All the best of strawberry season in one delicious low carb poke cake. Tender cake with a sweet strawberry filling and topped with whipped cream. THM friendly!
It’s strawberry season in the Pacific NorthWest and I honestly believe no one could be more excited than I am. There is simply nothing quite like a fresh local strawberry. Now, having grown up in Ontario, where the strawberries are delicious, having lived in British Columbia, where the strawberries are delicious, and having spent 11 years in New England, where the strawberries are delicious, I can tell you that it doesn’t really matter where you are. If that region is good for strawberry cultivation, then the fresh-picked local strawberries are the best you’ve ever had. Local folks will tell you that their strawberries are THE BEST EVER! And they are, of course, in that very moment. Because you are popping a fresh strawberry into your mouth and nothing else in the world matters. It’s good, it’s juicy, and you think there simply can’t be anything better.
One of the famed local varieties in this part of the world is the Hood strawberry. Oregon is famous for these berries, which have great colour and an extra sweet flavour. People around here want their Hoods, asking for them by name at farmer’s markets and accepting no substitutes. And they are wonderful berries, but they are fragile and don’t travel well, so don’t expect to see them much outside of Oregon. They are so soft that they are best eaten within days of picking. Which is perfectly fine in my family, as my kids can down a pint or two in one sitting!
Strawberry season always sparks my creativity in recipe creation. I often buy a half-flat at our local farmer’s market simply so I can get the strawberry recipe juices flowing. Since fresh berries like these go so much faster than store-bought, the pressure is on! But this recipe has been on my mind for ages and I was just barely hanging on until strawberry season rolled around to make it. My low carb poke cakes are always ridiculously popular. And what could be better than a combination of strawberry shortcake and a poke cake? You’re right…nothing could be better.
Because I have so many wonderful readers devoted to the Trim Healthy Mama lifestyle, I decided to attempt one of my poke cakes with the Baking Blend. I wanted to see if I could modify my regular cake base to this popular ingredient. Turns out it was simple…I kept almost everything the same, but cut back on the flour a bit and added more liquid. Which means that any of my poke cakes could be adapted in this way. Yay! But not to alienate any of my readers, I’ve also included instructions for my typical almond flour poke cakes. So there you have it, the best of both healthy diet worlds!
Strawberry Shortcake Poke Cake
All the best of strawberry season in one delicious low carb poke cake. Tender cake with a sweet strawberry filling and topped with cream cheese. THM friendly!
Ingredients
Cake
- 2 1/2 cups THM Baking Blend (or 3 cups almond flour)
- 3/4 cup Swerve Sweetener (or 1/4 cup THM Super Sweet)
- 1/3 cup unflavoured whey protein powder
- 2 tsp grain-free baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup butter, melted
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups almond or cashew milk, unsweetened (use only 1/2 cup if using almond flour)
Strawberry Filling
- 1 1/2 cup strawberries (if the are very large, quarter them for better measuring)
- 1/3 cup water
- 3 tbsp powdered Swerve Sweetener (or 1 tbsp THM Super Sweet)
- 1/4 tsp xanthan gum
Topping
- 1 cup whipping cream
- 2 tbsp powdered Swerve Sweetener (or 2 tsp THM Super Sweet)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Cake:
- Preheat oven to 325F and grease a 9x9 baking pan well (you can use an 8x8 but the cake will take a little longer to cook).
- In a large bowl, whisk together the baking blend (or almond flour), sweetener, whey protein, baking powder, and salt. Stir in melted butter, eggs, vanilla extract and almond milk until well combined.
- Spred batter in prepared baking pan and bake 25 to 30 minutes or until edges are beginning to brown and top is firm to the touch. Remove and let cool, then use the handle of a wooden spoon to poke large holes all over the cake.
Strawberry Filling:
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine strawberries and water. Bring to a boil and then simmer until berries are very soft. Puree in a blender or with a hand blender, then stir in sweetener. Sprinkle surface with xanthan gum and whisk vigorously to combine. Let cool until somewhat thickened.
- Pour filling over cake and tap the baking pan gently on the counter to help it fill the holes. Refrigerate until set, about 1 hour.
Topping:
- In a medium bowl, combine whipping cream, sweetener, and vanilla extract and beat until stiff peaks form. Spread over cake and refrigerate another hour or so to firm up.
Recipe Notes
Serves 16. Nutritional counts depend on whether you use THM Baking Blend or almond flour.
THM Baking Blend (per 1/16th of cake) Food energy: 172kcal Total fat: 13.60g Calories from fat: 122 Cholesterol: 71mg Carbohydrate: 9.55g Total dietary fiber: 6.63g Protein: 6.90g
Almond Flour (per 1/16th of cake): Food energy: 253kcal Calories from fat: 198 Cholesterol: 71mg Carbohydrate: 6.49g Total dietary fiber: 2.57g Protein: 7.59g
Can you use Jello instead of the strawberry puree? The recipe sounds wonderful but I’m out of berries right now and I can’t wait to make this cake.
