• If you are using vegan pastry cream rather than whipped cream make that first as it will need at least 4 hours to chill.

Shortcake:

• Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/400°F/gas mark 6. Line a 20 cm/8 in round cake tin with baking paper.
• Stir the milk, vinegar and vanilla extract together in a jug. Set aside in the fridge
  120 g (½ cup) unsweetened non-dairy milk (I use soy), 2 teaspoons vinegar, 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Mix the flour, baking powder and salt together in a bowl. Add the cold butter and rub it in with your fingertips until it is mostly combined but a few pea sized lumps remain.
  325 g (2 ¾ cups) plain (all-purpose) flour, 4 ½ teaspoons baking powder, ¼ teaspoon salt, 150 g (⅔ cup) vegan block butter
• Stir in the sugar followed by the milk mixture to form a soft, sticky dough.
  70 g (5 ½ Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar
• Scrape the dough out onto a floured surface and dust with more flour, pat out with floured hands into a rough oval shape.
• Fold the oval in half, pat it out slightly again and fold in half again, repeat once more, dusting with more flour as needed. Be gentle and do not knead the dough.
• Use your hands to pat the dough into a circle. Place the dough in the lined tin and gently press it out to fill the tin.
• Bake for 25-30 mins until golden, firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes then carefully turn it out onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely.

Strawberries:

• Meanwhile, hull the strawberries and slice into halves if small and quarters if large. Place them in a bowl and stir in the sugar, lemon juice and vanilla. Place the bowl in the fridge for 30-60 minutes for the strawberries to macerate.
  450-500 g (1 lb) fresh strawberries, 1 Tablespoon caster or granulated sugar, 2 teaspoons lemon juice, 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste

Assembly:

• Carefully slice the cooled shortcake in half using a serrated knife. Cut the top half into 8-10 triangles.
• Place the bottom half of the shortcake on a serving plate or cake stand and spoon over the strawberries, including any juices.
• Give the chilled pastry cream a good whisk until it is smooth and creamy. Place it in a piping bag fitted with a large star or open nozzle and pipe the pastry cream on top of the strawberries.
  1 batch vegan pastry cream
• If you are using whipped cream rather than pastry cream, place the cold cream and the icing sugar in a large bowl, whisk with an electric mixer until it forms stiff peaks then spoon or pipe the whipped cream on top of the strawberries.
  250 ml (1 cup) vegan whipping cream, 25 g (¼ cup) icing (powdered) sugar
• Arrange the triangles of shortcake on top of the cream, dust with icing sugar and serve right away.