Strawberry Shortcake

As you know by now, B loves anything and everything strawberry, so of course when we saw this recipe on Omnomicon we knew we had to try it out. Needless to say we were not disappointed! It is a little tedious to make because you need to sift the ingredients several times, and measure everything carefully, but its well worth a little bit of patience with the process. The other key to making these is to not over mix the dough, you want the ingredients to just come together. Put these together with the ice cream, whipped cream and some fresh strawberries and you have one irresistible dessert!

Recipe:
1 lb fresh strawberries.
2 cups sifted cake flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
6 tbsp cold butter
3/4 c light or heavy cream
Preheat over to 450 degrees

Start by sifting the flour onto either a flexible cutting board or a piece of parchment paper.

Using the paper as a funnel pour the flour into the measuring cup, it will be over filled. Take the flat side of a butter knife and level off the measuring cup. Do this for the second cup of flour as well. Add the baking powder, sugar and salt. Then, re-sift the flour mixture.

Cut the butter into cubes and add to flour mixture. Use a pasty cutter or two knives to "cut" the butter into the flour mixture. You are done when there are no more chunks of butter and the mixture is crumbly. Now add the cream and mix just until the ingredients are moistened and the dough just comes together.

Set the dough aside to rest while you cut the strawberries. Take the 4 best looking strawberries and cut off the top in a cone shape.

Cut the strawberries in half, and then cut out a "V" shape in the top to make it into a heart.

Spoon the dough into a greased muffin tin to make 8 shortcakes. Place a strawberry on top of each one and gently press it in to the dough. Place them in the over for 12 minutes.

While the shortcakes are baking cut up the rest of the strawberries and mix then with 2 Tbs sugar. Cover and place them in refrigerator.

Take the shortcakes out of the oven and let them cool a few minutes before removing them from the pan to cool on a wire rack.

Here is what it looks like once they are cooled, but they aren't quite done yet! We still need to make some whipped cream! :)

Recipe:
1/2 pint heavy whipping cream
4 Tbs sugar
1tsp vanilla (we like to use Vanilla bean paste from Williams & Sonoma)

One of the keys to whipping cream is making sure the cream is cold. To make sure it stays cold I like to place the mixing bowl in the freezer for a few minutes before I start. Once the bowl is cold add the cream and begin whipping it.

When it starts to thicken add the sugar and vanilla, and then whip until you reach your desired thickness, but be careful not to over due it or you will end up with vanilla flavored butter. Once it is whipped put it into a container, cover and place in the refrigerator.

Now we just need to bring it all together. In a bowl place the shortcake, a generous scoop of vanilla bean ice cream and a heavy dollop of whipped cream. Then just top it all off with some of the sliced strawberries and you have a guaranteed crowd pleaser!

This dessert is sure to win-over the hearts of your family and friends. The biscuit is fluffy and light, the vanilla whipped cream brings the sweetness and of course the strawberries are the star of the dessert. Pair this with your favorite vanilla ice cream and wha-laa... deliciousness!!