Strawberry Shortcakes with Sweet Cream Cheese Biscuits

I’m so excited to share this simply amazing dessert with y’all!  It’s from the new Add A Pinch: Easier, Faster, Fresher Southern Classics cookbook from my dear friend Robyn Stone.  You may know her from her blog by the same name.  I’ll never forget when I first met Robyn.  She and I were both in Nashville for a Martha White/White Lily baking retreat.  She was every bit the friendly and kind-hearted person I had imagined she’d be – soft-spoken and just the type of person that puts you at ease with a simple conversation.

And cook?  Dang this gal can cook!  Every recipe I’ve ever tried of hers was nothing but delicious – and I’ve tried quite a few.  So when I was glancing through the ridiculously beautiful book of hers, I found it hard to pick just one thing to share with y’all.  (And when I say beautiful, I mean bee-you-tee-ful!)  But when I came upon her Strawberry Shortcakes with Sweet Cream Cheese Biscuits, I knew it was the one.  Partly because I knew it would be great to share since it’s strawberry season and all but mostly because I just wanted to eat it.  And y’all, trust me when I say… You’re gonna want to eat this.

This is such an amazing book – filled with tons of great recipes.  It’s one of those that had me wanting to try every thing on every page.  The photographs are just breath-taking too.  I was instantly in love.  I am confident this is one you’ll want to add to your shelf.  Heck, chances are it’ll just end up on your counter – you’ll be using it too much for it to ever make it to the shelf.

Now, let’s talk about Strawberry Shortcake…

This recipe just made my mouth sing.  The tender, flaky cream cheese biscuits aren’t overly sweet, but are the perfect complement to the strawberries and fresh whipped cream.  And let’s be real… I love me some Cool Whip, but there’s just nothing quite like fresh whipped cream.  The cream cheese gives the biscuits a little tartness that just works so well in this.  I was photographing this one and my mouth was watering just looking at it.  Trust me, it was well worth the wait.  🙂

Print Recipe

Strawberry Shortcakes with Sweet Cream Cheese Biscuits

There is nothing like strawberry shortcakes in the height of strawberry season. I make mine with sweet biscuits that have a little bit of cream cheese in them. They make a tender and creamy biscuit that works well for sweet treats. Strawberries out of season? Then by all means try the cinnamon apple variation. I think you’ll love them as much as we do!

Servings: 6

Author: Robyn Stone

Ingredients

• 1 pint fresh strawberries hulled and quartered
• ¼ cup sugar
• 2 cups self-rising flour plus more for dusting
• Pinch of kosher salt
• 4 ounces cream cheese at room temperature, cut into chunks
• 5 tablespoons frozen salted butter grated
• ½ cup whole milk

For the whipped cream:

• 1 cup cold whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 475ºF.
• In a small bowl, toss together the strawberries and 2 tablespoons of the sugar. Refrigerate while you make the biscuits and whipped cream.
• In a medium bowl, combine the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, the flour, salt, cream cheese, and butter with a pastry blender. Pour in the milk and stir until just well combined.
• Dust a pastry cloth or paper towels lightly with flour. Turn the dough out onto the floured cloth and knead gently until smooth, about 3 turns. Fold each side of the dough into the center. Lightly flour a rolling pin and roll the dough ½ inch thick. Cut out rounds using a sharp 3-inch cutter, taking care not to twist the cutter. Place the biscuits on an ungreased rimmed baking sheet.
• Bake until light golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes.
• To assemble, split open the biscuits. Top the bottom halves with the strawberries and some of their juices and a dollop of whipped cream. Place a biscuit top on each stack and repeat the layering of the strawberries, strawberry juices, and a final dollop of whipped cream. Spoon more strawberry juices over the whipped cream and serve.

For the whipped cream:

• Put the bowl and whisk attachment of a stand mixer in the freezer for 15 minutes before whipping the cream.
• In the cold bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the cold whisk attachment (or using a hand mixer), beat the cream, sugar, and vanilla, beginning on low speed and gradually increasing to high speed. Beat until stiff peaks form, being careful not to overmix, about 5 minutes.

Notes

CINNAMON APPLE SHORTCAKES
Cut 2 Granny Smith apples into 8 wedges each. Cook the apple wedges and ¼ cup apple butter (page 224) in a medium skillet set over medium heat until the apples are tender, about 10 minutes. Serve with the sweet cream cheese biscuits and whipped cream.

Reprinted from Add a Pinch. Copyright © 2017 by Robyn Stone. Cover photographs copyright © 2017 by Helene Dujardin. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.