Strawberry Shortcake Squares

My husband is from Upstate NY - where they believe that strawberry shortcake is served on biscuits, NOT cake of any type. I'm from PA and I grew up eating it as strawberries on angelfood cake or pound cake. Lately I've been on the hunt for a recipe that would appease both of us.

I found a great recipe today. To be honest, it was the picture on Ezra Pound Cakes' blog that lured me in. After reading, it turns out that she adapted a recipe from Alice Water's cookbook The Art of Simple Food. The name of the recipe is Alice Waters’ Strawberry Shortcake.

The "biscuit" is more like a sweet shortbread cookie to me. The combination of the fresh berries, homemade whipped cream and the shortcake make a delightful dessert.

I followed Ezra's recipe to a "T" and it turned out perfect.


Strawberry Shortcakes

Makes 6

Strawberries

4 cups strawberries, hulled and sliced
1/4 cup sugar

Topping:

1 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon sugar, or to taste

6 baked 2-inch Cream Biscuits (recipe below)

Powdered sugar (optional)

In a medium bowl, combine the strawberries and sugar.

Remove 1 cup of the strawberry mixture, and purée it in a blender or food processor. Return the purée to the rest of the strawberries; stir. Set aside at least 15 minutes.

In a standing mixer with the whisk attachment, whip together the cream, vanilla and sugar until it starts to form soft peaks.

Slice the Cream Biscuits in half. For each biscuit, spoon the strawberry mixture onto the bottom half, and add a dollop of whipped cream. Top with the other biscuit half, and dust it with powdered sugar.


Cream Biscuits

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons sugar (optional)
2 teaspoons baking powder
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) cold butter, cut into small pieces
3/4 cup heavy cream

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt, sugar (if using) and baking powder.

Cut the butter into the flour with a pastry blender or your fingertips. The pieces should be the size of small peas.

Measure cream; set aside 1 tablespoon. Add the remaining cream to the flour, and stir with a fork until the mixture just comes together. Lightly knead the dough a few times in the bowl, turn it out onto a lightly floured board, and roll out about 3/4 inch thick.

Cut six 2-inch circles or squares out of the dough. Reroll the scraps, if necessary.

Place the biscuits on a baking sheet lined with parchment, and brush the tops with the tablespoon of cream.

Bake for 17 minutes or until golden and done.