Strawberry Shortcake

When I was young my Mom would make me strawberry shortcake whenever I was sad. It didn't matter what time of day it was, if I was having a bad day she would be there with a big bowl of sweet biscuit, juicy strawberries and whipped cream.  Mom always prepared it the same way:  After the sliced strawberries were tossed in a bowl with sugar and a little lemon, she would bake the biscuit-like shortcakes and whip the cream.  Then, while still warm, she would split a sweet biscuit and spread the insides with butter, a crucial step.  She would then fill the biscuit with the juicy berries and cream.  It was so good.  Enough to get me to stop crying good.  Sweet, creamy, tart and luscious.  Now, whenever June rolls around and strawberries are in season, I always make myself strawberry shortcake the way Mom did.  Somehow it still always makes me feel better.

Strawberry Shortcake
serves 6

For the strawberries and cream:
2 pints ripe strawberries, hulled and sliced in half
1 Tbsp + 1 tsp sugar, divided
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 cup heavy cream, cold

For the shortcakes:
follow my buttermilk biscuit recipe (found here) with the following additions:
add 1/2 cup sugar to the dry ingredients
add seeds of 1/2 of a vanilla bean (or 1 tsp pure vanilla) to the cold buttermilk before mixing it in
softened butter for spreading on biscuits

Combine the strawberries with 1 Tbsp sugar and the lemon juice in a bowl.  Cover with plastic and allow to sit at room temperature while you prepare the biscuits.

Once the biscuits have come out of the oven, pour the cold heavy cream into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whip attachment (or use a hand mixer, or whisk by hand) and whip on high until the cream begins to thicken.  Sprinkle in the remaining 1 tsp of sugar and continue to whip until the cream holds a soft peak.  Be careful not to over mix, the cream should still be soft.

Split the biscuits and slather both sides with butter.  Spoon strawberries and juice onto one side of a buttered biscuit.  Follow with a large dollop of whipped cream and top with the other half of the biscuit.  Continue with the remaining biscuits, strawberries and cream.  Serve in bowls or on plates.

Tiny, sweet strawberries fresh from the farmer's market. 

Allowing the strawberries to macerate with sugar and lemon makes them juicy and sweet.

Be sure to butter the inside of each biscuit for even more creamy flavor and richness.

Mound on the berries and juice.

Top with softly whipped cream and finish with buttery biscuit.

This classic dessert will certainly make your day a little better.