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If you grew up with those classic strawberry shortcake bars in your school lunch or from the neighborhood ice cream truck, this recipe is for you. These homemade strawberry shortcake ice cream bars are a vegan & dairy-free take on the nostalgic favorite—with creamy vanilla ice cream swirled with strawberry flavor and coated in a crunchy, cake-like strawberry crumble. A gluten-free option is below!
Just like my vegan toaster strudels, vegan moon pies, and peppermint patties, this recipe is better than the store-bought version.
Note: While this blog post isn’t sponsored, the original recipe was created as part of a paid Instagram partnership with Good Karma. As always, all thoughts are my own.
I’ve been all about berry-flavored treats lately (like my strawberries and cream overnight oats and blueberry scones), and this one definitely earns a spot in the summer rotation.
It’s easy to make, super satisfying, and seriously hits the spot on sunny summer afternoons. Here are a few more recipe highlights:
Emily’s Recipe Notes:
- Taste: Bright, bold, sweet strawberry flavor swirled with classic vanilla… all the classic flavors of nostalgic strawberry shortcake bars
- Texture: Creamy and smooth with a crunchy shortcake coating
- Difficulty: Easy—this is a no-bake recipe with no churning!
- Time: 15 minutes of prep, plus at least 8 hours to freeze
Ingredients:
Ingredient Highlights & Some Swaps
Barista Blend Oatmilk
This is the base of the ice cream instead of nonfat milk or skim milk to keep everything dairy-free and vegan friendly. I used Good Karma’s Barista Blend—it creates a dairy-free base without making the bars overly rich or sweet.
Other high-fat oat milks or creamy plant-based milks will work, but avoid thinner options like almond milk for best results.
Sweetened Condensed Coconut Milk
This adds both richness and sweetness, which helps prevent the ice cream from getting icy.
Like in my vegan key lime pie recipe, this is a great dairy-free substitute for regular condensed milk.
Freeze-Dried Strawberries
These pack in strawberry flavor without adding extra moisture that fresh strawberries have—key for a creamy texture in no-churn ice cream.
I use the ones from Trader Joe’s (they’re usually the best deal), but if needed, you could try homemade dehydrated strawberries. They won’t be quite the same but can work in a pinch.
Strawberry Jam
Instead of cooking down fresh berries to make a strawberry puree, this shortcut adds concentrated strawberry flavor and natural pectin, which helps improve the texture and reduce iciness. Use a high-quality jam for the best flavor.
Xanthan Gum
Optional but recommended! This helps stabilize the mixture and keeps the texture smooth by reducing ice crystal formation. Especially helpful in no-churn recipes where there’s no churning to break up crystals during freezing.
Many store-bought ice cream bars use guar gum or soy lecithin for this.
Vanilla Sandwich Cookies
This is the ‘cake’ in our signature strawberry shortcake cake coating.
Any creme-filled vanilla cookie works here. You can go with Golden Oreos, vanilla wafers, shortbread cookies, or homemade. Just make sure they’re crunchy and not too soft. I used a vegan version from Whole Foods.
The creme filling helps bind the shortcake crumble together naturally, so there’s no need for added melted butter or coconut oil.
Helpful Equipment
- Popsicle Mold – For shaping and freezing the bars
- Blender – To blend the ice cream base until smooth
- Food Processor – For making the shortcake crumble
Step By Step Guide
Add the oat milk, coconut cream, sweetened condensed coconut milk, salt, vanilla and xanthan gum to a blender. Blend to make the vanilla ice cream base.
Pour the dairy-free vanilla ice cream base into the molds so they’re about 1/3 of the way full.
Add blended freeze dried strawberries and strawberry jam to the remaining ice cream base.
Blend until smooth and well combined.
Fill the popsicle molds the strawberry ice cream base. Use a butter knife or spare popsicle stick to swirl the strawberry and vanilla together.
Top the filled molds with the cover and insert a popsicle stick into each one.
