Strawberry Shortcake Parfaits #FantasticalFoodFight

Put em up....Put em up.....this being said in my best Cowardly Lion voice.  

That's because I'm getting ready for a fight.  Not to worry though, this is a friendly fight.  We call it the Fantastical Food Fight.  No, we don't hurl food at each other.  Although that could be fun too.

We fight by taking the theme provided by our leader, Sarah of Fantastical Sharing of Recipes, and pit our recipe against those the others are sharing.  It is a ton of fun.  You can join us by signing up here.

Our theme this month is Strawberry Shortcake.  No, not the character, whose image I found on Bing Images.

We are talking the dessert that is the epitome of Spring.  Each Spring, cooks around the world get excited to be able to enjoy local, fresh strawberries.  I personally think that Michigan strawberries, while not as big and beautiful as some from other States, are the best.  They are sweet and juicy and oh so delicious.  They are also not available until June.

This fight was looming and I wanted to make these individual Strawberry Shortcake Parfaits as our dessert for Easter.  Our Easter dinner always represents Spring, the season of rebirth, as we celebrate the rebirth of our Lord and Savior.

Strawberry Shortcake was the perfect dessert to serve even though I had to use California Strawberries instead of Michigan Strawberries.  So enough about the Strawberries.  Let's get on to the "shortcake".

Shortcake is defined as a sweet cake or biscuit.  You have those that insist on using biscuits as I did in this delicious Mixed Berry Shortcake.  Some use sponge cake, which is delicious, like these Strawberry Almond Sponge Cakes.

There are also many ways to serve your desired Strawberry Shortcake.  They can be individual like these that I'm sharing today or they can be made for a crowd.

This Strawberry Almond Torte is my husband's favorite form of Strawberry Shortcake.  This Strawberry Roll, contains all your favorite Strawberry Shortcake ingredients and makes a neat presentation.

You get the idea.  What Strawberry Shortcake requires is Strawberries and some kind of sweet cake or biscuit, which can also be cookies as we call them in the USA.  It usually contains some cream, whether it be whipped, frozen or a little of both.

These fun Strawberry Shortcake Parfaits contain all those elements.  Layers of cookie crumbs, pudding, strawberries and whipped cream combine to make a perfect ending to your dinner or to enjoy as a snack in the evening.  

They also make a pretty tasty breakfast....not that I would eat dessert for breakfast...at least not that I will admit LOL.

This is great to make when you are having company for dinner.  They hold up well in the refrigerator for a couple of days.  I would just wait to add the cookie garnish until you are ready to serve.

You will find links to all the other fighter's recipes below mine.  I think mine is a KO for sure.

Strawberry Shortcake Parfaits

makes 6 individual or 1 large Parfait

1 box Vanilla Wafer Cookies, 6 set aside and the remaining coarsely crumbled

1 (6 serving size) pkg Instant Vanilla Pudding, prepared per package directions

1 qt. strawberries, hulled and sliced

1 pint heavy (whipping) cream

Line up 6 individual parfait dishes.  I used stemless wine glasses.  Place a layer of cookie crumbs in the bottom of each.  Add a layer of strawberries.  Top each with 1/4 cup of the pudding.  Add another layer of cookies and strawberries and sprinkle with any cookie crumbs still remaining.  

Place the whipping cream into a chilled bowl from a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment.  Beat at low speed.  Increase the speed gradually as the cream thickens until it is whipped, light and fluffy.  Fold the remaining pudding into the whipped cream.  Divide between each of the six parfaits.  Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.  Garnish each parfait with one of the reserved cookies.  Print Recipe

More Strawberry Shortcakes

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