It’s National Strawberry Shortcake Day! You could certainly make a cake but I find those so hard to cut and store when making in advance. Some like a biscuit style shortcake which certainly has its place, but I like a sweeter cake. So having said all that, I decided the perfect thing to layer in between macerated strawberries and whipped cream would be muffins! Yes, it’s a breakfast item but it marries the best of cake and a biscuit. It’s moist and sweet but not dry and easy to cut into thirds to layer in these parfaits. These have another advantage of being easy to store and serve. You can make these ahead and they’re ready to go when you are. I would just leave the last layer of fresh strawberries on top then add the last bit of whipped cream right before serving.
These muffins are basically my blueberry muffin recipe with freeze dried strawberries added. Kind of like a strawberry lemonade muffin and can certainly be eaten as-is! You’ll notice I’m not using fresh strawberries in the muffins. They’re a little too wet and release more moisture than blueberries. Plus they have a more intense strawberry flavor and when used in conjunction with fresh strawberries they’re a perfect combination being a little tart with the fresh sweetened strawberries.
Now onto how big you should make the muffins. That’s going to depend on the glasses or jars you’ll be using for the parfaits. I used a flared old-fashioned drink glass so they’re a perfect fit for a jumbo size muffin. If you use smaller glasses then regular sized muffins might be best. You can always trim the circles once sliced with a round cookie cutter so they’re all uniform in size.
Vegan Strawberry Shortcake Parfaits
6
servings20
minutes25
minutesEasier than assembling a cake, these layer easily in glasses or jars for individual servings!
Ingredients
- Strawberry lemonade muffins
2 cups all purpose flour (see notes for substitutions)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest (approx. from one lemon. See notes.)
1/2 cup melted unrefined coconut oil, slightly cooled (see notes)
1 cup vegan cane sugar +1 tablespoon for sprinkling
2 tablespoons finely ground flax seed
1/4 cup alternative milk (use your favorite)
4 ounces plain unsweetened apple sauce
1/2 cup vegan sour cream (I prefer Tofutti brand, but use your favorite)
1 cup freeze dried strawberries
- Strawberries
1 pound fresh strawberries
Juice from one lemon
3 tablespoons vegan cane sugar
Vegan whipped cream for layering and topping
Directions
- Preheat your oven to 375°. Using a standard 12 cup muffin tin, line them with muffin cups and set aside.
- Stir together the flour, baking soda, and lemon zest in a medium sized bowl and set aside.
- Combined the melted and cooled coconut oil, apple sauce, 1 cup sugar, flaxseed, and alternative milk in a large bowl. Stir together to mix well and let stand for five minutes.
- Stir in the sour cream then add the freeze dried strawberries and let sit for five minutes to soften slightly.
- Stir in all but 1 tablespoon of the flour mixture, but do not over mix. Batter will be thick.
- Using a large ice cream scoop, fill the cups almost to the brim. Sprinkle The remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar evenly over each muffin. You just want a slight dusting of sugar on top of each muffin. Bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean anywhere from 20 to 25 minutes depending on your oven.
- Cool muffins in the tin for about five minutes then turn them onto a rack to cool.
- Strawberries
- Slice strawberries and add to a bowl with lemon juice and sugar and let macerate for 10 minutes.
- Parfaits
- Cut each muffin in thirds. Place the bottom muffin piece in a glass. Add some strawberries then whipped cream. Repeat these steps two more times and top with whipped cream and a final few fresh strawberries.
Notes
- You can use a combination of all purpose and whole wheat flour, but the muffins will be denser. I have not tried any gluten-free flour options but you can experiment and let me know.
- Please note that this recipe contains no salt. The muffins do not need it, but if you feel you must have some salt only add 1/4 teaspoon.
- if you cannot find vegan cane sugar, buy organic cane sugar because organic rules prevent the use of bone char (used for whitening the sugar) which makes most cane sugar non-vegan.
- Use unrefined coconut oil for that nice nutty coconut flavor.
- Always zest your lemon first then juice to use in the macerated strawberries.
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