Sure, that would work.
Thanks for this Carolyn! I tried low-carb before THM, but unfortunately after 3 days of low-carb, my energy level completely crashes. This happens over and over. After researching the topic, I discovered that low-carb isn’t compatible with my thyroid issues. So after discovering THM I had the answer for my unique physiology.
Can’t wait to try this!
In your description you mention that the cake is topped with cream cheese. Was that a mistake and it meant to say whipped cream? Or is are the instructions missing the cream cheese 🙂
Totally a mistake. It’s whipped cream.
Hello, your recipe descriptions says that it is topped with cream cheese, but the recipe itself has the cake topped with whipped cream. Am I missing something? Thanks!
Nope, just an error. It’s topped with whipped cream!
What is THM ?
Trim Healthy Mama, it’s a very popular diet that includes both low carb recipes and higher carb recipes (apparently my recipes are very popular for the low carb part of the diet!).
Lucky you to have your strawberry season so early. Here in MN it’s not until July. I’m trying strawberries for the second time in my garden and hopefully I’ll get enough for this delicious looking cake. Thanks for the almond flour directions as I don’t use the THM mix.
Do you like it better with baking blend or 3 cups of almond flour?
I don’t actually find a huge difference in taste, although the almond flour version is a little more moist but it’s also heavier and more calorie and fat dense, if that makes sense. I prefer to work with almond and coconut flour because I am used to them and how they behave, but people love the baking blend so I try to work it into recipes once in a while 🙂
Made this last night with baking blend, and it was delicious. 🙂 I think next time, I will probably use less sweetener in the topping, or use the Gentle Sweet vs. the Super Sweet THM Blend. Very delicious! We had a piece for dessert last night, and I’m enjoying another slice with a cup of coffee this morning. Thanks for a healthy version of this treat!
Glad you liked it!
Could I use glucomannan or gelatin instead of Xanthan gum in the strawberry filling? Do you know what proportions? Thanks! 🙂
If using gelatin from the can, I’d say use about 1/2 tbsp. I think a full tbsp would be too much. I’ve never used gluccie but I think it’s strong than xanthan. Other thm peeps might know more about that.
you say if using almond flour to use only 1/2 cup almond milk. Do I sub the other 1 cup of almond milk out for water then?
No, you just simply cut almond milk back to 1/2 cup because almond flour has so much more moisture.
This is really good – better than I thought because most of the low carb deserts that I have tried in the past did not taste very good at all. I used all almond flour.
You haven’t tried many of my desserts then, 😉
Made this with almond flour and it was DELICIOUS!!!! Maybe I was just hungry for something using strawberries but it was one of the better THM recipes I’ve tried. I topped the whipped cream with fresh sliced strawberries and between my daughters and I and my husband it all disappeared in one afternoon!! 🙂
Why is our topping runny? We used heavy whipping cream, sweetener, and vanilla. Did we do something wrong?
Was the cream chilled? Did you whip to stiff peaks?
Hi!
How would I store this and how long would it last in your recommended storage method?
Thanks so much!
In the fridge for 4 or 5 days would be fine.
This was so yummy! I’m thinking about trying it out with some other fruits, too! Thanks for a great recipe!
This looks very delicious! Can j sub honey for the THM sweeteners? How much do you think? I am doing THM for my pregnancy, I don’t have any weight issues so I’m ok with using honey.
Honey adds moisture so you will have to adjust for that in the cake. but in the whipped cream topping, it won’t work at all. Your cream won’t whip! I really don’t know how much because I don’t use honey. It’s sweet, so I’d use quite a bit less.
I will experiment with the honey and see how it goes! Duly noted on the whipped cream. Thanks for the quick reply! 😊
Good luck. Let me know how it turns out!
I ran out of unsweetened protein powder, but actually have some strawberry… would this work or is that too much strawberry?
oops… unflavored protein…. I mean
I really couldn’t say. It might be okay.
When I came across this recipe my boysenberries were over abundant. Used them instead of the strawberries. My husband said this is one of the best desserts we’ve had yet. Will definitely try it with the strawberries.
Glad to hear it!
Can I use vanilla flavored unsweetened almond milk?
Sure, that would be fine.
I’m allergic to whey. Can I sub another protein powder, maybe Hemp or Pumpkin?
I love your recipes!
My family loved this recipe! Said it tasted just like strawberry shortcake.
I want to make this cake for my family but my son is Dairy free. Could I use collagen instead of the whey powder? and would coconut oil work in place of the butter? I will top it with whipped coconut cream 🙂 Thanks!
Don’t use collagen, it will make it thicker. But try using egg white protein powder. Coconut oil should be fine.
This is my favorite low carb cake recipe!!! Sometimes I make it few weeks in a row, it’s so delicious, and light – perfect for summer. I made it few times with frozen strawberries and it was just as good. So glad I tried it!
So glad to hear it!
Such a delicious recipe. Dangerously so! I couldn’t just eat one serving. Will definitely be a go to for parties and celebrations.