Southern Strawberry Shortcake
When I was a kid, strawberry shortcake consisted of store-bought yellow sponge cakes topped with overly sugared strawberries and topped with store brand cool whip.
It wasn’t until 30 years later when I was managing a hotel in Lafayette, Indiana, that I learned what a real strawberry shortcake was.
At the hotel, I worked with one of the craziest, most hilarious people I have ever met, Devry Butcher, Butch for short.
Butch and I had a blast together; although he was my boss, he was my friend and still is all these years later.
The hotel’s restaurant had a good following from people in the community. We had a chef that did a good job, but from time to time, Butch would decide he could do better.
When those moments came, Butch would leave his office at the opposite end of the hotel and walk with determination to the kitchen.
Butch is a big guy, around six foot five. If Butch was coming, people moved out of his way.
When Butch was in his mood to cook for our guests, fear was palpable in the air from the kitchen staff; they knew that every pot and every pan would be used by the end of the night, and the kitchen declared a disaster zone.
When he would decide that he was done cooking for the moment, Butch would stop in the middle of what he was doing and head back to his office without washing a single pan.
Needless to say, I washed a lot of pots and pans during those days.
Butch is one of the best cooks I know. He has loved to cook his entire life, and he knows his way around a kitchen.
He is creative and passionate, and as with everything in his life, Butch does it his way.
One night at the restaurant, we were scrambling for something to serve for dessert. He Butch heard about the dilemma and jumped to action. Immediately, he headed to the kitchen in his deliberate way. I had chills.
What Butch came up with was his version of Strawberry Shortcake. His strawberry shortcake became the inspiration for mine.
I had not heard of buttermilk biscuits as a dessert, but once I tasted it, I was a believer, and so were our guests. Butch’s Strawberry Shortcake became a regular item in the restaurant, and this made Butch Very happy.
I hope Butch reads this blog and gives this recipe a try. If he does, he will change it up, you know, he has to do it his way. But, regardless, I won’t have to wash the pans! Thank you for everything Devry!
Southern Strawberry Shortcake
Sweet Strawberries in a luxurious sauce, piled on a flaky buttermilk biscuit, and topped with lightly sweetened whipped cream
Ingredients
Biscuit Ingredients
- 3 cups King Arthur all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 16 tablespoons unsalted butter, frozen for 30 minutes
- 1 1/4 cups buttermilk, chilled
Strawberry Sauce ingredients
- 2 pounds strawberries, sliced
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 12 ounce jar of good quality strawberry preserves
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Whipped Cream ingredients
- 1 cup cold heavy whipping cream
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
Biscuit instructions
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Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Coat sticks of butter in flour mixture, then grate 7 tablespoons from each stick on large holes of a box grater directly into the flour mixture. Toss gently to combine. Set aside the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter.
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Add buttermilk to flour mixture and fold with a spatula until just combined (dough will look dry). Transfer dough to liberally floured counter. Dust surface of dough with flour; use your floured hands and press dough into a rough 7-inch square.
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Roll dough into 12 by 9-inch rectangle with the short side parallel to the edge of the counter. Starting at the bottom of the dough, fold into thirds like a business letter, using a bench scraper or metal spatula to release the dough from the counter. Press top of dough firmly to seal folds. Turn dough 90 degrees clockwise. Repeat rolling into 12 by 9-inch rectangle, folding into thirds, and turning clockwise 4 more times, for a total of 5 sets of folds. After the last set of folds, roll dough into 8 1/2-inch square about 1 inch thick. Transfer dough to prepared sheet, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees.
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Transfer dough to a lightly floured cutting board. Using a sharp, floured chef’s knife, trim 1/4 inch of dough from each side of the square and discard. Cut remaining dough into 9 squares, flouring knife after each cut. Arrange biscuits at least 1 inch apart on sheet. Melt reserved butter; brush tops of biscuits with melted butter.
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Bake until tops are golden brown, 22 to 25 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through baking—transfer biscuits to wire rack and let cool for 15 minutes before serving.
Strawberry Sauce Instructions
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cut strawberries and add sugar. Let it sit for 1 to two hours to pull the juices from the berries.
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drain strawberries and reserve the liquid.
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puree the strawberry preserves in a food processer until smooth. note: preserves will become cloudy.
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In a medium pan, cook preserves over medium high heat until the mixture becomes clear.
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add reserved strawberry/sugar liquid and lemon juice.
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allow to cool on the counter.
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add strawberries and serve.
Whipped Cream
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Place mixer bowl and whisk in freezer for at least 20 minutes to chill.
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Pour heavy whipping cream, sugar and vanilla into the cold bowl and whisk on high speed until medium to stiff peaks form, about 1 minute.
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Do not over beat.
Plating instructions
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Pull biscuit apart, rather then slicing to maintain layers.
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Pour strawberries on top of the bottom biscuit, and top with whipped cream.
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add top biscuit followed by strawberry sauce and top with whipped cream.