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These vegan strawberry shortcakes are absolutely heavenly! These soft, buttery biscuits are layered with fresh strawberries and clouds of vegan whipped cream. They’re so easy to make and all you need are 9 ingredients, and no mixer!
Vegan strawberry shortcake has been my favorite thing to make for Mother’s Day brunch for as long as I can remember - there’s something so nostalgic about it and eating it feels like spring and summer are finally here!
The base of these shortcakes is adapted from my vegan buttermilk biscuits.
The biscuits are topped with lightly sweetened strawberries and whipped cream, creating a light, subtly sweet treat that is perfect for a spring or summery dessert or brunch!
Why You'll Love These Vegan Strawberry Shortcakes
- The vegan biscuits are flaky and butter and so easy to make - all you need are 7 simple ingredients that you likely already have in your pantry!
- Vegan strawberry shortcakes are dairy free, egg free, nut free, and can easily be made soy free.
- This recipe is easy to make small modifications too, and can also be halved or doubled for more or less people!
- Vegan strawberry shortcakes are so pretty - which makes them perfect for a nice brunch, Mother’s Day, or a tea party!
Ingredients Needed
- Flour: This recipe was developed with all-purpose flour, and has not been tested with gluten free flour.
- Milk: I personally like to use soy milk to make vegan buttermilk, but any vegan milk will work with this recipe!
- Vinegar: White vinegar is added to the vegan milk to curdle it, giving you vegan buttermilk! Lemon juice will work too.
- Sugar: I like to use granulated sugar but you can also use coconut sugar, keeping in mind it will be a bit less sweet.
- Butter: The vegan butter should be as cold as possible - I like to use a firm vegan butter like Earth Balance brand.
- Coconut Whipping Cream: Homemade whipping cream or store bought (I like So Delicious Cocowhip)
Step By Step Instructions
Note: Full ingredient measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this page.
Step One: Chop the vegan butter into small cubes or chunks, then freeze it for 10-15 minutes.
To make the vegan buttermilk, add vinegar to a liquid measuring cup, then fill with vegan milk all the way to the ¾ cup mark. You should have ¾ cup total of liquid. Set aside until it looks curdled.
Step Two: Add the chopped strawberries to a bowl and toss with 3 tablespoons of granulated sugar until coated. Chill in the fridge until ready to use.
Step Three: Preheat the oven to 450°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and ⅓ cup of granulated sugar.
Add in the cold butter, then use a pastry cutter or fork to cut the butter into the dry mixture (photos are in the post above for reference). The mixture should resemble the texture of sand.
Step Four: Pour in the buttermilk and use a wooden spoon to mix until combined. Do not over-mix.
The dough will be fluffy. Transfer the dough to a floured surface, then cover your hands with flour and form the dough into a rectangle, around 1 inch thick.
Step Five: Fold one short side of the rectangle of dough towards the middle, then fold the other side in (so you have a square).
Gently flatten the log again, then repeat twice more (folding it into a square 3 times total). Work quickly so that you handle the dough as little as possible.
Step Six: After the final fold, form the dough into a ¾ inch thick rectangle. Use a biscuit cutter to cut circles in the dough. Do not twist the biscuit cutter when removing it - either pull the dough away from the sides or lift straight up.
Step Seven: Place the shortcakes onto the baking sheet, making sure they are touching each other.
Lightly brush the top of each shortcake with more vegan milk, then sprinkle with coarse sugar.
Bake until lightly golden brown, around 13-17 minutes. Let the biscuits cool for 10 minutes, then assemble the shortcakes.
Assembling The Shortcakes
To assemble the shortcakes, slice each biscuit in half. Add strawberries, then a big dollop of whipped cream to the bottom piece of the shortcakes.
Now top with the other half of the biscuit and add more whipped cream and strawberries - that’s it! So easy right?!
Making Homemade Whipped Cream
Now, as I mentioned, you can use either a store bought vegan whipped cream or you can make your own from scratch. I have a whole post full of tips and tricks for making coconut whipping cream.
If you plan to make coconut whipped cream from scratch, remember that you’ll have to prepare ahead of time by chilling your coconut milk/coconut cream in the fridge for 8 hours or overnight.
FAQs and Expert Tips
Fresh strawberries always taste best, but if you only have frozen strawberries, you can use those, yes. Just thaw them, chop them, and drain out the excess liquid before tossing with sugar.
This recipe will make 8 shortcakes. If you’d like thicker biscuits, you can also make 6 taller biscuits, but since we’re layering the shortcakes I find they are easier to eat when they aren’t quite as thick. You can easily halve this recipe if you’d like to make just 4 strawberry shortcakes.
I haven't tested these biscuits with gluten free flour so I can't say for sure how they'll turn out, but if you’d like to try it out I would suggest using gluten free 1-1 baking flour.
What if I don’t have the right tools to make these?
One tool that not everyone has in their kitchen is a biscuit cutter, but don’t worry, you can still make these shortcakes! Just use a cup that is about the same size (2 ¾ inches in diametre) and remember not to twist the cup as you remove it from the dough.
I recommend baking the biscuits fresh, but if you want to make them ahead of time you can do that and then freeze them (instructions further down in the post on how to reheat).
Both the strawberries and the whipped cream can be made one day ahead of time and stored covered in the fridge.