Place the filled molds in the freezer to chill for at least 8 hours. Overnight is best!
Add freeze dried strawberries and vanilla sandwich cookies to a food processor.
Pulse until the mixture is relatively coarse, with visible chunks of cookie remaining. Avoid blending into a super fine powder.
Dip the frozen ice cream bar mold in hot water for 20 seconds.
Place the ice cream bar in the strawberry crumble coating.
Coat all sides of the bar and place back in the freezer for 10-30 minutes.
Serving and Storing the Ice cream Bars
These strawberry shortcake ice cream bars are the perfect treat to keep on hand for warm days or whenever you’re craving something nostalgic and refreshing.
When you’re ready to enjoy one, just remove a bar from the freezer and let it sit at room temperature for a minute or two to soften slightly—this makes the texture extra creamy and easier to bite into!
Store the popsicles in an airtight container in the freezer with parchment, plastic wrap, or wax paper between each bar to prevent them from sticking together.
I recommend enjoying them within 1 week for the best texture and flavor, though they’ll keep for longer.
Tips from Emily’s Kitchen
- Freeze for at least 8 hours. Don’t rush this step—giving the bars plenty of time to fully freeze helps them hold their shape and release cleanly from the molds.
- Let the bars get slightly melty before coating. For the best crunch, the outer layer of the bars should be just a little soft—this helps the shortcake crumb coating stick better without falling off.
- Use a bit of coconut cream. For an even richer, creamier texture, swap in 1/4 cup of full fat coconut cream for a 1/4 cup of the oatmilk.
Follow these tips for the creamiest result!
More Strawberry Shortcake Recipes
Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream Bars
Rate this RecipeIngredients
Ice Cream Bars
- 1 cup barista blend oatmilk, I used Good Karma Barista Blend
- ¼ cup coconut cream
- 8 oz sweetened condensed coconut milk
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ tsp vanilla bean paste, or vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp xanthan gum, optional for a creamier texture with less iciness, see notes
- 2 tbsp strawberry preserves
- 1 cup whole freeze-dried strawberries, loosely packed, blended into ⅓ cup of powder
Shortcake Crumble
- ½ cup whole freeze dried strawberries, loosely packed
- 10 vegan vanilla creme-filled sandwich cookies, for GF be sure to use gluten-free vanilla cookies
Instructions
- Add the oat milk, coconut cream, sweetened condensed coconut milk, salt, vanilla, and xanthan gum (if using) to a blender. Blend until smooth. Pour the vanilla mixture into 6 popsicle molds, filling each about ⅓ of the way full. Leave the rest in the blender.1 cup barista blend oatmilk, 8 oz sweetened condensed coconut milk, ¼ tsp salt, ½ tsp vanilla bean paste, ¼ tsp xanthan gum, ¼ cup coconut cream
- Add the strawberry preserves and freeze-dried strawberry powder to the remaining base. Blend again until smooth, then pour into the molds to fill them. Use a toothpick or butter knife to gently swirl the layers. Insert popsicle sticks and freeze for at least 8 hours or overnight.2 tbsp strawberry preserves, 1 cup whole freeze-dried strawberries
- Make the shortcake crumble. Pulse the freeze-dried strawberries in a food processor until they are a fine powder. Add the vanilla sandwich cookies and pulse until the mixture is relatively coarse, with visible chunks of cookie remaining. Avoid blending into a super fine powder. Store in an airtight container until ready to use.½ cup whole freeze dried strawberries, 10 vegan vanilla creme-filled sandwich cookies
- When ready to coat, pour the crumble onto a baking sheet. Line another sheet with parchment paper for the finished ice cream bars.
- Dip the molds in hot water for 20–30 seconds to release the bars. Press or roll each popsicle in the crumble to coat all sides.
- Place the coated popsicles on the parchment-lined sheet and freeze for 30 minutes to set. Store in an airtight container with parchment between each bar.Tip: For the creamiest texture, let the bars sit at room temp for 2–3 minutes before eating.
Recipe notes
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