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The BEST Strawberry Shortcake recipe that’s vegan, dairy free, and so easy to make! Perfect for strawberry season!
The shortcake requires just SIX simple ingredients and the whole thing requires just a few quick minutes of work! SO GOOD and so ridiculously simple!
For each quarter, I sit down and make a list of recipes that I want to work on for the coming months. They’re largely based on seasonality and I find spring SO inspiring. That being said, I had absolutely no intention of posting a strawberry shortcake recipe this year. That is, until I went to the Nashville Farmer’s market and was surrounded by thousands of the most beautiful strawberries that I have ever seen.
I love a good spontaneous recipe (especially when fresh berries and whipped cream are involved). I bought a ton of these berries and got busy that same day working on this recipe.
I adapted a recipe that I have made before and simply swapped out one of the main ingredients in order to make it dairy free and vegan. Instead of heavy cream for the shortbread recipe, we’re using a whole can of coconut milk (the cream and the watery parts). It does give the cake a very faint coconut flavor but I find it very tasty!
I can’t say that I’ve made this a ton in my lifetime but of the times I have, THIS particular recipe is by far the BEST strawberry shortcake recipe that I have ever made at home!
Strawberry Shortcake Ingredients:
The ingredients for this recipe are simple and I love it for that!:
- Strawberries
- Sugar
- Flour
- Baking soda, powder, and salt
- AND coconut cream instead of the heavy cream!
How to make Vegan Strawberry Shortcake:
Start by making the strawberry shortcake filling. First hull and quarter the strawberries before mixing them in a large bowl with a few tablespoons of sugar. Set that aside while you make the shortcake.
Because we’re using the WHOLE can of coconut milk (meaning you want the thicker part as well as the liquid/ watery part, you’ll want to gently mix the can together. I actually used a whisk the first time to gently combine the thinner and thicker parts but the second time I used an immersion blender. Just don’t blend too much because you don’t want it to turn into whipped cream :)
The shortcake is ridiculously simple to make! First sift together all of the dry ingredients and then pour the can of coconut milk over top. Mix to combine and then pour the batter into your baking dish to bake for about 15 minutes. EASY PEASY!
When ready to serve, cut the shortcake into smaller pieces (I cut mine into 6 or 8) and then top it with the berries as well as a little bit of whipped cream. If you’re looking for a good dairy free whipped cream, I linked one down in the recipe card!
Can Strawberry Shortcake be made in advance?
YES! This is super easy to throw together the day before. In fact, I highly recommend it!
Can you macerate strawberries overnight?
Why yes you can macerate strawberries overnight! Macerate is the process of the strawberries sitting in their juices that are drawn out from the sugar. When you let them sit overnight, a lot of delicious juice is drawn out and that juice really soaks into the shortcake which is DELICIOUS!
I suggest making all of the elements (the cake, strawberries, and whipped cream) and storing them separately. When ready to enjoy, you can assemble the strawberry shortcake as usual.
More Vegan Desserts You’ll Love!:
See how to make this vegan strawberry shortcake:
EASY Strawberry Shortcake Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds of strawberries, stemmed and quartered
- 5 tablespoons of sugar, you can use coconut sugar if desired, divided
- 2 cups of all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons of baking powder
- ½ teaspoon of baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon of salt
- 13.5 ounce right at 1.5 cups can of full fat coconut milk
- Coconut whipped cream for serving, linked my favorite recipe from Minimalist Baker
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix together the strawberries with 3 tablespoons of sugar. Set aside while you make the shortcake.
- Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees F and spray a medium baking dish. I used a 10 x 7 inch ceramic dish but something similar to a 8 x 8 inch pan will also work!
- Open your can of coconut milk and mix it so that the thick part is mixed together with the watery part. You might need to pour it into a separate bowl and lightly whisk it together so that it is combined. Set Aside.
- In a medium bowl, sift together the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar, as well as the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Make a well in the middle and pour in the mixed can of coconut milk. Mix until just combined.
- Pour the mixture into your prepared baking dish and bake for 15-20 minutes until set and lightly brown around the edges. Let cool slightly and remove from the pan to cool more.
- Once ready to enjoy, cut the shortcake into 6 different pieces (you could make them smaller if desired) and top evenly with the strawberries and coconut whipped cream.
- ENJOY!
Super easy to make and my whole family loved it!! I wish the post included the nutrient facts though!
This was so easy to make and was a hit with my family! Can’t wait to make this again!.
aww yay!! SO glad that you liked it, Mabel!!
Can you substitute the all purpose flour for maybe coconut flour or another healthier alternative
I’ve never tried this so I can’t say for sure. I always warn against using coconut flour unless the recipe specifically calls for it since it can really change a recipe. The best bet is to use a gluten free 1-1 flour blend OR possibly try oat flour
I think this could be great but I realized after the fact I was too literal in following the instructions for the cake. It doesn’t say to include the rest of the sugar along with the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt and I completely forgot! It’s not half bad though even with my mistake
OMG I’m so sorry about that Kristin! I proof read this so many times and still missed that. Relieved that it still turned out okay! Updating the recipe now