Homemade strawberry shortcakes with juicy macerated strawberries and fresh whipped cream snuggled between a soft and crumbly biscuit. These shortcakes are a summertime dessert staple!
Why this recipe works
Making strawberry shortcakes from scratch is actually really simple. The strawberries are softened and sweetened by dousing them in sugar which creates juicy, sweet berries to pile in between pillowy whipped cream and fresh shortcake biscuits. For the whipped cream, you need 1 single ingredient – heavy whipping cream which is whipped to medium peaks using a mixer.
The “hardest” part of making them is the shortbread biscuits. Which only requires a bit of love, cold butter, and a cookie cutter. I promise anyone can tackle these strawberry cakes!
Ingredients you will need
Get all measurements, ingredients, and instructions in the printable version at the end of this post.
Ingredient Info and Substitution Suggestions
STRAWBERRIES – Use fresh strawberries, not frozen.
BISCUITS – If you don’t want to make homemade biscuits, simply make a batch of Bisquick biscuits instead.
WHIPPED CREAM – Fresh whipped cream is super easy to make with just 1 ingredient, heavy whipping cream, which is why we always choose to make it homemade. For sweetened vanilla whipped cream, add 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar (or powdered sugar) and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. You can substitute with Cool Whip if you prefer.
How to Make Strawberry Shortcakes
These step by step photos and instructions are here to help you visualize how to make this recipe. You can Jump to Recipe to get the printable version of this recipe, complete with measurements and instructions at the bottom.
- Stir together all ingredients for the macerated strawberries in a large bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 400F. Line a large baking tray with a silpat baking mat or parchment paper.
- Add the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda to a large bowl, and whisk to combine. Add the diced butter and cut it in with a fork or pastry cutter until it looks crumbly. You should still have some pieces of butter the size of small peas.
EXPERT TIP – Instead of cutting the butter into the dry ingredients with a fork or pastry cutter, you can do this in a food processor. After that, transfer the dough to a large bowl and gradually stir in the buttermilk.
- Stir in the buttermilk a little at a time until it’s all incorporated. The dough will be shaggy and a bit crumbly at this point.
- Turn the dough (including the crumbles) out onto a clean work surface. Flour your hands and rolling pin. Press the dough together, and then continue pressing it out until it’s a circle at about 3/4-inch thick.
- Fold the top 1/3 of the dough over onto the center, and then fold the bottom 1/3 over onto the center, like you’re folding a letter.
- Rotate the dough 90 degrees clockwise. Lightly flour the dough and use a floured rolling pin to roll the dough out to a rounded rectangle about 3/4-inch thick. Again, fold the top 1/3 of the dough over onto the center, and then fold the bottom 1/3 over onto the center, like you’re folding a letter. Repeat this step 2 more times.
- For the last time, roll the dough out to a rounded rectangle about 3/4-inch thick. Use a 2 1/2-inch circle biscuit cutter or cookie cutter to stamp out circles, being careful not to twist the biscuit cutter as you stamp them out. Gather the scraps, reroll them, and stamp them out again. You should end up with 6 dough circles.
- Arrange the dough circles so they’re touching in the center of the prepared baking tray. Brush the tops with cream and sprinkle them with golden sugar.
- Bake until the biscuits are puffed and golden, about 16 to 20 minutes. Cool.
- Once the shortcakes are cooled, slice each in half horizontally.
- To make whipped cream, add the heavy whipping cream to a large bowl and whip with a hand mixer until medium peaks form, around 3-5 minutes. For sweetened vanilla whipped cream, add 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar (or powdered sugar) and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
- Spoon on some of the macerated strawberries and a dollop of whipped cream onto the bottom half of the shortbread. Place the top half of the shortbread on top, and add another dollop of whipped cream and a whole strawberry. Serve.
Frequently Asked Questions & Expert Tips
Yes, I would suggest only making the biscuits and the macerated strawberries a day in advance and storing them separately in air-tight containers. Keep the biscuits at room temp, and the strawberries in the fridge. I wouldn’t assemble them until the day of (a few hours in advance isn’t a problem). The whipped cream is not stabilized so it’s best to make it before serving, or at most about an hour or two ahead. If you assemble them too far in advance then they may run the risk of getting soggy.
Try to store each of the ingredients separately so leftover shortcakes don’t get too soggy. Store the biscuits at room temp in an air-tight container for up to 4 days. The strawberries can be stored in the refrigerator in an air-tight container for up to 4 days as well. The whipped cream will likely only last 1-2 days in the refrigerator before it falls flat.
