Strawberry Shortcake with Sweet Biscuits

Today’s Sunday Funday is the quintessential springtime dessert: strawberry shortcake!

I’ve never even had strawberry shortcake before, let alone made it myself.  Dessert-wise, I usually  go for chocolate and I’m a newer convert to fruit pies.  The closest I’ve had is the angel food cake topped with whipped cream and strawberries that my mom & grandma always serve at Easter….except I don’t like angel food cake (I think it’s a texture thing).  

Side note: angel food cake is always on the table for a reason!  My grandma’s original Easter Bread recipe (mine is the same but cut down to a smaller batch) calls for a whopping dozen egg yolks - it is then very convenient that angel food cake calls for a dozen egg whites!  It’s the perfect no-waste solution.

Anyway, back to the recipe at hand.

I alluded to my tale of woe in my recent smash burger post.  You see, we were supposed to travel to see my family for Easter, then not one, but two late season blizzards pounded the entire region and we made the difficult decision to stay home (sound familiar? Yep, the same thing happened at Christmas - this is not our year, weather-wise).

And so, we found ourselves at home for Easter.  I went to the butcher and bought the smallest half ham I could find - 9 pounds (!!!) - so swiftly invited friends over to share our meal.

I decided I wanted dessert, but since I’d already made my mini batch of Easter bread and used the leftover egg whites (and since I don’t care for angel food cake anyway), strawberry shortcakes were the perfect choice!

I was surprised then, when I started researching strawberry shortcake and saw so many variations.  In the grocery store, there are often little shortcake cups sold next to the strawberries (I have no idea what those are exactly), then there are pound cake shortcakes and biscuit/scone shortcakes.  

I liked the idea of the biscuits because I could make little individual shortcakes instead of one huge cake, so that’s what I went for…then all of my guests were slightly taken aback when I promised shortcake and served the biscuit version (they were expecting pound cake!)

Nevertheless, this version was delicious and (after the initial shock) well-received.  I was so glad that I had this inspiration to bring a similar Easter dessert to my own table after our plans got changed!

Looking for more shortcake inspiration?

• Buttermilk Shortcakes with Macerated Berries from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Chocolate Strawberry Shortcakes from Palatable Pastime
• Eggless Jam Shortcake Swirls from Sneha's Recipe
• Leftover Lemon Loaf Mixed Berry Shortcake from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Mini Strawberry Shortcake Parfaits from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Strawberry Lemon Shortcake from Mayuri's Jikoni
• Strawberry Shortcake with Sweet Biscuits from Amy's Cooking Adventures

Strawberry Shortcake with Sweet Biscuits

Adapted slightly from Life Made Simple

Biscuits

2 cups all purpose flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1 stick butter (8 tablespoons/ ½ cup) cut in small pieces

⅔ cup half & half

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 egg white, lightly beaten (for egg wash)

Strawberries

2 pounds strawberries, sliced

1 tablespoon sugar

Whipped cream, to serve

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat.

Place the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt) into a bowl and stir to combine.

Cut in the butter with a pastry blender or two forks.  Personally, I like to cut the butter small and work it in with my hands.  Work the butter in until it is evenly mixed in and small pebble-like pieces remain.

In a separate bowl, gently whisk the half and half and egg together.  Add the wet ingredients into the flour mixture and stir to combine.

Turn out to a lightly floured surface and knead gently.  Roll the dough to an even ¾ inch thickness.  Use a 3-inch round cookie cutter to cut biscuits.  Place onto the prepared baking sheet.  Brush the biscuits with egg white.

Place in the preheated oven and bake for 14-16 minutes or until golden brown.

While the biscuits are baking,  place the strawberries in a bowl.  Sprinkle with sugar and stir to coat.  Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Once done, cool the biscuits completely before serving.

When ready to serve, split the biscuits and top with whipped cream and strawberries.