My homemade strawberry shortcake recipe is meant to be enjoyed throughout the summer. It consists of 3 ingredients: fresh sweet strawberries, flaky sweet biscuits, and homemade whipped cream. The biscuit recipe is made with butter and half-and-half giving the biscuits a cake-like texture perfect for holding the sweet juicy strawberries.
This shortcake recipe is one of my favorites and I'm happy to share it with you. I love, love Oregon strawberries and have many strawberry recipes on this blog. Oregon berries are sweet, juicy and red all the way through, so I'm either eating or baking with them all season long.
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Cheryl's Baker's Notes
- Taste your strawberries first: The sweeter the strawberries the better this dessert will taste and the less sugar you'll need to macerate the strawberries and pull out their natural juices.
- Homemade whipped cream is best. It has a creamier, richer texture than store bought whipped cream in the cannister, plus you can control the amount of sugar and adjust the amount of vanilla extract based on your tastes.
- Homemade biscuits with half and half: My homemade biscuits are made with a combination of cold butter and half and half. This combination gives the biscuits a tender, almost cake like texture which is perfect for soaking up the strawberry juice.
And if you came to this recipe because you like strawberries too, consider trying these recipes:
- Strawberry Almond Cake
- Strawberry Filled Vanilla Cupcakes
- Homemade Strawberry Soda (made with homemade Strawberry Simple Syrup)
Strawberry Shortcake Ingredients
Homemade strawberry shortcake is so easy to make. Here is some information about the key ingredients to make the best version possible:
- Fresh Strawberries: Use in-season fresh strawberries for the best results. The berries should be naturally sweet and red in the center. The sweeter the strawberries the less sugar you'll need for the berries.
- Homemade Sweet Biscuits: Use this recipe for sweet shortcake biscuits. These biscuits are tender, flaky, and sweeter than regular biscuits making them perfect for dessert. The recipe uses a folding method which ensures they rise nise and high.
- Heavy Cream: For the best results, whip up some heavy cream right before serving the strawberry shortcake. The cream is sweetened based on your tastes. I use powdered sugar because the cornstarch in the sugar helps stabilize the whipped cream. If you don't have powdered sugar, use granulated sugar.
How to Make Sweet Shortcake Biscuits
Make sure the butter and half-and-half are cold when adding them to the dough. Cold butter is key to achieving those flaky layers.
Make the biscuit dough and use your hands and fingers to form a large rectangle.
Fold the dough, using a letter fold technique. This method will help create those flaky layers.
Use a biscuit cutter to cut out the biscuits, do not use a glass or some other device with rounded edges. Biscuit cutters have a sharp edge that will produce a clean cut that allows the biscuits to rise.
Bake the biscuits until risen and golden brown on top. They are best served warm.
Homemade Whipped Cream
Homemade whipped cream is easy to make and has just 3 ingredients: heavy cream, powdered sugar, and pure vanilla extract. I prefer slightly sweetened whipped cream so I use 3 tablespoons of powdered sugar for 2 cups of heavy cream. You can use more or less to your tastes.
Make the whipped cream right before serving the strawberry shortcake and ideally, while the biscuits are still warm.
Place the heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla extra in a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Whip on medium speed until soft peaks form.
How to Assemble the Strawberry Shortcake
After the biscuits are baked, let them cool slightly and serve them while still warm.
Split the biscuit in half, spoon strawberries and some of the juice over the biscuit.
Add whipped cream and more berries
Top with the other biscuit half and add more whipped cream and strawberries.
Which Strawberries to Use for Strawberry Shortcake
I'm a big believer in using local in-season fruit. Local fresh strawberries are the best option for this strawberry shortcake recipe. Here are some strawberry varieties that are great for strawberry shortcake:
- Hood Strawberries - small and sweet with a short season in early June
- Albion - these berries are large and firm and available for several months of the year
- Mary's Peak - a new variety from Oregon, these berries are medium-sized and sweet
Here is a list of strawberry varieties by state so you can find your new favorite.
To prepare the berries, wash them off with a spray of water. Don't soak them in water or they will become waterlogged. Dry the berries off and then slice them thick or thin depending on how you like them. Place the strawberries in a large bowl and add the sugar.
If you make this seriously delicious strawberry shortcake please leave a rating and a comment below. If you have questions email me and I'll be happy to help.
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Fresh Strawberry Shortcake with Homemade Biscuits
Ingredients
Strawberries
- 6 cups (750 grams) fresh strawberries sliced
- 1/2 cup (100 grams) sugar
Sweet Shortcake Biscuits
- 2 cups (292 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 3 tablespoons (38 grams) granulated sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 8 tablespoons (113 grams) unsalted butter cold and cut into cubes
- 1 cup (240 ml) half-n-half
- 2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter melted
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
Whipped Cream
- 2 cups (480 ml) heavy cream chilled
- 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Place the stand mixer or handheld whisk attachment in the refrigerator for the whipped cream.
For the Strawberries
- When adding sugar to the strawberries, start with less than the recipe calls for and add more sugar based on the desired level of sweetness.
- Combine the sliced strawberries and the sugar in large bowl and stir together. Place the fruit in the refrigerator and allow the berries to macerate.
Shortcake Biscuits
- Use this recipe to make the biscuits. The biscuits are best served warm with the strawberry filling and whipped cream.
For the Whipped Cream
- Place the heavy cream, powdered sugar, and pure vanilla extract in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on medium speed until soft to medium peaks form. Watch the cream the entire time to avoid overbeating it.
Assemble the Shortcakes
- To make a shortcake, cut a biscuit in half and spoon strawberries on top of the biscuit. Then top with whipped cream and more strawberries. Top with the other biscuit half and add more strawberries and whipped cream.
Barbara Rigney says
I have never added sugar to a biscuit dough.
I will definitely try this, it’s sounds delicious
Rose says
If you don’t have halt and half can you use buttermilk instead
Cheryl Norris says
Hi Rose
If you don't have half and half you can use whole milk or stir together 3/4 cup whole milk and 1/4 cup heavy cream. I haven't tested this recipe with buttermilk, but I assume it wouldn't have the same cakey texture.