Strawberry Shortcake is like summer on a plate ~ don’t miss your chance to make this classic American dessert with ripe seasonal berries!
Strawberry shortcake is such an iconic recipe, and it pretty much embodies the fresh care-free summer vibe we all live for. Ripe strawberries are macerated to coax out their juices and piled on a split shortcake with the most delicate, crumbly texture. Top it with a cloud of whipped cream and a few more berries and you’ve got a delicious bit of Americana on a plate.
Strawberry shortcake is a must at least once every summer with seasonal berries (we picked our own at a nearby farm) and a surefire hit when you need something special for dessert.
what is a shortcake?
The term “shortcake” has been used since at least the 16th century in England. The “short” in shortcake refers to the crumbly texture of the cake, due to its high-fat content, usually butter or lard.
The American shortcake dessert involves a lightly sweetened biscuit or scone that has the same crumbly texture that soaks in the strawberry juices and the moisture from the whipped cream. While some strawberry shortcake recipes call for sponge cake or pound cake, the biscuit or scone is the most authentic.
related: Fresh Peach Shortcake
assembling strawberry shortcake 1 – 2- 3!
- SPLIT: split your shortcake in half, horizontally. I like to make the bottom the thicker half since it needs to hold up to the filling.
- LAYER: add strawberries with their juice, and whipped cream on the bottom half.
- TOP: top with the other half of the shortcake (I like to place it off to the side at a rakish angle) and garnish with more strawberries and cream.
how to macerate strawberries (for maximum juice!)
Macerating simply means tossing strawberries with sugar and letting them sit for about 30 minutes to encourage the juices to start flowing. The juice from the strawberries is super important in strawberry shortcake. It’s not only delicious and sweet, it helps moisten the shortcake itself and makes that part crumbly/part soft and squishy texture we all love.
- Slice berries: it’s tempting to use halves or whole strawberries, but thin slices increase the surface area in contact with the sugar, which draws out more juice.
- Use granulated sugar: the sugar isn’t just for sweetening your berries, granulated sugar actually draws out moisture from the strawberries. And it’s more effective at drawing out moisture than powdered sugar.
- Add lemon juice: I add lemon juice for flavor but also to get the process started. Sometimes I’ll add a splash of water, too.
- Stir occasionally: stirring the strawberries occasionally during maceration helps with extracting that ruby red juice!
- Give it 30 minutes: you need to allow enough time for the process to happen, but after a certain point the berries will start to break down. 30 minutes is optimal.
all you need to know for the best strawberry shortcake
Don’t overwork the shortcake dough. It’s meant to be shaggy (and so is the shortcake, so don’t try to manhandle it into a perfect shape.)
Use deliciously ripe seasonal strawberries, and if you don’t have them, wait until you do.
Prep, slice, and macerate your berries no more than 30 minutes ahead of serving. Any longer and the berries will start to deteriorate.
Whip your cream to soft pillowy mounds, not stiff peaks. The moist slightly under-whipped cream will meld more easily with the shortcake and the berries, a hallmark of this famous summer dessert.
Definitely don’t assemble your shortcakes until just before serving for best results. You can even set up a make your own shortcake bar so people can do their own.
keeping the focus on strawberries
Strawberry Shortcake
Video
Ingredients
- 3 cups ripe strawberries, sliced
- 1 Tbsp sugar
- 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice, (1/2 lemon)
shortcakes
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tbsp sugar, plus more for sprinkling
- ½ tsp. salt
- 2/3 cup buttermilk, very cold
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
whipped cream
- 1 cup cold cream
- 2 Tbsp confectioner’s sugar, sifted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F.
- In a large bowl, toss the sliced berries with sugar and lemon and set aside for about 30 minutes to allow the juices to start flowing.
- In a large bowl whisk the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt to combine.
- In a small bowl, whisk the buttermilk, egg, and melted butter together. Pour the wet ingredients into the flour and mix until just blended—don't over work it. I like to use two dinner forks.
- Drop 1/3 cup sized mounds of dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Space them 2" apart. I like to use a medium ice cream scoop to scoop out my dough ~ it creates a nice mound shape that works well when it comes to splitting the baked shortcakes later. This recipe will make 6 shortcakes.
- Sprinkle a little sugar over the tops of the shortcakes and bake for about 12-15 minutes. They should be light golden, and you don't want to over bake them. Cool on a rack. 15 minutes works well for me, but your oven may vary.
- Whip the cold cream with the sugar and vanilla until soft peaks form.
- To serve the shortcakes, split a shortcake in half and top with berries and a good dollop of whipped cream. Don't forget to spoon a little of the strawberry juice over the shortcake, too! Add the top half of the shortcake and garnish with more whipped cream and strawberries.
Love this recipe, easy to make and not too sweet! Definitely will make this often during strawberry season!
Made this over the weekend with supermarket berries and loved it, the shortcake in particular was really tasty.