Shortcake And More Recipes

THE BEST CLASSIC STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE

Steps:

• For the shortcakes: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Whisk the heavy cream, sour cream and vanilla in a small bowl; refrigerate until ready to use. Pulse the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt in a food processor until combined. Add the butter; pulse until the mixture looks like fine meal. Pour in the chilled heavy cream mixture and pulse until just combined.
• Lightly flour a work surface and dump the dough onto it. Pat out the dough 1/2-inch thick. Cut out as many biscuits as you can with a 2 1/2-inch biscuit cutter. Then pat the remaining dough out to 1/2-inch thick again. Cut more biscuits; you should get 12.
• Put 6 of the biscuits on the prepared baking sheet. Brush the tops generously with cream, then top each cream-brushed biscuit with one of the remaining biscuit rounds. (This makes it easier to split once they are baked.) Brush the top of each biscuit stack with more heavy cream and sprinkle 1 teaspoon granulated sugar on each biscuit.
• Bake the biscuits until golden and puffed, about 30 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.
• Meanwhile, for the topping: Toss the strawberries and 2 tablespoons of the brown sugar in a medium bowl.
• Just before serving, beat the heavy cream, sour cream, the remaining 2 tablespoons brown sugar and vanilla in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until soft peaks form, about 2 minutes.
• Split the shortcakes in half. Spoon half the cream on the bottom of the biscuits, top evenly with the strawberries and top with the remaining cream. Put each biscuit top on and serve.

OLD-FASHIONED SHORTCAKE

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Grease an 8-inch baking pan.
• Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg in a large bowl. Cut in butter with a knife or pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Beat egg and milk in another bowl; stir into flour mixture until batter is just blended. Spread batter in the prepared baking pan.
• Bake in preheated oven until golden, about 15 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing to cool completely on a wire rack.

SHORTCAKE AND MORE

Steps:

• For 4 people, use 2 cups or more of raw, well-rinsed berries - strawberries, raspberries, blackberries or a combination. Crush about half of them gently with a fork, just to set the juices running. Add sugar to taste, depending on the berries' sweetness and ripeness. Set them aside, covered, in a cool place for at least 30 minutes to develop flavor.
• Gooseberries, another old-fashioned favorite for fool, must be cooked first. Stew 2 cups of gooseberries with about 1/2 cup of sugar just until the berries burst. Taste for sweetness, and add more sugar if necessary. Let cool before proceeding with the recipe.
• Measure the crushed berries, and pour out an equal amount of whipping cream. Beat the cream just until it holds a gentle shape. Fold the berries into the cream so there is a pleasing contrast of dark berries and pale cream. Serve in a large glass bowl or in individual sorbet cups.

SUMMER SHORTCAKE

Steps:

• Make the biscuits: Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a food processor, pulse flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until combined. Add butter, and pulse until largest pieces are the size of peas. Add cream cheese, and pulse again until largest pieces are the size of peas. Add buttermilk, and pulse until dough comes together. Transfer to a bowl, and gently knead into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap, and let rest in the refrigerator at least 1 hour (or overnight).
• Divide dough in half. Working with one portion at a time on a lightly floured work surface, pat into a disk, then roll into a 10-inch round. Transfer to baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
• Brush biscuits with buttermilk. Generously sprinkle raw or sanding sugar over tops and sides. Brush off sugar from parchment. Bake until dough has risen slightly and is golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes (if bottoms brown too quickly, reduce temperature to 400 degrees). Leave biscuits on sheets. Using a 2 1/2-inch star cutter, cut out (but do not remove) 7 stars from one biscuit while it is still warm. Let cool.
• Using a paring knife, carefully remove star shapes. Reserve for snacking or another use. (Biscuits can be made up to 8 hours ahead; store on wire racks, and cover loosely with plastic wrap.)
• Make the filling: Combine blueberries, strawberries, and 2 tablespoons sugar, and let macerate until juicy, 10 minutes.
• Just before serving, beat cream to medium peaks with remaining tablespoon sugar and the vanilla.
• Assemble the cake: Place uncut biscuit on a large plate. Spoon half the berries and their juices on top of biscuit, then spread the whipped cream over berries. Top with all but about 1/2 cup berries. (Make sure surface is even; it will support the top biscuit and prevent it from breaking.) Carefully place cutout biscuit on top. Fill star cutouts with reserved berries. Serve immediately, or refrigerate, uncovered, up to 3 hours.