Strawberry Parfait

By
Elaine Lemm
Elaine Lemm
Elaine Lemm
Elaine Lemm is a renowned British food writer, classically trained chef, teacher, and author with over 25 years of experience writing about British food and cooking.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Updated on 05/4/23
Tested by
Noah Velush-Rogers
Noah Velush-Rogers
Tested by Noah Velush-Rogers
Noah Velush-Rogers works on food prep for several area caterers. He has worked with a team of prep chefs for a private school group. He was an assistant cooking teacher for children and teen group cooking classes. Noah was hired as an intern and was then trained as a recipe tester for Fine Cooking Magazine. 
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Strawberry Parfaits

The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

Prep: 20 mins
Cook: 0 mins
Total: 20 mins
Servings: 4 servings

Strawberries, cream, and summer: These three belong together. It's so easy to put strawberries into a bowl and simply pour over a little cream for a quick summertime treat. But by spending a few quick minutes whipping the cream with vanilla and layering the fruit with amaretto-soaked amaretti biscuits, you have an elegant strawberry parfait.

Strawberries play the starring role in this recipe, so make sure the ones you get are large, juicy, and sweet. For the whipped cream, always use real vanilla bean extract, never essence.

What Are Amaretti Biscuits?

Amaretti biscuits are a classic Italian treat. Chewy and flavored with almonds, these cookies make a lovely base for desserts like this. Here they are gently soaked in sweet amaretto liqueur for extra sweet almond flavor.

Tips for Making Strawberry Parfaits

  • Always wash strawberries before hulling. If you wash them afterward the water will get into the center of the fruit and make them soft.
  • When whipping cream, do so on medium speed. As the cream thickens, keep a close eye on it to avoid overwhipping. For best results, underwhip the cream a bit, then finish it by hand with a few strokes of a whisk (it is easier to tell when the cream is perfectly whipped by hand than in a mixer). The cream should be billowy and smooth, not grainy.
  • If your strawberries are not as flavorful as you'd like, toss the diced strawberries with a big pinch of sugar and let them macerate for 15 minutes. They will be juicier this way, but no one ever complained about delicious strawberry juices.

“An absolute classic dish I adore, enhanced with a bit of liqueur and the amaretti crumbs really round out the flavor perfectly.” —Noah Velush-Rogers

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Ingredients

  • 12 amaretti biscuits

  • 2 tablespoons amaretto liqueur

  • 2 cups fresh strawberries, washed, hulled, and dried

  • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream

  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

  • 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Ingredients to make strawberry parfaits

    The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

  2. Place the amaretti biscuits in a plastic bag and gently crush using a rolling pin until they resemble coarse sand. Remove a couple of tablespoons and keep to the side for garnish.

    A zip top bag filled with amaretti cookie crumbs with a small bowl of extra crumbs

    The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

  3. Divide the amaretti crumbs among 4 glass dessert dishes or wine glasses. Press the crushed biscuit crumb firmly with the back of a spatula, then carefully, without disturbing the crumb, spoon over the amaretto. Pop the glasses into the refrigerator while you prepare the rest of the parfait.

    A glass dessert cup with a layer of amaretti cookie crumbs on the bottom

    The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

  4. Choose 3 or 4 of the largest, prettiest strawberries and slice as thinly as you can. Then, finely chop the remaining strawberries.

    A cutting board with some thinly sliced strawberries and finely chopped strawberries

    The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

  5. Once the biscuit base is chilled, take the strawberry slices and lay evenly into the base and up the sides of the glasses in an even line. Repeat with a second row behind and overlapping with the previous fruit, reserving a few slices of strawberry for decoration.

    A glass dessert cup with a layer of crumbled amaretti cookies topped with sliced strawberries against the sides of the cup

    The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

  6. Fill the well in the middle of the sliced fruit with half of the chopped strawberries. Return the glasses to the refrigerator.

    A spoon adding chopped strawberries to the center of the glass dessert cup

    The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

  7. Whip the cream, vanilla extract, and confectioners' sugar using a stand or hand mixer to create stiff peaks. Take care not to overwhip the cream, which can soon become over-stiff and will be hard to pipe into the glasses.

    A bowl of a stand mixer with thickened whipped cream

    The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

  8. Pipe about half of the cream into the glasses using a piping bag fitted with a large plain tip, or layer using a spoon.

    A piping bag with a round tip pipping whipped cream into the center of the glass dessert cups

    The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

  9. Top with the remaining chopped strawberries and finish with the remaining cream.

    A glass dessert cup with amaretti cookie crumbs, strawberries, whipped cream, topped with more chopped strawberries and whipped cream

    The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

  10. Decorate with a few slices of strawberries and a little amaretti crumb. Serve immediately.

    A strawberry creme parfait garnished with amaretti cookie crumbs and sliced strawberries

    The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

How to Store

These parfaits are best soon after they're made, but they can be made a few hours in advance. Cover them with plastic wrap and keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Recipe Variation

You can make this dessert with other fruit too. Add some fresh raspberries, or use peaches and blueberries in place of the strawberries. As long as the fruit is fresh, sweet, and delicious, the dessert will be wonderful.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
826 Calories
55g Fat
76g Carbs
8g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories 826
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 55g 71%
Saturated Fat 28g 139%
Cholesterol 101mg 34%
Sodium 306mg 13%
Total Carbohydrate 76g 28%
Dietary Fiber 4g 13%
Total Sugars 44g
Protein 8g
Vitamin C 52mg 258%
Calcium 94mg 7%
Iron 6mg 31%
Potassium 381mg 8%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

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