I’ve said it on here time and time again, but I am NOT a master baker. When it comes to sweet treats, I firmly believe that easier is better. I tend to gravitate towards more simple desserts anyway, and as a Mom, my favorite thing is when I can incorporate fresh fruit into dessert! Our friends recently went strawberry picking and dropped some of their spoils off at our doorstep. They were the most delicious, sweet berries! We had gone strawberry picking last summer, and even tasting the berries brought back all of those amazing memories of filling our baskets to the brim and enjoying the berries for days and days. Store-bought strawberries just don’t taste the same as ones you’ve picked off the vine the same day! I knew I wanted to make something out of them that really celebrated the berry itself and was easy enough to take with us to the beach or to picnic outside. I had some mason jars in the pantry, and realized I could make super easy Strawberry Shortcake Jars! 

I wanted them to be a little more complex than a regular strawberry shortcake flavor, so I decided to layer the berries, cake, and cream with a balsamic glaze instead of chocolate! It gives such a nice acidic counterpart to the sweetness of the rest of the components. If you’ve ever had strawberries on a salad and loved it, you should definitely try this dessert! Even my kids loved it. If balsamic really isn’t up your alley, feel free to substitute chocolate syrup. I used store-bought coconut whipped cream for these jars since I don’t do cow dairy, but cool whip or whipping cream beaten until firm are also great options for layering here! I can’t wait to make these with blueberries later in the summer. 

Ingredients…

(Makes 1 Jar)

• 1 cup Fresh Strawberries, chopped
• 1 cup Angel Food Cake or Dessert Cups, chopped into cubes
• ½ cup Whipped Cream of your choice
• 1 tbsp Balsamic Glaze

Photographs by Julia Dags | Copyright © 2021 Happily Eva After, Inc. All Rights Reserved.