Did you know it’s National Strawberry Month? It makes perfect sense, given that strawberries are coming into season all over the country right about now. Of course, in the southern climes, they’ve been in season for a while. And in the more northern regions, it may be a while yet before they’re ripe for the picking. But on average, May is when those lovely little berries start to really get going. And they seem to call to our collective psyche, begging us to start working them into recipes ahead of holidays like Mother’s Day, Memorial Day, and the Fourth of July.
Strawberries are not quite in season yet in the Pacific Northwest. A few years ago, we had such an early, warm spring that they were ready in mid-April. This year it’s been so cold and wet, they are taking their sweet time. The plants barely have any blooms so it will be a few weeks before our local berries come in. But I was feeling so impatient for them so I had to purchase some strawberries from the grocery store, which likely had Mexican origins. While local berries always taste best, these were pretty delicious. They were big and juicy and they inspired me to create these delicious whoopie pies. A perfect early strawberry treat.
These tender grain-free whoopie pies have a delicious vanilla cookie and a filling of whipped cream and fresh strawberries. They taste exactly like strawberry shortcake but you can hold them in your hand. They’re easy to make and a lovely Mother’s Day dessert recipe.
Ingredients
Cookies
2 cups almond flour
½ cup Swerve, Granular
¼ cup unflavored whey protein powder
2 tbsp coconut flour
2 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
2 large eggs
¼ cup butter, melted
¼ cup unsweetened almond milk
½ tsp vanilla extract
Filling
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tbsp Swerve, Confectioners
½ tsp vanilla extract
1 ½ cups chopped strawberries (chop them fairly small so the whoopie pies hold together)
Instructions
Cookies
Preheat the oven to 325F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone liner.
In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, Swerve, protein powder, coconut flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir in the eggs, butter, almond milk and vanilla extract until the dough comes together.
Using wet hands, roll the dough into 20 balls, each about 1 ½ inches in diameter. Place the balls a few inches apart on the prepared baking sheet. Press each ball down to about ½ inch thick.
Bake 12 to 15 minutes, until set and just firm to the touch but not really browned.
Remove from the oven and let cool.
Filling
In a medium bowl, whip the cream with the Swerve Confectioners and vanilla extract until it holds stiff peaks.
Spread the bottom of one cookie with about 1 ½ to 2 tbsp of whipped cream and top with a layer of chopped strawberries. Top with another cookie.
Repeat with remaining cookies, whipped cream, and strawberries. Serve right away.
Refrigerate any leftovers (they can also be made a day ahead and refrigerated until served).