Strawberry Picking & Strawberry Shortcake
I have been really busy with work & then I went on vacation and Meg just moved again so we both have been neglecting our beloved food blog. I have quite a few posts ready to publish , but will trickle them out this week. I went strawberry picking with my boys a few weeks ago and then made strawberry shortcake with the fresh strawberries. Is there anything better than cooking or baking with fresh picked or gardened food?
One of my favorite local (to me) farms is Brooksby Farm in Peabody, MA. They have pick your own fruit and a small barn with animals. The indoor store also has great jellies & jams at affordable prices. If you are anywhere near this area stop by, you won’t be disappointed.
We packed our small container to the brim (ok, well way over the brim).
I found this recipe on Love & Olive Oil which is a great blog that you should definitely check out. I have many recipes tagged to make in the future.
Ingredients & Directions:
Cream Biscuits:
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 4 teaspoons sugar
- 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. In a large bowl or mixer, combine the flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder. Cut the butter into the flour. The pieces should be the size of small peas. Measure cream; set aside 1 tablespoon. Add the remaining cream to the flour, and mix until everything 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 1/2-inch circles or squares out of the dough. Reroll the scraps, you should be able to get 2 or 3 more biscuits out of it. 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 lightly golden.
Filling:
- 4 cups strawberries, hulled and sliced
- 1 cup sugar
For filling, 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.
Topping:
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon sugar, or to taste
In a standing mixer with the whisk attachment, whip together the cream, vanilla and sugar until it starts to form soft peaks.
Spoon the strawberry mixture onto the bottom biscuit, and add a dollop of whipped cream. Top with another biscuit, and garnish with a piece of mint or powdered sugar.
(Steven)
