If there is one dessert that screams summertime, it is most definitely strawberry shortcake. This recipe is vegan friendly and gluten free, serve with homemade coconut whipped cream.
Ahhhh, strawberry shortcake. I love you too much.
I am a chocolate girl through and through but summertime calls for fresh strawberries, shortcake biscuits and whip cream topping. Ya feel me?
There is just something about a good ole biscuit covered in juicy strawberries and cream!
And this vegan strawberry shortcake actually happens to be pretty healthy compared to how this dessert is traditionally made.
How is this Strawberry Shortcake Healthy?
We’re using whole grain flour for homemade biscuits versus the traditional biscuits or store-bought. (Gluten-free friendly.)
Fresh strawberries with little added sugar, in comparison to the traditional dessert.
Coconut oil versus traditional butter. (Vegan friendly.)
And coconut whipped cream versus ice cream or other heavy cream.
All in all, some more “wholesome” ingredients, if you will.
Your Ingredient List
- 1:1 all-purpose gluten-free baking flour OR whole wheat pastry flour (see recipe page for notes)
- baking powder & salt – this helps the biscuits rise and salt adds flavor
- coconut oil or vegan butter – either one will work!
- non-dairy milk & apple cider vinegar – to help the biscuit dough come together and rise.
- strawberries & sugar – fresh sliced strawberries and a little bit of sugar to help get the strawberries super juicy. You can also
- chilled full-fat canned coconut milk – chilled coconut milk will separate into cream and can be whipped for the topping. It’s delicious!
Strawberry Shortcake Recipe from Scratch
This simple strawberry shortcake recipe is very easy! The “hardest” part of the recipe is making the biscuits, but I promise it’s not difficult.
And homemade biscuits are so worth it!
Shortcake Biscuit Baking Tips
- To get the best possible biscuit texture, you’ll want to use frozen/cold coconut oil. (If not vegan you can use butter.)
- Scoop out three tablespoons of (butter flavored) coconut oil, put them in the freezer for about five minutes, and then cut them into pieces before adding them into the bowl with the rest of the dry ingredients.
- Use a dough blender to work the frozen coconut oil bits and dry ingredients together. (Alternatively you can use a food processor and pulse ingredients.)
- Next slowly add the homemade buttermilk until the dough comes together – it should be somewhat sticky and not crumbly.
- Use 1/4 cup measuring cup to scoop out the dough and gently shape into biscuits and place on a lightly greased or lined baking pan.
Prepare the Strawberries
While the biscuits are baking, combine the sliced strawberries with the sugar and allow the strawberries to get super juicy. You don’t need a ton of added sugar here, but the amount you add will be personal preference. I tend to stick on the lighter side.
Make the Coconut Whipped Cream
To make coconut whipped cream, the cans should be refrigerated for at least six hours. Be careful not to shake coconut cans because you don’t want the cream and liquid to mix.
Gently scoop out the cream (the hard white stuff) from the can and place in chilled mixing bowl. Do NOT add liquid – transfer to jar or bottle to use for smoothies.
Using whisk attachment of stand mixer or electric hand mixer, whip coconut cream for about 1 minute, then slowly incorporate powdered sugar before mixing on medium-high speed again. Transfer to medium bowl and place in fridge until ready to serve.
Assemble The Strawberry Shortcake
Once the biscuits have cooled completely, load em up with the juicy strawberries, whip cream and dive in!
I hope you love these as much as we do!
As always, I love hearing from you when you make a recipe. Leave a comment and a rating below to help others find the recipe too!
How to Make…
Vegan Strawberry Shortcake {gluten free}
A healthy strawberry shortcake is the best light dessert for the summer. This one is made gluten free and vegan, and actually pretty healthy. Easy homemade coconut whipped cream recipe included.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Diet: Vegan
- Yield: 6 1x
- Scale:
Ingredients
shortcake biscuits
- 2/3 cup non-dairy milk, cold (cashew, almond or canned coconut for richer texture)
- 1 TBSP Apple Cider Vinegar
- 3 TBSP coconut oil*, cold (butter flavored for more flavor)
- 1 1/2 cups gluten-free all-purpose 1:1 baking flour OR whole wheat pastry flour (plus a little more for hands if needed)
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3 TBSP granulated sugar (cane, coconut, sub stevia blend to taste)
strawberries
- 1lb fresh strawberries, sliced
- 1/2 TBSP coconut sugar, optional but makes extra juicy (dry sweetener of choice such as stevia may be subbed, to taste)
coconut whipped cream
- 2 13oz cans full-fat coconut milk or 1 13oz can coconut cream, chilled overnight or at least 6 hours
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1 vanilla bean, optional
Instructions
If making whipped coconut cream, cans must be chilled for at least 6 hours. You can also place a metal mixing bowl in the fridge or freezer to chill as well.