Expert Tips
- Properly measure your flour - If you over-measure your flour, the shortcake biscuit dough will be dry and crumbly. It is very easy to over-measure your flour, so I strongly recommend weighing it with a $10 kitchen scale or using the scoop and level method.
- Don’t forget to freeze the butter - The butter should be as cold as possible when you use it, so leave it in the freezer right up until then.
- Handle the dough as little as possible - Working the dough with your hands will warm up the dough (and therefore the butter) so try to minimize how much you handle the dough by working fairly quickly.
- Don’t twist the biscuit cutter or cup when you are cutting out the biscuits. Twisting it seals the sides of the shortcakes and can prevent them from rising as much.
- Dusting your hands with flour will help make it easier to work with the dough.
- Wait to assemble the shortcakes until it’s time to serve them - otherwise the whipping cream could melt and the strawberry juices can make the biscuits soggy.
Storage and Freezing Instructions
After they've been assembled, the shortcakes should be served and enjoyed immediately so that they don't get soggy or covered in melted whipped cream.
Biscuits are always best served fresh. If you have leftover biscuits, I recommend freezing them.
To freeze the shortcake biscuits, wrap them tightly in plastic wrap then place in a freezer ziploc bag or air tight container for up to 2 months.
Thaw at room temperature then heat in the toaster or in the oven at 350°F for around 5-10 minutes. Assemble the shortcakes.
More Brunch Recipes You'll Love
If you make this recipe, let me know how it went in the comments below, I’d love to hear from you! You can also tag me on Instagram or Facebook so I can check it out!
Vegan Strawberry Shortcakes
Equipment
- 2 Mixing Bowls
Ingredients
Strawberry Topping
- 5-6 cups chopped fresh strawberries
- 3 Tablespoons granulated sugar (or coconut sugar)
Vegan Shortcakes
- ¾ cup soy milk (or vegan milk of choice)
- ½ Tablespoon white vinegar or lemon juice
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour (or white whole wheat flour)
- 1 Tablespoon + 1teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup very cold vegan butter, cubed
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar (or coconut sugar)
- coarse sugar for sprinkling
Vegan Whipped Cream
- store-bought vegan whipped cream (or use ingredients below to make it from scratch)
- 2 cans full-fat coconut milk or coconut cream (chilled in the fridge overnight)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- Chop the vegan butter into small cubes or chunks, then freeze for 10-15 minutes. Make the vegan buttermilk - add vinegar to a liquid measuring cup, then fill with vegan milk all the way to the ¾ cup mark. You should have ¾ cup total of liquid. Set aside until it looks curdled.
Strawberries
- Add the chopped strawberries to a bowl and toss with 3 tablespoons of granulated sugar until coated. Chill in the fridge until ready to use.
Vegan Shortcakes
- Preheat oven to 450°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and ⅓ cup of granulated sugar.
- Add in the cold butter, then use a pastry cutter or fork to cut the butter into the dry mixture (photos are in the post above for reference). The mixture should resemble the texture of sand.
- Pour in the buttermilk and use a wooden spoon to mix until combined. Do not over-mix. The dough will be fluffy.
- Transfer the dough to a floured surface, then cover your hands with flour and form the dough into a rectangle, around 1 inch thick.
- Fold one short side of the rectangle of dough towards the middle, then fold the other side in (so you have a square). Gently flatten the log again, then repeat twice more (folding it into a square 3 times total). Work quickly so that you handle the dough as little as possible.
- After the final fold, form the dough into a ¾ inch thick rectangle. Use a biscuit cutter to cut circles in the dough. Do not twist the biscuit cutter when removing it - either pull the dough away from the sides or lift straight up (SEE NOTES).
- Place the shortcakes onto the baking sheet, making sure they are touching each other. Lightly brush the top of each biscuit with more vegan milk, then sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake until lightly golden brown, around 13-17 minutes. If making the whipped cream from scratch, make it while they bake. You can also use your favorite store-bought vegan whipped cream (I like So Delicious Cocowhip)
Vegan Whipped Cream
- Refrigerate the canned coconut milk/ coconut cream for at least 8 hours, or overnight. When removing the cans from the fridge, be careful not to shake or turn them upside down.
- Scoop out the thick coconut cream from the top and place it in a large mixing bowl, leaving behind any liquid.
- Whip the coconut cream for about a minute, then add in the vanilla and powdered sugar. Whip the cream on medium high until stiff peaks form - it could take close to 5 minutes depending on your mixer. Refrigerate the whipped cream until ready to use.
Assembling the Shortcakes
- Once the shortcakes have cooled for around 10 minutes, slice each biscuit in half. Add strawberries and whipped cream to the bottom piece of the shortcakes, then place the top half of the biscuit overtop and add more whipped cream and strawberries.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
The calorie information provided for this recipe is an estimate. The accuracy of the calories listed is not guaranteed.
Liv
This was my first time making homemade shortcake and i don't know why i didn't try it sooner! I halved the recipe since it was just for myself and my boyfriend and added some raspberries too, but we both couldn't stop talking about how good these are. Thanks for the yummy recipe!
Gabby
Hi Liv! I'm so happy to hear that you both loved the recipe, thanks so much for the review 🙂