Berry Shortcakes With Whipped Cream Cheese Recipes

BERRY SHORTCAKES WITH WHIPPED CREAM CHEESE

Steps:

• Coat 2 parchment-lined baking sheets with cooking spray. Whisk together flour, granulated sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a large bowl. Incorporate butter and cold cream cheese into flour mixture with a pastry cutter or your fingers until mixture resembles coarse meal. Transfer to freezer and chill 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. Transfer half of flour mixture to another large bowl. Add blueberries to 1 bowl and strawberries to other bowl. Gradually stir 6 tablespoons buttermilk into 1 bowl, gently folding with a rubber spatula until a sticky dough forms. (Do not overmix.) Divide dough into 4 even mounds and place 2 inches apart on 1 baking sheet. Repeat with second mixture, remaining 6 tablespoons buttermilk, and other baking sheet. Bake, rotating halfway through, until shortcakes are golden brown, about 20 minutes. Let cool on baking sheets 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
• Meanwhile, beat together remaining 6 ounces cream cheese and confectioner's sugar with a mixer on medium speed until smooth. Gradually add cream, beating just until mixture becomes smooth and thick, about 1 minute. (Do not overbeat.) Serve alongside shortcakes and berries, with confectioner's sugar for sprinkling.

MIXED BERRY SHORTCAKE

Steps:

• For the biscuits: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Add the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt to the bowl of a food processor (or a large bowl). Add the butter pieces and pulse until the butter is completely cut into the flour mixture (or use a pastry cutter if using a bowl). Combine the buttermilk and vanilla in a measuring cup and while pulsing (or stirring) the dough, drizzle in the buttermilk mixture until the dough just comes together and is no longer crumbly.
• Drop the mixture in 8 clumps between 2 baking sheets, then bake until golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Set aside and allow to cool completely.
• For the berries: Wash the berries, slice the strawberries and transfer to a bowl. Sprinkle on the granulated sugar, then add the orange zest and juice. Stir gently, then set aside for 15 to 20 minutes to allow a syrup to develop.
• For the sweet yogurt cream: In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the cream, yogurt, granulated sugar and brown sugar on high until stiff. (Note: It won't get quite as stiff as regular whipped cream.)
• To serve, lay one biscuit on a plate, top with syrupy fruit, then top with a good spoonful of cream.

BERRIES AND CREAM SHORTCAKE ON THE GO

Steps:

• Top each cake with about 2 tablespoons whipped topping. Distribute strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries on top.

TRIPLE BERRY CREAM CHEESE SHORTCAKE

Steps:

• For the cream cheese swirl: Mix together the cream cheese, sugar and egg white in a small bowl until smooth.
• For the berries and cream: Gently toss the mixed berries with the sugar, lemon juice and orange zest in a large bowl. Let stand, gently stirring occasionally, until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is juicy (some of the raspberries will break down), about 1 hour. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
• For the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch square baking dish with nonstick cooking spray and line the bottom with parchment.
• Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla and egg. Add the flour mixture in 3 batches, alternating with the milk and beginning and ending with the flour. Beat until the flour is just incorporated.
• Spoon the batter into the prepared baking dish and smooth with an offset spatula. Add big dollops of the cream cheese mixture all over the surface and use a small spoon to swirl it in slightly, then smooth the top again.
• Bake the cake until a wooden toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool the cake in the baking dish for 10 minutes, then remove and cool it completely, cream cheese-side-up.
• Cut the cake into squares and serve topped with the berries. Add a dollop of whipped cream. Garnish with the mint.