- Freeze coconut oil: Measure coconut oil into plastic wrapped lined bowl. Place coconut oil in freezer for at least 30 minutes, until solid and very cold. Once completely cold, place on cutting board and chop into pieces; set aside. (You can also mix dough in a food processor.)
- Combine milk and apple cider vinegar in glass measuring cup; set aside for 5 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 400ºF and line medium baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
- Make the biscuits: In large bowl combine flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Add in pieces of frozen coconut oil and use pastry/dough blender to combine. (Or pulse everything together in food processor bowl as mentioned above in post.) Slowly pour in milk about 1/4 cup at a time, mixing dough together with fork. Dough should come together at the end, being slightly sticky. If it seems dry, add 1/2 tablespoon of milk at a time. If the dough seems wet, sprinkle in about 1/2 tablespoon of flour and mix in. Scoop about 1/4 of dough and shape into biscuit rounds about 1″ thick, making 6 biscuits. Place biscuits on lined baking sheet; bake for 12-15 minutes. Remove after 5 minutes and place on wire rack to cool.
- Meanwhile, combine sliced strawberries with sugar in medium bowl to allow strawberries to get extra juicy; the longer they sit the more juices will release. You could also cut back on the sugar or omit sugar if you’d like.
- Make the coconut whipped cream: be careful not to shake coconut cans. Gently scoop out the cream (the hard white stuff) from the can and place in chilled mixing bowl. Do NOT add liquid – transfer to jar or bottle to use for smoothies. Using whisk attachment of stand mixer or electric hand mixer, whip coconut cream for about 1 minute then slowly incorporate powdered sugar before mixing on medium-high speed again. Transfer to medium bowl and place in fridge until ready to serve.
- Assemble shortcakes: Using bread knife, gently slice down the center of shortcake biscuits. Layer on strawberries, whipped cream and more strawberries (and more whipped cream if you’d like) and top with other shortcake half. Dig in!
Recipes Notes:
*Coconut oil should be cold for best texture. If not vegan/dairy-free, feel free to sub frozen cold butter.
Store leftover coconut cream covered in fridge. You can use excess in coffee or spread on toast with berries, etc.
Nutritional info approximate, does not include whipped coconut cream.
Nutrition Information:
- Serving Size: 1/6th
- Calories: 230
- Sugar: 11
- Sodium: 411
- Fat: 9
- Saturated Fat: 7
- Unsaturated Fat: 1
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 38
- Fiber: 2
- Protein: 3
- Cholesterol: 0
The Modern Proper says
These looks so yummy. I just had strawberry shortcake last weekend! It just feels like summer. I have never heard of someone putting milk on their strawberry shortcake. I HAVE however seen it on chocolate cake. I prefer ice cream myself but I think I can understand because those last few bites of chocolate cake with melted ice cream in the bottom of a bowl are irresistible!
Brittany Audra @ Audra's Appetite says
Strawberry shortcake is one of my summer favorite desserts! And my dad is gluten free…perfect timing for Father’s Day! 🙂
Laura says
This recipe didn’t turn out for me. They turned out as hard rocks for some reason. It could very well be my gf flour, I’m sure each produces a different result. I found I had to use a lot more flour than called for and due to that a lot more mixing which could make the batter much tougher in the end. I may try again with a different flour.
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Ashley says
different brands of gluten free flour have different blends – the “1:1 gluten free baking flour” is different than “all purpose gluten free flour” which will give you varied results with these biscuits. Sorry these didn’t quite turn out for you!
DD says
Fabulous!
★★★★★
Franziska says
They turned out fantastic! So so good! Thanks for a great recipe!
★★★★★