Growing up, if you’re like me, summer wasn’t complete without indulging in homemade strawberry shortcake a time or two (or ten). And it’s no wonder this old-fashioned dessert continues to be loved and cherished over the years. Think buttery, tender shortcakes with generous spoonfuls of fresh strawberries and topped with cool whipped cream. The ingredients are so simple, the flavors so classic, making it really the perfect summertime treat. Our recent team outing to Callie’s Hot Little Biscuit had me thinking nonstop about making my own homemade strawberry shortcake with owner Carrie Morey’s biscuit secrets, and it being National Strawberry Shortcake Day tomorrow and all…well it just seemed like the perfect time to indulge.
Now, I prefer my strawberry shortcake to have buttermilk biscuits (as opposed to shortcake), simply because that’s how I grew up eating them, and that’s all part of the memory. And since Callie’s Hot Little Biscuit‘s buttermilk biscuits are the best in the biz, I put my recent learnings to test and made my first batch of homemade buttermilk biscuits. Carrie’s secrets like ‘you must mix the ingredients by hand, “snapping” each hunk of butter’, and ‘you want to avoid over-rolling the dough before cutting with a biscuit cutter’, really did come into play. And I’m proud to say my first batch of biscuits turned out very, very well.
As you’ll see when making this at home, like any true strawberry shortcake recipe, this one is best made with ripe strawberries at the height of the season. You’ll want to macerate the strawberries with sugar for an even sweeter, almost syrupy consistency (this can be done the day before and refrigerated overnight). I don’t like my strawberries super super sweet, but it’s all up to your preference. Just remember when macerating any fruit, you can always add more sugar, but you can’t take it away, so start with less. After an hour or so, you can add more if you want.
And one last tip, if and when you’re making your homemade whipped cream, try whipping with an immersion blender to get an even smoother texture. (And of course, there’s no shame in a can of whipped cream from Whole Foods too, really). I personally love my strawberry shortcake to be served with the biscuits warm, topping them with a generous helping of strawberries and whipped cream if not from straight out of the oven itself. I think you’ll agree that the result is simply heavenly! Truly, MKR
- For the biscuits...
- 4 cups self-rising flour (only ever White Lily), plus more for dusting
- 1 stick (8 tablespoons) butter, cut in small cubes, at room temperature
- ½ cup cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1½ cups buttermilk
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
- For the strawberries...
- 2-3 pints of fresh organic strawberries, diced
- 1/2 cup -3/4 cup organic sugar cane
- Whip cream (optional)
- For the strawberries...
- Place the diced strawberries in a large mixing bowl, add 1/2 cup sugar and mix. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour. Taste after an hour and add additional sugar if needed.
- For the biscuits...
- Preheat the oven to 500 degrees with rack in the middle position.
- Place 4 cups of White Lily flour in a large bowl.
- Sprinkle butter cubes and cream cheese on top of the flour and use your fingers to "snap" through it until the mixture resembles cottage cheese (chunky with some loose flour).
- Make a well in the center, and pour the buttermilk in the well.
- Use your hands or a rubber spatula to mix the buttermilk into the flour. Do NOT over-mix. You'll have a wet and messy dough.
- Spread a generous amount of flour onto a work surface.
- Dump the large bowl of dough onto the floured work surface. Flour a rolling pin and sprinkle flour on top of the dough.
- Roll the dough to ½-inch thickness. Do not knead the dough.
- Flour a 2-inch round biscuit cutter. Press the cutter straight down into the dough and straight back up (quickly!). Repeat, finish cutting the dough into biscuits (you may need to re-roll out the dough scraps to finish). The dough must stay wet inside, but you can use as much flour on the outside as necessary.
- Place biscuits into a cast-iron skillet or onto a baking pan with sides, lined with parchment paper. The sides of the biscuits should be touching.
- Brush the tops of the biscuits with melted butter. Place in oven and reduce oven temp to 450 degrees. Bake 16-18 minutes, rotating the skillet or pan once.
- To make the shortcake cut 1-2 biscuits in half placing them in a bowl, add plenty of strawberries and whip cream and enjoy.
- I used two sized biscuit cutters (larger in the middle of the skillet and smaller on the outsides) to perfectly fit the biscuits in my skillet.
Went to 1Kept this weekend and had the best strawberry short cake ever. May need to give this one a try!
xo Jessica
My Style Vita