfect base for this strawberry cake crunch topping.
However, you can substitute it with any generic vanilla sandwich creme cookie you prefer.
- Salted Butter
Salted butter helped in bringing out the rich and buttery taste.
It can be substituted with plant-based butter to make this dairy-free.
You can also use unsalted butter and then add kosher salt to taste.
- Strawberry Jello
You can substitute this with any generic brand of strawberry gelatin mix.
Aldo, You can experiment with other flavors like raspberry or blueberry if you prefer.
How to Make Traditional Strawberry crunch topping
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Add Oreos to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until roughly chopped.
- Sprinkle the strawberry Jell-O powder over the Oreos, then pulse twice to combine.
- Pour the melted butter over the mixture and pulse until thoroughly combined and the mixture resembles coarse crumbs
- Place the crumbles on the prepared baking sheet and arrange them in an even layer.
- Bake for about 7 to 10 minutes or until lightly toasted and fragrant
- Note: baking time depends upon oven strength and the amount of butter you use.
- Place the baking sheet on a wire cooling rack and cool completely to room temperature.
- Your oven baked strawberry crunch topping is ready for Use.
No-Bake Strawberry crunch topping
Ingredients Needed
- 26 Golden Oreos
- 1 ounce of package Freeze-Dried Strawberries
- 5 tablespoons of Salted Butter (melted and cooled)
- ¼ teaspoon of pure Vanilla Extract (optional)
- Cinnamon, Crushed Nuts or Crushed Candied Nuts, Sprinkles, Baking Chips (optional)
Ingredients substitution for No bake strawberry crunch crumble
- Golden Oreo Cookies
This is a perfect Vanilla shortbread with cream filling for this strawberry cake crunch topping.
It can be swapped with any generic vanilla sandwich cookie you prefer.
- Salted Butter
This helps in a rich, buttery taste.
You can use plant-based butter to make your crunch topping completely vegan.
You can also use unsalted butter with kosher salt to taste.
- Freeze-Dried Strawberries
You can make these crumbles in an assortment of flavors depending on what freeze-dried fruit you choose!
How to Make No-Bake Strawberry crunch topping
- Add the Oreos to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until roughly chopped
- Add the strawberries to the bowl and pulse a few times to combine.
- Sprinkle 5 tablespoons of melted butter over the crushed strawberry mixture.
- Pulse or stir until the mixture is just moistened and comes together.
- Stir in more melted butter, ½ tablespoon at a time, as needed.
- Don’t over-process if you want the mixture to resemble coarse crumbs
- Serve and enjoy or store for later!
Fruit Crunch Topping Variations
If you want more flavor, add a ¼ teaspoon of this flavor extract to the melted butter for an even deeper dessert flavor.
- Strawberry Vanilla: Use pure vanilla extract for the most delicious and distinctive warm, sweet flavor.
- Ultimate Strawberry: Use a few drops of strawberry extract to double down on the strawberry flavor.
- Strawberry Lemon Crunch: Add lemon extract to your mixture.
- Lemon Crunch Topping: Substitute the strawberry for lemon Jello mix and add lemon extract.
- Blueberry Cheesecake Crumbles: Use the freeze-dried strawberries for dried blueberries and add a splash of vanilla extract.
- Raspberry Crumbles: Use raspberry Jell-o powder by adding lemon extract or pure vanilla to boost flavor.
Cooking Information
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
Pro Tips for the best strawberry crunch topping recipe
- If you don’t have a food processor, place your golden Oreos into a resealable bag and use a rolling pin or the smooth side of a meat mallet to crush them.
Then transfer the crushed cookies to a medium bowl and proceed with the recipe.
- Don’t over-process or blend your strawberry cheesecake crumbles!
If you accidentally over-crush the Oreo mixture, remove the food processor blade and stir by hand.
- You can change the flavor of your crumble topping by changing out the jello powder.
Nutrition Information
- Calories: 140 kcal
- Carbohydrates: 16g
- Protein: 1g
- Fat: 8g
- Saturated Fat: 3g
- Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g
- Monounsaturated Fat: 3g
- Trans Fat: 0.2g
- Cholesterol: 10mg
- Sodium: 116mg
- Potassium: 21mg
- Fiber: 0.3g
- Sugar: 9g
- Vitamin A: 117IU
- Calcium: 7mg
- Iron: 0.5mg
How to Serve Strawberry Crunch Topping
You can try your strawberry crunch crumble recipe with:
- Frozen treats such as ice cream, strawberry milkshakes, and shortcake sundaes.
- Top of cake like white cake, strawberry cake, strawberry crunch cake, cake bites, and layer cake.
- Desserts such as sugar cookies, frosted cookies, cupcakes, and much more.
- Breakfasts include french toast, pancakes, yogurt parfaits, or smoothie bowls.
- Hull fresh strawberries, pipe in some cream cheese frosting, and sprinkle with strawberry crunch for an easy sweet hors d’oeuvres recipe.
- Strawberry shortcakes trail mix such as Maldon, Ground Cinnamon, Roasted nuts, Candied Nuts, Sprinkles or nonpareils, and Baking Chips or Chunks.
How to Store Leftover Strawberry Crunch Topping
You can store your leftover strawberry crunch topping in an airtight storage container for up to 2 weeks in the fridge.
You can also store the strawberry crumbles in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Conclusion
Strawberry Crunch Topping, also known as the strawberry shortcake crumbles, is easy to make crumble, perfect for adding to ice cream, cookies, cakes, pies, and more.
Moreover, this strawberry recipe uses only man 3 ingredients which are golden oreos, strawberry jello powder, and melted butter (salted or unsalted)
However, if you use unsalted butter, you must add kosher salt to taste.
In this recipe guide, we have discussed the two ways to make your strawberry crunch topping using the oven baked option and the baked option.
The traditional strawberry shortcake crumbles look like the strawberry coating on the strawberry shortcake dessert bars from an ice cream truck days.
In addition, the toasty texture is delicious, and the strawberry flavor is more mellow.
You can store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks in a fridge and up to 3 months in the freezer.
We hope you have fun trying this recipe.
Thank you for reading!
FAQS
Can I make vegan strawberry crunch topping?
Oreos are completely vegan, and you can swap in plant-based butter.
However, if you are using the traditional baked method, make sure to get a vegan “jel” brand like Bakol or Simply Delish.
Can I make gluten-free strawberry cake crunch crumbles?
Yes, you can! Use gluten-free Golden Oreos or other vanilla sandwich cookies, as the rest of the ingredients are naturally gluten-free.
What is the Difference between oven-baked and no-baked methods?
The Traditional Strawberry crunch topping (bake method) resembles the strawberry coating on Good Humor Ice Cream Bars, and the toasty texture is delicious.
However, the strawberry flavor is more mellow and subdued.
While the No-Bake Strawberry Crunch Topping is faster to prepare, there’s no heating up your kitchen!
This method produces crumbles with a strong, zippy strawberry flavor; however, it is missing that extra-special something the toasting gives the crumbles.
What is Strawberry Crunch topping made of?
Strawberry crunch topping uses Shortbread cookies, freeze-dried strawberries, and melted butter, but adding a little strawberry emulsion gives it that authentic flavor.