Serving Suggestions
Serve immediately with a dollop of extra whipped cream and a fresh strawberry on top. Optionally add a sprig of fresh mint as garnish. They can be enjoyed chilled, at room temp, or warmed.
What I like to do when I’m unsure whether or not I will have any leftovers is assemble them as I serve. This way, I don’t have a ton of preassembled cakes which will make it easier to store them without them getting soggy. You can create a “bar” for guests to pile on the whipped cream and strawberries themselves so you’re able to keep all the ingredients separate.
More Strawberry Recipes
- Strawberry Lasagna
- Strawberry Bundt Cake
- Strawberry Pretzel Salad
- Strawberry Dream Dessert
- Strawberry Shortcake Trifle
- Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries
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Strawberry Shortcakes
IMPORTANT – There are often Frequently Asked Questions within the blog post that you may find helpful. Simply scroll back up to read them!
Print It Rate ItIngredients
Macerated Strawberries
- 5 cups strawberries hulled and quartered
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 pinch salt
Shortcake
- 1 â…“ cups all-purpose flour plus more for rolling out dough
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter chilled and diced
- ½ cup buttermilk chilled
- ½ Tablespoon heavy cream for brushing on top of biscuit dough
- ½ Tablespoon golden sugar for sprinkling on top of dough
Whipped Cream
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
Things You’ll Need
Before You Begin
- To make the tallest shortcake possible, be sure to use chilled butter and buttermilk. Also, be careful not to twist the biscuit cutter as you stamp out the dough circles.
- Instead of cutting the butter into the dry ingredients with a fork or pastry cutter, you can do this in a food processor. After that, transfer the dough to a large bowl and gradually stir in the buttermilk.
Instructions
- Stir together all ingredients for the macerated strawberries in a large bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 400F. Line a large baking tray with a silpat baking mat or parchment paper.
- Add the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda to a large bowl, and whisk to combine. Add the diced butter and cut it in with a fork or pastry cutter until it looks crumbly. You should still have some pieces of butter the size of small peas.
- Stir in the buttermilk a little at a time until it’s all incorporated. The dough will be shaggy and a bit crumbly at this point.
- Turn the dough (including the crumbles) out onto a clean work surface. Flour your hands and rolling pin. Press the dough together, and then continue pressing it out until it’s a circle at about 3/4-inch thick.
- Fold the top 1/3 of the dough over onto the center, and then fold the bottom 1/3 over onto the center, like you’re folding a letter.
- Rotate the dough 90 degrees clockwise. Lightly flour the dough and use a floured rolling pin to roll the dough out to a rectangle about 3/4-inch thick. Again, fold the top 1/3 of the dough over onto the center, and then fold the bottom 1/3 over onto the center, like you’re folding a letter. Repeat this step 2 more times.
- For the last time, roll the dough out to a rounded rectangle about 3/4-inch thick. Use a 2 1/2-inch circle biscuit or cookie cutter to stamp out circles, being careful not to twist the biscuit cutter as you stamp them out. Gather the scraps, reroll them, and stamp them out again. You should end up with 6 dough circles.
- Arrange the dough circles so they’re touching in the center of the prepared baking tray. Brush the tops with cream and sprinkle them with golden sugar.
- Bake until the biscuits are puffed and golden, about 16 to 20 minutes. Cool.
- Once the shortcakes are cooled, slice each in half horizontally.
- To make whipped cream, add the heavy whipping cream to a large bowl and whip with a hand mixer until medium peaks form, around 3-5 minutes. For sweetened vanilla whipped cream, add 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar (or powdered sugar) and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
- Spoon on some of the macerated strawberries and a dollop of whipped cream onto the bottom half of the shortbread. Place the top half of the shortbread on top, and add another dollop of whipped cream and a whole strawberry. Serve.
Expert Tips & FAQs
- Try to store each of the ingredients separately so leftover shortcakes don’t get too soggy. Store the biscuits at room temp in an air-tight container for up to 4 days. The strawberries can be stored in the refrigerator in an air-tight container for up to 4 days as well. The whipped cream will likely only last 1-2 days in the refrigerator before it falls flat.
Nutrition
This post was originally published here on March 22, 2022.
Amanda Davis
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cali kopetskie says
it was so good I want ather recipes just like that.