Chef Johns Classic Strawberry Shortcake Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Melt butter over medium heat in small saucepan. Stir continually, letting foam dissipate, just until butter begins to brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Whisk together self-rising flour and 1/4 cup white sugar in a bowl. Add milk, 1/4 cup cream, and toasted butter. Mix just until ingredients come together. Wad up dough and transfer to floured surface. Press or roll dough into a rectangle about 1-inch thick. Cut in half lengthwise, and then cut each half into 3 portions. Place shortcake pieces on prepared baking sheet. Brush with cream; sprinkle with sugar.
• Bake in preheated oven until gold brown, 15 to 18 minutes. Transfer shortcakes to a rack to cool completely.
• Sprinkle sliced strawberries with sugar; stir until sugar begins to dissolve. Refrigerate until juice from berries is extracted, about 1 hour.
• Whip 3/4 cup cream with 1 tablespoon sugar and a few drops of vanilla in bowl with an electric mixer.
• Split biscuit in half. Place bottom half in a bowl. Spoon strawberries and juice over shortbread half. Top with shortbread top and spoon on more strawberries and juice over the shortbread. Finish with a dollop of whipped cream.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Melt butter over medium heat in small saucepan. Stir continually, letting foam dissipate, just until butter begins to brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Whisk together self-rising flour and 1/4 cup white sugar in a bowl. Add milk, 1/4 cup cream, and toasted butter. Mix just until ingredients come together. Wad up dough and transfer to floured surface. Press or roll dough into a rectangle about 1-inch thick. Cut in half lengthwise, and then cut each half into 3 portions. Place shortcake pieces on prepared baking sheet. Brush with cream; sprinkle with sugar.
• Bake in preheated oven until gold brown, 15 to 18 minutes. Transfer shortcakes to a rack to cool completely.
• Sprinkle sliced strawberries with sugar; stir until sugar begins to dissolve. Refrigerate until juice from berries is extracted, about 1 hour.
• Whip 3/4 cup cream with 1 tablespoon sugar and a few drops of vanilla in bowl with an electric mixer.
• Split biscuit in half. Place bottom half in a bowl. Spoon strawberries and juice over shortbread half. Top with shortbread top and spoon on more strawberries and juice over the shortbread. Finish with a dollop of whipped cream.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Grease the bottoms of two 9-inch round cake pans.
• In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and 1/2 cup of the sugar. Add the cold butter and cut in with 2 knives or a pastry blender to coarse-crumb consistency.
• In a large bowl, beat the eggs. Add the milk until fully combined. Gradually stir the egg and milk mixture into the flour mixture. Knead the dough for no more than a minute on a lightly floured board. Pat half the dough into each cake pan. Brush the surfaces with the melted butter. Bake until lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Turn the shortcake layers out onto cooling racks.
• While the layers are cooling, wash the strawberries and remove the hulls. Reserve a few berries for garnish. Cut the large berries in half and sprinkle with the remaining 3/4 cup sugar. Let stand for about 30 minutes.
• Spoon half of the berries with their juice over one shortcake layer. Place the second layer on top and spoon the remaining berries and juice over it. Top with whipped cream.

Steps:

• For the shortcakes: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Whisk the heavy cream, sour cream and vanilla in a small bowl; refrigerate until ready to use. Pulse the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt in a food processor until combined. Add the butter; pulse until the mixture looks like fine meal. Pour in the chilled heavy cream mixture and pulse until just combined.
• Lightly flour a work surface and dump the dough onto it. Pat out the dough 1/2-inch thick. Cut out as many biscuits as you can with a 2 1/2-inch biscuit cutter. Then pat the remaining dough out to 1/2-inch thick again. Cut more biscuits; you should get 12.
• Put 6 of the biscuits on the prepared baking sheet. Brush the tops generously with cream, then top each cream-brushed biscuit with one of the remaining biscuit rounds. (This makes it easier to split once they are baked.) Brush the top of each biscuit stack with more heavy cream and sprinkle 1 teaspoon granulated sugar on each biscuit.
• Bake the biscuits until golden and puffed, about 30 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.
• Meanwhile, for the topping: Toss the strawberries and 2 tablespoons of the brown sugar in a medium bowl.
• Just before serving, beat the heavy cream, sour cream, the remaining 2 tablespoons brown sugar and vanilla in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until soft peaks form, about 2 minutes.
• Split the shortcakes in half. Spoon half the cream on the bottom of the biscuits, top evenly with the strawberries and top with the remaining cream. Put each biscuit top on and serve.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8-inch-round cake pan, then line the bottom with parchment paper; butter the parchment and dust with flour, tapping out the excess.
• Make the cake: Whisk the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl until combined. Whisk the melted butter, vanilla bean paste, eggs, milk and lemon zest in a medium bowl until just smooth. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Transfer to a rack and let cool 10 minutes in the pan, then turn out of the pan onto the rack and let cool completely.
• Meanwhile, make the toppings and filling: Halve 16 strawberries. Whisk 1 tablespoon water and the strawberry jelly in a medium bowl until smooth. Add the halved strawberries and toss to coat; set aside. Thinly slice the remaining strawberries, then toss with 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar and the lemon juice in another medium bowl; set aside. Beat the heavy cream, the remaining 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar and the vanilla extract in a bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until soft peaks form. Refrigerate the whipped cream until ready to assemble. Carefully cut the cake in half horizontally with a serrated knife. Place the bottom half cut-side up on a platter. Drizzle the juices from the sliced berries over the cut sides of both cake halves. Fold a few tablespoons of the whipped cream into the sliced berries; spoon over the bottom cake layer. Cover with the other cake layer, then top with the remaining whipped cream. Top with the halved strawberries and their juices. Photograph by Anna Williams

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment.
• Whisk together the flour, 2 tablespoons of the sugar, the baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl. Add the butter and work it into the flour, using your fingers or a pastry cutter, until the butter pieces are the size of small peas.
• Whisk together 1/3 cup of the cream with the egg and 1/3 cup water in a small bowl. Add to the dry mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until a stiff batter forms. Drop 6 mounds onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving about 2 inches between each biscuit. Brush with a bit of cream and sprinkle with sugar. Bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet.
• While the biscuits bake and cool, combine the honey with 1/3 cup water and a pinch of salt in a small saucepot. Gently simmer, stirring, over medium heat until the honey is dissolved and the mixture is slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Cool, and then toss in a medium bowl with the strawberries and mint. If time allows, set aside for at least 30 minutes to allow the strawberries to release their juices.
• To assemble, whip the remaining 1 cup cream with the remaining 1 tablespoon sugar to soft peaks in a medium bowl. Split each biscuit and place the bottom half on a plate. Top evenly with the berries and accumulated juices and then the whipped cream. Place the top of the biscuit on the shortcake and garnish with fresh mint.