This is truly the BEST Vegan Strawberry Shortcake recipe. It all starts off with homemade, soft, & flaky vegan biscuits, a heaping scoop up macerated vanilla strawberries, & is finished with a layer of whipped coconut cream in the center. The perfect sweet brunch recipe or Summer dessert!
Alright so a few months ago I made the most simple, yet perfect, Vegan Biscuits. After making those, I immediately knew I had to make a slightly sweeter version and turn it into a strawberry shortcake. And WOW is this dairy-free & eggless version good!
Ingredients & Substitutions:
While the full list of ingredients is in the recipe card, here's a quick recap of the 11 ingredients you need to make this recipe and some substitution ideas!
- Fresh strawberries, chopped
- Sugar: I like to use organic sugar since it's always vegan. Wholesome Sugar and Florida Crystals are my two favorites.
- To make this recipe refined sugar-free sub with any granulated sugar like coconut sugar or maple sugar.
- Lemon juice: Fresh is ideal!
- Vanilla bean paste or extract
- All-purpose flour: To make the biscuits gluten-free sub for a 1:1 GF Baking mix like Bob's Red Mill.
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Cold vegan butter, cubed: I used a mix of Miyokos and Flora Plant Butter as that's what I had on hand, but any vegan butter should work! Earth Balance is another great brand for baking.
- Oat/Soy milk: I prefer using oat milk or soy milk for the vegan biscuits as it tends to be a creamier milk. However, you can really substitute any plant-based milk 1:1 in this recipe like almond milk, rice milk, etc.
- Coconut cream: Just the cream, NOT milk. This can be bought as coconut cream or, if you can only find canned coconut milk, refrigerate and use the the solid white cream on top.
- Powdered sugar
How to make vegan strawberry shortcake
Make macerated vanilla strawberries
The strawberries do need to sit for a little to release their juices, so make sure to do this step first! Simply chop up the strawberries and add them to a bowl with the sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla bean paste. Then, mix together and set aside for about 1 hour before using.
Make the sweet vegan biscuits
This recipe is pretty much the same as the one I used for my Classic Vegan Biscuits, except with a little sugar added in for sweetness.
First, add all the dry ingredients to a bowl including the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt.
Then, add in the cold cubed vegan butter and "cut" it into the dry ingredients. I usually prefer using a pastry cutter for this, but as you can see in the pictures below a fork also works great!
Next, add in the plant-based milk and mix until you have a shaggy dough as pictured below. The dough should be lumpy and not too wet, but all the flour should be mixed in.
Shape and bake the biscuits
Take the vegan biscuit dough and shape it into a thick circle. Then, cut out 8 evenly sized biscuits and add them to a baking tray covered in parchment paper.
Then, add to the oven and bake at 400F for about 15 minutes until cooked through.
Make the coconut whipped cream
While the biscuits are cooling, make the coconut whipped cream! I first used this recipe in my Funfetti Cinnamon Rolls and knew I had to use it again for this recipe.
To make the coconut whipped cream, add the coconut cream and powdered sugar to a large bowl and whip together until light and fluffy. If you want, you can add some additional vanilla bean paste as well! If you're not a fan of coconut, try this aquafaba whipped cream recipe instead.
Layer the vegan shortcake
Cut the biscuits in half and layer on the coconut whipped cream and macerated strawberries. Add the final biscuit layer on top and finish these eggless strawberry shortcakes with even more whipped cream & strawberries on top!
FAQ & Expert Tips:
Yes! You can use a 1:1 GF all-purpose baking flour like Bob's Red Mill. However, using a flour alternative like almond flour or coconut flour will not work in this recipe.
Definitely! The longer the strawberries sit, the more they will release their juices and become a bit softer. I prefer my strawberries to only sit for about 1 hour, but you can definitely make them 24 hours ahead of the time and store them in the fridge until you are ready to use them.
Any store-bought vegan whipped cream would also work in this recipe and make it even easier!
When storing leftovers, all of the ingredients should be stored in separate containers.
The biscuits will last about 3-5 days in the fridge, the coconut whipped cream should last up to 1 week, and the strawberries are best within 48 hours of making, though they can last up to 3 days.
I truly hope you love this easy Vegan Strawberry Shortcake recipe. It's perfect for Mother's Day, a brunch party with friends, or just to make when you need something a little extra special for breakfast. Enjoy!
-TSG
More sweet vegan breakfast ideas you will love:
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Vegan Strawberry Shortcake
Ingredients
Vanilla Strawberries
- 2 cups chopped strawberries
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 Tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
Vegan shortcakes
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 Tablespoons sugar
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt can increase to ¾ tsp if using unsalted butter
- ½ cup cold vegan butter cubed
- ¾ cup oat/soy milk
Coconut Whipped Cream
- 1 cup coconut cream
- ½ cup powdered sugar more or less as desired
- ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F, line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and chop the strawberries.
- Add the chopped strawberries, 2 Tbsp of sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla bean paste to a mixing bowl and mix together until evenly coated. Then, set aside the bowl for later.
- Next, make the vegan shortcakes. Add the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt to a separate bowl and sift together. Then add in the cubed vegan butter and use a pastry cutter or fork to 'cut" the cutter into the dough until you have a crumbly dough.
- Pour the oat/soy milk into the bowl of dry ingredients and butter. Then, gently mix everything together until you have a shaggy dough. Remember, you do not want a smooth dough- the dough should be lumpy with chunks of the vegan butter, but not have any dry spots of flour.
- Turn the dough out onto a surface. Then, fold in half over itself and use your hands to gently flatten layers together. Rotate the dough 90 degrees and fold in half again, repeating this step 2-3 times but taking care to not overwork the dough.
- Use your hands (do not use a rolling pin) to flatten the dough to 1" thick and lightly dust a biscuit cutter with flour. Press the biscuit cutter straight into the dough and drop the biscuit onto your prepared baking sheet. If you don't have a biscuit cutter on hand, using a round cup also works!
- Add the biscuits to the parchment lined baking tray so they are about ½ inch apart from each other and bake for 12-15 minutes or until fluffy and brown. If desired, brush the tops with a little extra melted butter before and after baking. Then, remove and set aside.
- While the shortcakes are cooling, make the coconut whipped cream. Add the coconut cream, powdered sugar, and optional vanilla bean paste to a small bowl and whip together with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
- Cut each shortcake in half and layer with the coconut whipped cream and vanilla strawberries between the biscuit layers. Top with additional coconut whipped cream and strawberries. Serve & enjoy!
Notes
- When storing leftovers, all of the ingredients should be stored in separate containers. The biscuits will last about 3-5 days in the fridge, the coconut whipped cream should last up to 1 week, and the strawberries are best within 48 hours of making, though they can last up to 3 days.
- To make this recipe even easier, feel free to use a store bought vegan whipped cream.
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