What better way to conjure up memories of the joys of youth than strawberry shortcake? Strawberry shortcake is one of the easiest desserts to prepare, a perfect finish to a family meal or for serving a large group of people, because it scales so easily.
How to Make Strawberry Shortcake
To make strawberry shortcake, all you have to do is toss sliced fresh strawberries in sugar, and let them set for a bit to macerate. The sugar will draw moisture out of the strawberries and dissolve to make a syrupy sauce. Serve the strawberries over white cake or biscuits, and top with whipped cream.
Do you like your shortcake with cake or biscuits? I’m from the camp that insists that strawberry shortcake is made with a biscuit, not a cake.
Growing up we always made the shortcake biscuits with Bisquick baking mix, but now I just make biscuits from scratch, it’s easy!
I’ve included recipes here for excellent homemade biscuits, the Bisquick biscuits, and also gluten-free biscuits for those who don’t want to give up strawberry shortcake just because they’re avoiding gluten.
If you like strawberry shortcake, you’ll love these recipes
- Strawberry Shortcake Sliders
- Blueberry Shortcake
- Fresh Strawberry Pie
- Strawberry Rhubarb Pie
Ingredients
Strawberries and whipping cream:
- 3 baskets of fresh strawberries (about 6 cups)
- 1/2 cup white granulated sugar for the strawberries
- Whipping cream
- Vanilla
- Powdered sugar
1 Prep the strawberries: Cut the stems away from the strawberries and discard. Cut the strawberries in half, and then either quarters or thick slices.
2 Macerate the strawberries with sugar: Put the cut strawberries into a large bowl and sprinkle with sugar. Start with 1/4 cup of sugar and then add up to another 1/4 cup depending on how sweet your strawberries are. Gently stir the strawberries until they are all coated with some sugar.
Let sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes, until the berries soften and begin to release their juices.
3 Mash some of the strawberries: After 20 minutes or so, mash about half of the berries in the bowl with a potato masher and stir to mix.
You don't want to mash all the berries, just enough of them for their juices. Let sit while you bake the biscuits.
4 Bake the biscuits using one of the recipes below.
5 Make whipped cream: While the biscuits are baking, whip the cream, adding a drop or two of vanilla and a teaspoon of powdered sugar. Cover with plastic and place in the refrigerator to chill until ready to serve.
To serve, break up one biscuit per person into big pieces into a bowl. Ladle strawberries over the biscuit. Add a dollop of whipped cream.
Biscuits from scratch
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 3 Tbsp sugar
- 1 1/2 Tbsp baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 12 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
In a large bowl, vigorously whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut the butter into the flour mixture, either using your fingers, a pastry cutter, a fork, or a food processor, until the largest pieces of butter are the size of peas. Mix the vanilla and cream together. Make a well in the center of the flour and pour the cream into it. Mix with a fork until the mixture is just combined. It should look rather shaggy and feel a little dry. Gently knead by hand a few times to form a loose ball of dough.
Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and form it into an 8-inch square, about 3/4-inch to an inch thick. Place it on a parchment or silicone-lined baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and chill for 20 minutes. Heat the oven to 425ºF. Remove the dough from refrigerator. Cut the dough into 9 even squares and spread them about 2 inches apart from each other on the baking sheet. Bake until the biscuits are medium golden brown, 18 to 20 minutes.
Makes 9 biscuits. (Adapted from Fine Cooking Magazine, July 2003)
Bisquick biscuits:
- 2 1/3 cups Bisquick baking mix
- 3 Tbsp butter, melted
- 1/2 cup milk
- 3 Tbsp sugar
The strawberry shortcake biscuit recipe used to be on the side of the Bisquick box. For some unfathomable reason, the company has started to print the recipe on the inside of the box. Talk about not understanding your customers! If you can't find the recipe, here it is:
Heat oven to 425°F. Stir baking mix, melted butter, milk, and 3 Tbsp of sugar in a mixing bowl until soft dough forms. Drop by 6 spoonfuls on to a greased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.
Makes 6 biscuits.
Gluten-free biscuits:
For flaky, fluffy, tender gluten-free biscuits, see our Gluten-free Biscuits Recipe.
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