STRAWBERRY AND BASIL-CORNMEAL SHORTCAKES WITH VANILLA WHIPPED CREAM

Steps:

• Make the Strawberry Filling:
• Place about one-third of the strawberries in a medium nonreactive (glass or ceramic) bowl and crush them with a fork or potato masher. Add the remaining strawberries to the bowl and tear them up with your fingers into bite-size pieces, making sure any juice falls into the bowl. Sprinkle the sugar, basil, and vinegar over the strawberries and toss to coat. Let sit for at least 30 minutes or up to 3 hours before using.
• Make the Whipped Cream:
• Split the vanilla bean lengthwise, if using, and scrape the seeds into the heavy cream in the measuring cup. (Or add the vanilla extract.) Add the sugar and stir to dissolve. Add the empty vanilla bean, cover with plastic wrap, and let steep in the refrigerator while you make the shortcakes.
• Make the Basil-Cornmeal Shortcakes:
• Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat. Combine the flour, cornmeal, 3 tablespoons of the sugar, the baking powder, baking soda, salt, and basil in a large bowl. Cut the butter into ½-inch chunks, sprinkle over the flour, and toss to coat. Using your fingers, flatten the cubes of butter and then rub and squeeze the butter and flour together until the butter is broken into small pieces, about the size of peas.
• Set aside the egg white in a small bowl. Combine the egg yolk and the yogurt in a small bowl and beat together until the yolk is incorporated into the yogurt. Scrape the yogurt into the dry ingredients and toss first with a fork, then your hands, until a dough forms. It might seem dry at first, but keep tossing together and a dough will form. Divide the dough into 4 balls and place on the lined baking sheet, pressing down slightly to form disks. Add the water to the egg white and beat until frothy. Brush the top of each shortcake with a light coating of the egg white wash and sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon sugar. Bake until the biscuits are golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 14 to 18 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes and then carefully move to a wire rack.
• While the shortcakes are cooling, finish the whipped cream. Remove the vanilla pod from the cream and transfer the cream to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whip on high speed until soft peaks form.
• Assemble the Shortcakes:
• Use a serrated knife to split the shortcakes in half. Spoon the whipped cream onto the bottom of each shortcake, add some strawberries, sprinkle with a little basil, add another dollop of whipped cream, and replace the top of each shortcake. Serve immediately.
• Tearing Strawberries:
• It sounds odd, but tearing the strawberries by hand in this recipe actually serves a purpose. If you slice the strawberries, the fruit tends to slip and slide off the whipped cream. However, if you tear the fruit with your fingers, the jagged edges of the fruit have nooks and crannies that help capture the whipped cream. It also helps bruise the fruit so that a little more juice is released for the shortcake. So get your hands dirty and start tearing away!
• VARIATION: Blueberry and Coriander Shortcakes With Lemon-Scented Whipped Cream
• Make the blueberry filling by combining 4 cups (680 g) fresh blueberries (don't use frozen), 1⁄2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar, the zest of 1 lemon, and 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the juices start to boil and a few of the berries start to pop, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool to room temperature or refrigerate overnight.
• For the shortcakes, first toast 4 teaspoons coriander seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat until fragrant. Remove and let cool, then crush with a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder. Increase the all-purpose flour to 1 1⁄2 cups (210 g) and omit the cornmeal, and substitute 2 teaspoons of the crushed toasted coriander for the basil. Sprinkle 1⁄4 teaspoon crushed coriander over each shortcake with the sugar before baking. Make the whipped cream as directed, then fold in 1 tablespoon lemon zest or 2 teaspoons lemon extract. Sprinkle the remaining coriander over the blueberries when assembling in place of the basil.

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.

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE WITH CHEESECAKE WHIPPED CREAM

Steps:

• Mix 1 1/2 quarts strawberries and white sugar in a large bowl; gently mash strawberries with a potato masher. Cover and refrigerate.
• Beat cream cheese in a bowl until light and fluffy; set aside. Beat heavy cream in another bowl until soft peaks form; add whipped cream cheese and continue to beat until stiff peaks form. Lift your beater or whisk straight up: the cream should form a sharp peak that holds its shape. Beat confectioners' sugar and vanilla extract into cream cheese mixture.
• Layer about half the angel food cake in a large bowl or trifle. Spread a third of the cream cheese mixture over the cake and top with a layer of mashed strawberries. Repeat the layers, finishing with a final layer of the cream cheese mixture. Arrange the remaining 1/2 quart strawberry slices decoratively. Chill until ready to serve.