I grew up on a small hobby farm and every spring we had fresh, juicy, sweet strawberries. One of my favourite desserts has always been strawberry shortcake. The first spring we were keto, I realized that I might have to give up my annual spring tradition of enjoying this treat. I started doing research. Was there a way to celebrate strawberry shortcake day keto style?
What is Strawberry Shortcake?
Strawberry shortcake is a layered dessert. Usually the base is either a half a biscuit or a piece of vanilla cake. Mashed, sweetened strawberries are poured on top of that. If using a biscuit, the other half is put on top of the strawberries. It is then covered with whipped cream. Often a couple of sliced berries or more of the mashed berries are put on top of that. It is a thing of beauty! And oh, so delicious!
According to National Today, a shortcake was first mentioned in 1588 in an English recipe book. It started gaining in popularity when some genius person added sweetened cream to the equation. Then, people learned to make whipped cream and instead of sweetened cream, that was added to the mix. It is often made to celebrate springtime events and Independence Day in the United States. Here in rural Canada, we have entire community suppers dedicated to the flavourful dessert.
Can I Celebrate Strawberry Shortcake Day Keto Style?
While we keto people do not eat much fruit due to the amount of carbs in much of it, berries are on the cautionary list that we can eat and stay within our limits. Strawberries are on the “eat sparingly” list. So, that was a go. We have a recipe for whipped cream, and it can be a good way to add fat to our meals, so that was not an issue. You can also add a little sweetener to the strawberries if you want them a bit sweeter.
I find that the ones we have when they are fresh and new are sweet enough for me. The biggest issue we faced was having a base for it all. We could make a vanilla cake, but that would be a lot of cake and we only want to eat the strawberry shortcake once, or maybe twice, as a treat. The biscuit recipes we had were made of cheese and that might not be the best pairing with the strawberries. And then we found the recipe for a keto Belgium waffle. Bingo!
The Recipe for Belgium Waffles
Here is the recipe so you can make your keto-friendly base and celebrate #StrawberryShortcakeDay.
1 Tbsp. Almond Flour
½ cup Mozzarella Cheese
1 Egg
½ Tbsp. Sweetener
¼ tsp. Vanilla
- Mix together the almond flour, egg, cheese, sweetener and vanilla with an immersion blender.
- Pour the batter into the waffle maker and cook approximately 3 minutes.
Makes 2 chaffles
Per chaffle = 69% fat, 6% carbs, 31% protein
This chaffle does not have a cheesy taste, and it makes the perfect, light, and fluffy base for a strawberry shortcake.
Yes, you can celebrate Strawberry Shortcake Day Keto Style
So, in summary, yes you can celebrate #StrawberryShortcakeDay and stay on the keto train. But, you do have to eat it sparingly. You also have to be sure to measure your strawberries to keep them within your carb limits for the day. It is doable, but I usually have just one or maybe two feeds a year on this.
Enjoy Strawberry Shortcake Day and know that when there is a keto will, there is a keto way!
Wendy
