Strawberry Shortcake Cups

All of the flavors of strawberry shortcake in one convenient package—a Strawberry Shortcake Cup!  

Strawberry Shortcake Cups

I’m so excited to be sharing a new recipe with you guys today!  I have been working so hard to get this one just right!  Last summer I made about a million peach/plum/berry cobblers.  I love a good berry crisp, but I will choose a cobbler over it almost any day.  I love that cake biscuit topping!  I experimented and tweaked all summer long, thought for sure that I had posted the recipe, and then sort of forgot about it as soon as the cooler weather blew in.

About a month ago Earth Balance announced a cupcake contest* and I got to thinking about something that I would like to enter.  I remembered my delicious cobblers from last summer and went to the blog to see my post…only to find that I had never posted it.  Whoops.  So I got back to work on the recipe, this time turning the cobbler into a cupcake!  A Strawberry Shortcake Cup to be exact!

Strawberries are just coming into season here and I became obsessed with the idea of a strawberry shortcake in cupcake form.  Because I didn’t want to mess with the moisture of the cake—it was already perfect from it’s cobbler days—I used freeze dried strawberries in these cupcakes, just like I did in my Chocolate Crunch Granola.  They provide perfect sweet-tart bites, and their bright red color looks so pretty dotted throughout the cupcakes.

Don’t forget the sugar topping on the cakes (not that I know from experience).  It gives a yummy crunch to the top and it looks so pretty too!

The crowning glory of these cupcakes is their Whipped Coconut Buttercream.  Whole Foods makes a cake every summer called Chantilly and it is a soft vanilla cake with berries and the most delicious frosting.  Sadly it’s not vegan, so I haven’t had it in a while, but Irving still gets it.  This frosting is that!  I have no idea how Whole Foods makes theirs, but mine is made by making a coconut whipped cream and a buttercream and folding them together.  It makes for a light and fluffy whipped frosting that is subtly sweet and delicious.

I’ll keep you posted on the results of this cupcake competition—I believe you can even vote for your favorite cupcakes soon—I’ll be sure to update with a link!  Regardless of the results of this contest these cupcakes are a winner in my book, and they will be in yours too! Make sure you take a picture when you make these cute cupcakes, post it on Instagram, and tag it with #frieddandelions!  I love to see what you’re up to in the kitchen!

Print Recipe

Strawberry Shortcake Cups

All of the flavors of strawberry shortcake in one convenient package—a Strawberry Shortcake Cup! (vegan, soy free)

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time25 minutes mins

Total Time35 minutes mins

Servings: 12 cupcakes

Author: Sarah De la Cruz

Ingredients

For the Cupcakes:

• 1 1/2 cups flour white
• 1/4 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 5 Tablespoon vegetable shortening cubed (can sub cold coconut oil if needed)
• 3/4 cup coconut milk canned or beverage
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups freeze dried strawberries not regular dried strawberries
• 2 Tablespoons decorative/coarse sugar

For the Whipped Buttercream Frosting:

• 1 can coconut milk chilled overnight (I like Thai Kitchen and Trader Joe’s brands)
• 4 Tablespoons Earth Balance butter
• 1 cup powdered sugar sifted if possible
• 1 vanilla bean scraped (or 1t of vanilla extract)
• 1 teaspoon liquid (leftover coconut water/non-dairy milk/water)

Instructions

For the Cupcakes:

• Mix the coconut milk and apple cider vinegar in a cup and set aside to curdle.
• Meanwhile, mix the first 5 dry ingredients (flour through salt) together in a medium mixing bowl.  Place the cubed shortening in the same bowl.  Using your hands, mix together the shortening and dry ingredients until it resembles coarse sand (you will still have lots of chunks of shortening, this is good.).
• Add the vanilla to the coconut milk vinegar mix.  Pour the coconut milk vinegar mix into the dry mix and use a spoon to mix well until it turns into a thick batter.  Place the freeze dried strawberries into a small bowl.  Using the back of a spoon, crush them slightly so that the larger pieces of strawberries are broken up. Fold the crushed dried strawberries into the batter until they are well incorporated.
• Divide the batter evenly between 12 cupcake wrappers.  Sprinkle the tops with sugar.  Bake in a 350° oven for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out dry.  Allow to cool fully before frosting.

For the Whipped Buttercream Frosting:

• Carefully open the can of coconut milk. Scoop the hardened coconut fat out of the can, being careful not to get any of the coconut water (set the water aside for the next step). Place the coconut fat into a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whip the coconut fat, gradually increasing the speed, until it reaches soft peaks and is the consistency of whipped cream. Transfer the coconut whip into a new bowl.
• Wipe the mixing bowl clean and return it to the mixer. Place the butter in the bowl and whisk until the butter is beginning to break up. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla bean scrapings, and the liquid and mix until all the sugar is completely incorporated.
• Remove the bowl from the mixer. Working with 1/3 of the coconut whip at a time, gradually fold the coconut whip into the butter cream (do not mix it all at once or it will deflate). At the time of serving place a dollop of the Whipped Coconut Buttercream on each cupcake and garnish with a fresh strawberry. Do not frost ahead of time, as the frosting may not stay firm on top of the cupcakes. You can also serve the cupcakes with the frosting on the side for your guests to dollop themselves. Or eat it straight out of the dish—it's just SO good! Enjoy!

*This post is not sponsored by Earth Balance.  This is my original recipe that I have entered into their cupcake contest.

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