Dairy Free Strawberry Shortcake

Hey coffee drinkers - I've got a research question.  Do you drink hot coffee when it's 98 degrees and 100% humidity outside, or do you switch to iced coffee?  This inquiring mind - wants to know. 💁🏻‍♀️ Since I only drink the occasional cup of decaf, I hardly consider myself a true coffee purist.  With that being said - I don't know whether to offer my summer dinner guests a hot coffee at the end of a meal or if it would be more seasonally appropriate to serve iced coffee. ☕️ After all, I change out my desserts seasonally - maybe I should be swapping out my after dinner coffee too.  

I have a hard time drinking coffee when my eyebrows are sweating but maybe that's just a weird Amy quirk. 👀 I see people walking around town with cups of steaming, hot coffee even on the hottest of Georgia summer days so maybe there's something that I'm missing.  

Mr. Coffee claims that drinking a hot beverage when it feels like a sauna outside will make actually make us feel cooler.  "In basic terms, when we consume a hot drink such as a delectable cup of java, the sensors that measure temperature in our stomach are stimulated by the heat of the drink. These sensors then convince the brain to produce more sweat, which is the body's first line of defense against over-heating. ... while drinking hot coffee may temporarily make us feel warmer, the increased sweat production means we will end up feeling cooler." 

I'm not sure I buy into that reasoning but I'm not willing to test the theory either.  If I drank a cup of hot coffee in these sweltering temperatures, I might literally end up sitting in a puddle of my own sweat.  It would NOT be pretty and it's probably not in my best interest in this time when my temperature is being monitored almost daily.  😅  The person with the thermometer at the entrance to the Apple Store might not buy my story that my elevated temperature and excessive forehead sweat was the aftereffect of a cup of Joe.  😂

Until I hear from all of my true coffee drinking friends, I'll put the hot vs. iced coffee debate on hold.  As for now, I'm going to serve my summer desserts with some simple pour over iced coffee.  I can think of no better way to end a meal on a hot summer evening than with a slice of strawberry shortcake and a big iced coffee.  This dairy free shortcake is delicious and it's a great sweet treat for anyone who is trying to limit their dairy intake.

Dairy Free Strawberry Shortcake
2 cups dairy free milk (I used almond milk)
1 Tablespoon white vinegar or lemon juice
3 cups flour
1 1/3 cups sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
​1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup melted coconut oil

Combine milk and vinegar and set aside to sour. 

Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Stir in oil, vanilla and milk.  

Distribute cake batter between 3 greased and parchment lined cake pans.

Bake 20-30 minutes at 350.  Cool completely.  

Stack one cake layer on a cake plate.  Top with cool whip.

Top with a layer of sliced strawberries.

Repeat cake, cool whip and strawberry layers. 

Layer with whipped topping and fresh strawberries halves.  

The weekend is so close now - I can taste it. 😂🍓 Have a great one!

Ciao!

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