Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Old Fashioned Strawberry Shortcake

Old Fashioned Strawberry Shortcake
8 servings
2 cups flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 stick butter, chilled
2/3 to 3/4 cup cream
1 quart strawberries
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups whipping cream

Rinse berries; drain well. Hull and slice the berries; place in a bowl. Sprinkle with sugar; cover and let stand for about 1 hour. Whip the cream until it holds a soft peak. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. In a food processor (you can use a pastry cutter or fingertips) combine the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar; mix. Cut butter into about 8 pieces and add to the mixture. Combine until mixture resembles coarse meal, but with a few pea-size chunks of butter left in the mixture. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and make a well in the center. With a fork stir in the cream, just until dough is moist. Be very careful not to overwork. The dough doesn't have to hold together well at this point. Let the dough stand for a minute. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough 2 or 3 times, until it is holding together and is less sticky. Gently pat the dough about 3/4-inch thick and cut into 8 (3-inch) biscuits with a floured round cutter. Transfer to a buttered foil-lined cookie sheet. Brush on a little cream and sprinkle tops with some sugar. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes at 425, until risen and golden brown. Split each biscuit horizontally. Butter the hot biscuits then top with about 1/3 cup of berry mixture. Replace the tops and top with more berries and whipped cream. Enjoy!

I had some leftover crushed strawberries from my jam making, but not enough for another batch. I just added some sugar to them and used them for the strawberries in this recipe.

Tip for making whip cream - keep everything cold! Chill your bowl and beaters in the freezer before starting. Start whipping as soon as you take the cream out of the fridge. Also, place your bowl in a large bowl of ice while whipping and use an aluminum bowl, instead of a glass or plastic one - it will hold the cold better.

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