Recipe Makeover: Quick Strawberry Shortcakes
By Sidney Fry, MS, RD April 09, 2014
Credit: Photo: Randy Mayor
Whole grains, juicy berries, and a heavenly yogurt cream for 224 calories
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Shortcut Strawberry Shortcakes
Credit: Photo: Randy Mayor
There's something magical about a sweet, crumbly biscuit piled high with juicy-plump strawberries and light-as-air whipped cream—it's tasty proof that summer is just around the corner. If only the virtuous strawberry could erase those cream-filled, buttery calories—all 715 of them. When we did the math, project shortcake was on. Could we lighten it in a recipe that takes less than 25 minutes? After rigorous testing, the answer was—yes. With this recipe, you get a truly delicious biscuit, berry, and decadent cream combo with almost 500 fewer calories than the original. And it's ready in just 25 minutes.
Classic
715Â calories per serving
41.3 grams total fat
25.3 grams saturated fat
Makeover
224 calories per serving
9.3 grams total fat
4.3 grams saturated fat
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Lighter Strawberry Shortcake Tip #1: Yogurt Cream
Credit: Photo: Randy Mayor
Whip 2% Greek yogurt into cold whipping cream for a fluffy topping that saves 8.7g sat fat. A touch of sugar adds the right amount of sweet.
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Lighter Strawberry Shortcake Tip #2: Whole-Wheat Flour
Credit: Photo: Randy Mayor
We love how the nutty, earthy flavor of whole-wheat flour complements the brown sugar in the biscuits. Bonus: You get an extra gram of fiber per serving.
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Lighter Strawberry Shortcake Tip #3: Lumpy Batter
Credit: Photo: Randy Mayor
Look for the lumps! When melted butter meets cold buttermilk, droplets of fat form and spread throughout the batter, allowing us to cut butter by two-thirds and save 8.5g sat fat.