Apricot Berry Shortcake Recipes

FOURTH OF JULY SHORTCAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Butter an 11-by-7-by-1 1/2-inch baking dish. Line pan with parchment paper, allowing paper to extend 1 inch above pan.
• Stir together flour, salt and baking powder; stir in bran.
• Beat cream cheese and butter; add sugar and beat until fluffy. Beat in lemon zest, egg and lemon juice. Stir in dry ingredients.
• Spread dough in a very thin layer over bottom of pan and up sides to form a shell. Press a piece of parchment paper down into the shell. Fit close to dough at all points and let extend an inch above the pan. Fill with pie weights or dried beans or rice.
• Bake 20 minutes or until dough is set. Remove top parchment paper and weights. Reduce oven to 350 degrees and bake 15 minutes longer or until golden brown.
• Set pan on wire rack and let cool. Lift out shell. Spread interior of shell with apricot preserves.
• Make the filling: Slice strawberries, and sprinkle them and blueberries with sugar to taste. Arrange fruit in pastry shell in four segments, alternating berries.
• Make the topping: Beat ricotta with milk until smooth. Blend in sugar and vanilla. To serve, drizzle topping on each piece of shortcake.

APRICOT SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees, with rack in center. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place butter, confectioners' sugar, vanilla, flour, and salt in large mixing bowl. Stir well with a wooden spoon until mixture is combined but not too creamy. Stir in dried apricots. Turn out dough onto a piece of plastic wrap, and pat to flatten into a disk. Place in refrigerator 1 hour.
• Transfer dough to a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper, and roll out to 1/4 inch thick. If dough starts to get too soft, place in the freezer or refrigerator a few minutes. Cut out shapes, as desired, and place on prepared baking sheet about 1 inch apart. Bake until golden, 12 to 15 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through. Remove from oven, and transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool. Cookies will keep up to 5 days at room temperature in an airtight container.

PERFECT BERRY SHORTCAKES

Steps:

• Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat to 425 degrees. Mix flour, salt, baking powder and 3 Tbs. sugar in a medium bowl. Grate 2 Tbs. of the butter on the coarse holes of a box grater into dry ingredients; toss to coat. Repeat grating and tossing with remaining butter. Combine egg and half-and-half; pour into flour mixture. Toss with a fork to form large clumps. Lightly press clumps into a ball; add a teaspoon more half-and-half to the bowl if dough won't come together.
• Turn dough onto work surface; press into an 8-by-4- to 5-inch rectangle. Cut into 6 squares, placing them 1 inch apart on a small baking sheet. (Can be refrigerated up to 2 hours before baking.) Before baking, brush tops with optional egg white for a particularly attractive sheen. Sprinkle with remaining 2 Tbs. sugar. Bake until golden brown, about 12 to 14 minutes. Let cool until warm, 5 to 10 minutes.
• Mix thawed and fresh berries with sugar in a bowl; let stand until sugar dissolves. With a hand mixer, beat cream to soft peaks, gradually adding 1 Tb. sugar, then vanilla.
• Split each cake crosswise; spoon a portion of berries over each cake bottom, then a dollop of whipped cream over berries. Cap with cake top and serve immediately.

APRICOT SHORTCAKE (SPC)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 180 Degrees Celsius.
• Mix first 7 ingredients together in a large bowl until combined.
• Spoon into a teflon coated or lightly greased 20cm x 5 cm deep cake pan.
• Sprinkle over extra oats or sunflower seeds.
• Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
• Remove, stand for 10 minutes, turn onto a wire rack and cool.
• VARIATION:Omit oats and mix 2 tablespoons natural yoghurt with 1 cup sifted icing sugar and spread over cake when cool.

APRICOT NECTARINE SHORTCAKE WITH VANILLA WHIPPED CREAM

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• In the food processor combine the flour, 2 tablespoons of sugar, baking powder and salt. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture looks like grated Parmesan cheese. Add the cream and pulse until the mixture looks very crumbly but sticks together.
• Remove the blade from the processor and form craggy looking dough balls about the size of a small tennis ball. Put the dough balls on a baking sheet lined with a silpat or parchment paper. Sprinkle each ball with a little sugar. Bake in the preheated oven for about 11 to 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.
• Add the butter to a saute pan and melt it over medium heat. Add the fruit and saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Sprinkle in the sugar and saute for another 2 to 3 minutes.
• In a mixing bowl combine the cream and vanilla. Using a whisk or hand beater, beat the cream until it starts to thicken. Sprinkle in the sugar and beat until the cream is very light and fluffy and it holds soft peaks.
• Cut the shortcakes in half. Spoon a generous amount of the warm fruit filling on the bottoms of the shortcakes. Replace the top and garnish with the vanilla whipped cream.

MIXED BERRY SHORTCAKE

Steps:

• In a heavy saucepan, combine 1/2 cup sugar and cornstarch. Stir in milk until blended. Bring to a boil over medium-low heat; cook and stir for 1-2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from the heat. Stir a small amount into egg yolks; return all to the pan, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat; stir in vanilla. transfer to a bowl; press a piece of plastic wrap on top of custard. Refrigerate., In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and remaining sugar. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in buttermilk until a soft dough forms. Pat gently into a 9-in. square baking pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400° for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack., Cut shortcake into 3/4-in. cubes. In parfait glasses, alternate layers of shortcake, custard, sliced strawberries and blueberries. Garnish with halved strawberries and a dollop of whipped topping.

APRICOT SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4 and grease and line a 20cm square shallow cake tin with baking parchment. Put the apricots and conserve in a small pan with 4 tbsp water, simmer over a medium heat until thick, then mash the apricots a little with a fork and set aside to cool.
• Tip the butter, sugar and vanilla into a large bowl, and beat with an electric whisk until pale and fluffy. Add the flour and ground rice, using a wooden spoon and then your hands to bring the mixture together as a dough. Divide into 2 pieces.
• Use your fingers to spread 1 piece of shortbread dough over the bottom of the tin. Spread the apricots over the top, leaving a small border around the edge. Roll out the remaining dough to a 20cm square and place on top of the apricot filling. Use your finger to make an indent all around the edges of the shortbread, then prick the top all over with a fork. Bake for 25-30 mins until the edges are just starting to turn golden. Leave to cool in the tin, then sprinkle with caster sugar and cut into 16 squares.