Super Mom Hacks

The Ultimate Homemade Strawberry Shortcake Recipe

Have you ever had a homemade strawberry shortcake? If not, you’re in for a real treat when you try this recipe.

Have you ever had a homemade strawberry shortcake? If not, you’re in for a real treat when you try my dad's Ultimate Homemade Strawberry Shortcake recipe.

Homemade strawberry shortcake is a quintessential summer treat throughout New England, where I grew up. So much so that many churches hold “strawberry suppers” at least once during the summer, as one of their main fundraisers of the year.

The menu for the main meal really isn’t important, and can vary quite a bit, because that’s not why people come. They come for the delicious homemade strawberry shortcake that’s served for dessert.

Fortunately for me, I grew up in one of these churches. And more importantly, my late father (whom everyone called Doc) was the undisputed king of making shortcakes at these events. Hence I learned the secrets to the best homemade strawberry shortcake you’ll ever eat from a true master.

My dad, slinging shortcakes, in this image from an old newspaper article we recently rediscovered

At the same time, though, there are a few shortcuts you can take along the way to simplify the prep process; they’re under the “Mix It Up” section, after my dad’s original recipe.

So if you’re looking for 4th of July dessert ideas and want a special treat, for your Fourth of July celebrations or any summertime family get-together, give my dad’s recipe a try. You won’t be sorry.

 

Doc’s Ultimate Homemade Strawberry Shortcake Recipe

ADVANCE PREP 15-20 min / DAY-OF PREP 10-20 min (see Mix it Up, below) / servings 6

What you need:


The day before:

  1. Slice the strawberries into a container with a lid. Sprinkle granulated sugar over the top, and stir to distribute the sugar throughout. Cover and refrigerate until the next day.
  2. Unless it’s convenient to make the biscuits immediately before serving (which is challenging if you’re serving this for dessert after a meal), you’ll want to prepare these the day ahead, too, and cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

An hour before serving:

  1. Place a glass mixing bowl or flat-bottomed measuring cup (big enough to use your mixer/immersion blender in) into the freezer.
  2. Remove the syrup from the refrigerator, to bring it to room temperature.

To prepare the shortcakes:

  1. Using a hand mixer/immersion blender, beat the cream in the chilled bowl until it forms soft peaks, adding a little sugar (to taste) as you go. If it’s really hot where you are, pop the bowl into the refrigerator while you prepare the shortcakes so it doesn’t melt.

  2. Slice each shortcake in half horizontally, to create two thinner circles. Heat the shortcakes slightly (either by lightly toasting in a toaster oven, or by microwaving for 30 seconds), then place the heated circles side by side in a bowl.
  3. Spread each shortcake lightly with pure butter. (If you’re making a bunch of these, you may find it easier to microwave the butter for 30-second intervals until melted, then brush onto the shortcake pieces with a pastry brush.)
  4. As soon as the butter has melted into the shortcake, heap 1/2-3/4 c. sliced berries on top of each bowl of shortcake.
  5. Drizzle each shortcake with pure maple syrup.
  6. Top each shortcake with a dollop of freshly-whipped cream, and enjoy!

Mix it up:

There are a few places where you can make small substitutions or shortcuts without fundamentally affecting the overall experience. They are:

However, these are the things you do NOT want to skimp on or substitute:


Other ideas:

Did you enjoy this recipe for homemade strawberry shortcake? Then please share with others by pinning it!

 

NOTE: This site contains affiliate links. I may earn a small commission from any purchases made through affiliate links, at no additional cost to you. For more information, please read the full disclosure/privacy policy.

Follow Super Mom Hacks on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter!

Or stay in the loop by  joining our mailing list!

Exit mobile version