The sun is shining. Birds are chirping. My skin is going from translucent white to warm brown. Vegan strawberry shortcake is on my mind…it must be strawberry season!
I am grateful that we can find strawberries in the grocery store year round. But the taste of fresh summer strawberries? There’s nothing quite like it. They’re uniquely sweet. Have more flavor. And just taste better.
I love a bowl of strawberries fresh on their own. They can easily be the star.
And to make a strawberry-forward dessert that’s both easy and impressively indulgent, that’s where Strawberry Shortcake comes in.
It’s fitting that one week before the first day of summer is National Strawberry Shortcake Day (June 14). The quintessential time to scoop up strawberries at the Farmers’ Market, or visit a strawberry farm to even pick your own.
A little strawberry shortcake history
Strawberry shortcake has roots going all the way back to 16th-century England, where early “strawberry cakes” were made with sweetened biscuits or scones topped with berries and cream. By the mid-1800s in America, shortcake-style desserts had gained popularity, especially with fresh strawberries when they were in season.
There were even “strawberry shortcake parties” to celebrate the start of strawberry harvest—part potluck, part social event, part excuse to eat dessert. Over time, the treat evolved into the beloved layered dessert we know today: tender shortcake, juicy macerated berries, and soft whipped cream (we’ll make a dairy-free dream version, of course).
Build-your-own shortcake party
For Father’s Day, I’m having a build build-your-own shortcake bar, complete with the homemade shortcakes, both dairy and non-dairy homemade whipped creams, strawberries, and blueberries. There’s fun in customizing and each guest making it your own.
It’s worth noting that adding blueberries makes with a very red-white-and-blue U.S.A. festive dessert for occasions like 4th of July.
Can you really make strawberry shortcake vegan?
What, like it’s hard? YES you absolutely can. And it’s easy. The two differences between “regular” and vegan + dairy-free strawberry shortcake are:
- The butter: Instead of dairy butter, we’ll substitute plant butter.
- The cream: Cream in the biscuits makes them rich and fluffy. We’ll use a non-dairy heavy cream instead of dairy heavy cream.
That’s it! Depending on your adherence of veganism, you’ll also want to make sure to use sugar that isn’t processed through bone char. The easiest way to do this is to buy organic sugar.
Macerating the berries
Macerating is a fancy word that means to soften by soaking in liquid.
For strawberry shortcake, we’ll macerate the strawberries. And if you want blueberries, macerate the blueberries, too.
To macerate, simply combine the fruit with sugar and lemon juice. Then let them sit for 3 minutes or 3 hours. The longer it sits, the juicier they’ll get.
Baking tools I recommend
Here’s a quick rundown of the key tools that I use to make this recipe:
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Silicone spatula: Perfect for mixing and spreading.
- Kitchen scale: For precision and fewer dishes.
My favorite vegan and gluten-free ingredients
If you haven’t already, grab your free vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free ingredient cheatsheet—it has the list of ingredients I keep in my kitchen to bake Goodies that no one would guess are vegan and gluten-free. I buy just one type of gluten-free flour, for example. Once you have the essentials, you can bake anything that you (or those around you) are craving.
Note: This post contains affiliate links. I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you, helping to support my small business.
Now, let’s bake!
Vegan Strawberry Shortcake | Gluten-Free Option
Description
The quintessential summer dessert! Strawberry shortcake signifies the beginning of summer. No one would guess this recipe is vegan and dairy-free. Gluten-free option, too. Have a Strawberry Shortcake Party and celebrate this lovely season.
Ingredients
Shortcake Biscuits
Berries
Homemade Whipped Cream
Instructions
Macerate the berries
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Wash the strawberries (and blueberries if using).
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Wash and dry your lemon (I'd use organic). Then zest it. Set the zest aside for the shortcakes.
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Slice the strawberries, about 4 slices per strawberry (or quarter them). Place them in a large bowl. Then add the 50 g (1/4 cup) granulated sugar juice from one lemon. (Make sure to zest the lemon before juicing it). Use a spoon to toss them together. Cover the bowl and place in the fridge until you're ready to serve. The longer they sit, the juicer the berries will get.
Whip the cream
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Pour the non-dairy whipping cream into a large bowl. Using a stand mixer or handheld mixer, beat the cream on medium-high speed for about 2 minutes. It's done when you start to see streaks from the beaters in the cream. For a touch of sweetness, add 25 g (2 tbsp) of granulated sugar and mix in (optional).
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Then scoop the cream into a glass container and cover. Put the container in the fridge for at least one hour (or overnight).
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Watch closely while whipping—if you over-whip, it may separate into a grainy, watery texture. Stop when you see soft peaks forming.
Make the shortcakes
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Put the 50 g (1/4 cup) granulated sugar into a large bowl. Add the lemon zest. Then use your fingers to rub the lemon zest into the sugar. This helps release the natural oils from the lemon zest and enhances the flavor.
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Next add the flour, baking powder, and salt into the bowl with the lemon sugar. Whisk together so the ingredients are combined.
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Use a knife to cut the cold butter into chunks. Then add them into the dry ingredients. Use a pastry blender or two knives to cut the butter into the dry ingredients until your have a sandy-looking mixture. The butter chunks should be smaller than pea-sized and distributed throughout.
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Pour the 300 g (1 1/4 cups) of heavy cream into the mixture. Use a fork to swiftly, lightly mix in the cream. Switch to a rubber spatula to scrape the sides of the bowl. You'll end up with one dough ball that should stick together.
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Optional step: wrap the dough ball in plastic wrap in pop it in the fridge for about an hour (or overnight). This gives the butter a chance to firm up in case it got soft while mixing.
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When you're ready to bake, line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
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Take the dough ball out of the fridge and unwrap it. Use a large cookie scoop (or two spoons) to scoop 8 mounded dough balls onto the baking sheet. I do 4 rows of 2 and stagger the rows a bit.
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Sprinkle the tops with additional granulated sugar for extra crunch and sweetness.
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Bake the shortcakes in the preheated oven for about 18-22 minutes, until the edges look light brown. (Because we're using plant butter, not dairy butter, the biscuits overall won't turn a golden brown.)
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Set the baking sheet onto a wire cooling rack or hotpad for 10 minutes. Then remove the biscuits using a metal spatula to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Assemble
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Cut the shortcakes in half crosswise. Put a dollop of whipped cream on the bottom half. Spoon berries and juice over the whipped cream. Then top with the top of the shortcake. (Like you're making a shortcake sandwich.)
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Dig in!
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Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one week.
Note
I include both the volume (cups) and weight (grams/ounce) measurements in the recipe. I highly recommend baking by weight (i.e. 120 grams per cup of flour, rather than 1 cup of flour). It’s more accurate, consistent, and results in fewer dishes! That said, baking by volume is also wonderful. Do whatever is most convenient for you.
Gluten-free option: For gluten-free, substitute King Arthur measure-for-measure gluten-free flour in place of the all purpose flour.
For vegan butter, I use + recommend soy-free earth balance sticks, country crock plant butter sticks, or Violife plant butter.
For non-dairy whipped cream, the only brand I recommend is Silk.
