1 tablespoon white sprinkles or nonpareils (optional)
Instructions
Start by washing the strawberries thoroughly and patting them completely dry with a paper towel. Remove the green leafy tops by slicing them off straight, which creates a flat base so the Santas can stand upright. Then, cut off the top third of each strawberry, this smaller pointed piece will serve as the Santa hat.
In a medium chilled bowl, combine the heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar, and alcohol-free vanilla extract. Use a hand mixer or a whisk to beat the mixture until stiff peaks form. Be careful not to overbeat, as you want the cream to be smooth and pipeable rather than grainy.
Transfer the whipped cream into a piping bag fitted with a star or plain round tip. Pipe a generous dollop of cream onto the flat, cut surface of the larger strawberry base. This creates the face and the beard of the Santa. Place the smaller strawberry “hat” on top of the cream, pressing down gently so it stays in place.
To finish the look, pipe a tiny dot of cream onto the very tip of the strawberry hat to represent the pom-pom. You can also pipe two small dots on the front of the strawberry base to look like buttons on Santa’s suit. Carefully place two mini chocolate chips into the cream face to create the eyes.
