What? Low Carb Keto Strawberry Shortcake? Yup, you read that correctly. This dreamy, classic summer treat gets a bit of an update with grain-free, low carb biscuits, tasty balsamic roasted strawberries and a basil infused whipped coconut cream. Real food, no weird ingredients. Just some tasty, clean whole foods.
Let’s start off by saying, if you think I’ve lost my mind and if you want to keep this classic dessert more simple and traditional, you can very very easily follow this recipe, opt simply for fresh strawberries or just roast the strawberries without the balsamic, but if you’ve never had balsamic roasted strawberries, yet, you truly aren’t living. And as for the basil infused coconut cream, will change your life. That has to be said.
This recipe is quite fuss-free, despite the amount of characters required to accurately describe it. Make the easy, grain-free low carb biscuits ahead and while they are baking you can prep the strawberries to go into the oven next and then finally, whip together that delicious, basil infused whipped coconut cream while the berries roast.
As far as I am concerned, strawberries are the quintessential summer fruit. They have such fond memories attached to them, for me. From strawberry picking with my mom and my sisters, to bowls of fresh berries being brought outside out for dessert after a delicious summer meal, enjoy al fresco. My mom loves to bake and she made an incredible strawberry shortcake, with fresh baking soda biscuits, which she always made to seem so effortless. Strawberry shortcake reminds me of backyard meals, towels wrapped around our chilly bodies from spending the entire day in the pool. It brings back memories of no school, being outside all day and late sunsets.
Being 100% gluten-free for well over 13 years now, I have found so many different ways to get crafty and innovative to enjoy the foods of my childhood and classic recipes that I miss. I have always been of the mindset that it shouldn’t be complicated and I refuse to purchase 17 gluten-free flours, 2 starches, a weird-ass gum and some alternative lab-created “natural sweetener” for one recipe. Since following a more low-carb approach to my eating since January 2017 (we’re talking those pesky refined carbs, unnecessary paleo treats and other stuff of the like, I still go harder than ever on my veggie-based carbs), I have found myself getting even craftier and my cooking and baking has actually simplified in so many ways. I’m not working with obscure alternative sugars and grain-free flours, more with putting my focus on easy to access whole foods and truly allowing the flavors of seasonal foods to shine, not get buried. Some of my favorite recipes have been born of this approach.
My low-carb biscuits make the perfect base for this Keto Strawberry Shortcake, with just two, simple whole food based grain-free flours, they are easy to make. With the perfect crumb, they hold up so well to the syrupy balsamic roasted strawberries. These biscuits aren’t sweet, at all, but they needn’t be. The strawberries bring an incredible inherent sweetness on their own and the roasting actually accentuates that. The tangy balsamic vinegar also brings out the sweetness, with an undertone of sass. Plus, as the vinegar cooks down and blends with the little bit of sugar from the fruit, it becomes thicker and sweeter, too.
Then we have the peppery fresh basil in the coconut cream. WOW! W O W! Basil and strawberries together, are such a perfect match. (One of my favorite combos muddled together in sparkling water or as a spin on the mojito.) The slight spicy bite of the basil is a wonderful compliment to this Keto Strawberry Shortcake by way of the thick, creamy, luscious and barely sweet whipped coconut cream.
As always, with all recipes here on Tasty Yummies, the sky is the limit and you are the driver. If you want your Keto Strawberry Shortcake a bit more sweet, go with more sweetener. That’s up to you. Oh, and by the way, the sweetener can be whatever you prefer. Options include but are not limited to: coconut sugar, granulated monk fruit, maple syrup, hone or stevia, if you use sweeteners like erythritol or xylitol, those are fine, too.
If you tolerate dairy and want to go with a whipped raw cream instead of the coconut cream, work it! Leave out the vinegar if you want, or the basil. Swap the basil for fresh mint. Make this Keto Strawberry Shortcake work for you.
Let’s Chat Macros and Net Carbs for a Hot Minute…
As far as macros go, I have yet to implement a nutritional facts counter on this website for a wide variety of reasons. To that point, as you can see with the many variations on this recipe with sweeteners, macros can vary wildly and I would prefer to not to ever make any major claims. You are all adults and can plug your specific ingredients by brand and exact measurements into any number of the free nutritional / recipe trackers and calculate them for yourself. I may in the future introduce a nutrition facts calculator here for ease, but for now, we don’t have one. For a loose estimation, with monk fruit as the sweetener, this Keto Strawberry Shortcake works out to being less than or around 15 net carbs, per serving. But YO, that number can vary wildly. How much coconut creamy did you put on there and what sweetener did you use? How sweet are your strawberries? Don’t get obsessed, my friends. Don’t worry. Eat this tasty dessert that isn’t loaded with refined sugar and tons of grains and refined carbs, processed foods and crappy dairy and just know that you are doing A-OK, babe!
Keto Strawberry Shortcake with Balsamic Roasted Strawberries and Basil Infused Coconut Cream {gluten-free, paleo}
Ingredients
- 4 low-carb, keto biscuits
Roasted Balsamic Strawberries
- 1 pound fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced in half
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar or sweetener of your choice, coconut sugar, granulated monkfruit, brown sugar*
- pinch of salt
- optional: black pepper, so so good
Basil-Infused Whipped Coconut Cream
- 1 can full-fat organic canned coconut milk, refridgerated overnight
- Small amount of monkfruit or stevia OR 1-2 tablespoons honey, maple syrup, or other sweetener of your choice, optional or to taste
- 4 medium basil leaves, roughly, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, or vanilla bean powder
- Basil leaves for topping, optional
Instructions
- Make your biscuits and set them aside to cool.
- Preheat your oven to 375ºF. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, mix together the strawberries with the balsamic vinegar, sweetener of your choice, and pinch of salt. Arrange the strawberries and all their juices in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet.
- Roast for 15-20 minutes, until the juices are bubbling and the strawberries are hot but not mushy. You want them to retain their shape. The vinegar and sweetener will start to caramelize, but make sure though that it does not burn. Set the strawberries aside to cool.
- While the strawberries are cooling, make the Basil Infused Coconut Cream.
- Gently open your can of refrigerated coconut milk and carefully scoop the coconut cream on top into a mixing bowl, stopping when you reach the water at the bottom. In a mixing bowl on high speed, whip the coconut cream for 3 to 5 minutes until it becomes fluffy and light with soft peaks. Mix in the sweetener (if using), vanilla, and whole basil leaves. Try to crush the basil leaves into the cream to bring out the basil flavor. Let the coconut cream sit covered in fridge for 15 minutes to firm up a bit.
- To serve, slice your biscuits in half, top with the roasted strawberries and generous dollop of coconut cream, garnish with a small fresh basil leaf and the top biscuit maybe more strawberries. Or you can make open-face style. Enjoy!
Notes
