Strawberry Dessert Cups
Layers of macerated strawberries, vanilla cream, and buttery cookie crumbs in individual glasses. Fifteen minutes, no oven, endlessly adaptable.
These little glasses are what we make when guests text “on our way” an hour early. Ripe strawberries get ten minutes with a spoonful of sugar to draw out their juices, then get layered with softly whipped vanilla cream and buttery cookie crumbs. Every spoonful hits fruit, cream and crunch at once.
Strawberry quality decides everything here — our strawberry guide covers picking ripe berries and keeping them fresh. Out of season, swap in thawed frozen berries and skip the sugar.
Recipe
Strawberry Dessert Cups
No-bake dessert cups with macerated strawberries, vanilla whipped cream and buttery cookie crumbs.
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- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- —
- Total
- 15 min
- Servings
- 6
- Yield
- 6 dessert cups
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Course
- Dessert
- Cuisine
- American
Ingredients
- 1 lb ripe strawberries (hulled and sliced)
- 2 tbsp granulated sugar (divided)
- 1 1/2 cups cold heavy cream
- 3 tbsp powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup graham cracker crumbs
- 2 tbsp melted butter
- pinch of salt
Equipment
- 6 small glasses or jars
- Hand mixer
Instructions
Toss the sliced strawberries with 2 tablespoons sugar and set aside for 10–15 minutes to release their juices.
Whip the cream, powdered sugar and vanilla to soft peaks.
Stir the cracker crumbs with the melted butter and a pinch of salt.
Layer crumbs, cream and berries twice in each glass, ending with berries and a drizzle of their juice.
Serve immediately, or chill up to 4 hours and top with the remaining crumbs just before serving.
Storage
Refrigerate assembled cups (without crumbs) up to 4 hours; leftovers keep 1 day but soften.
Freezing
Not recommended — the cream weeps when thawed.
Reheating
Served cold.
Substitutions
- Heavy cream: Cold coconut cream for a dairy-free version — whip straight from the fridge.
Common mistakes
- Macerating the berries too long — Past an hour they turn mushy. Ten to fifteen minutes is the sweet spot.
Nutrition (per serving)
| Fat (g) | 22 |
|---|---|
| Sugar (g) | 18 |
| Sodium (mg) | 125 |
| Protein (g) | 3 |
| Calories | 320 |
| Saturated fat (g) | 13 |
| Carbs (g) | 28 |
Nutrition information is an estimate calculated from the listed ingredients.
From our test kitchen
A pinch of salt in the cookie crumbs made every other layer taste brighter — don't skip it.
Frequently asked questions
Can I assemble these ahead of time?
Layer the fruit and cream up to 4 hours ahead, but add the cookie crumbs just before serving so they keep their crunch.
What can I use instead of graham crackers?
Shortbread, digestive biscuits, vanilla wafers or toasted crumbled croissants all work beautifully.
Maya is Serenity Sweets' recipe tester and resident cookie obsessive. She re-bakes every recipe in a different oven with supermarket ingredients to make sure the instructions survive contact with a real kitchen.
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