Gluten-free Strawberry Shortcakes

Every year, when June comes along, I start craving strawberry shortcake. Even if I have always had a sweet tooth, I have never liked very sweet desserts. To me, the excessive amount of sugar can kill balanced flavors. Strawberry Shortcakes are, in my opinion, a perfectly balanced dessert: fresh fruit, barely sweetened by sugar, a mildly sweet and tender biscuit (shortcake) firm enough to stand up to the juicy berries and whipped cream, absorbing only some of them without losing its identity, and a dollop of fresh whipped cream.

A year or so ago I taught a class at The Baker’s Pin for which I developed a basic scone recipe. So, when I was looking for the right recipe for the biscuit, I tried to find one that would mirror the ingredient ratio in my recipe, adjusting for the right amount of sugar. I found the right recipe on the Fine Cooking website and, with some adaptation, I came up with my own version of it.

ENJOY!

Gluten-free Strawberry Shortcakes

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Recipe by Simona Gluten-free Course: DessertDifficulty: Easy
Prep time

40

minutes
Cooking time

25

minutes

Ingredients

  • 11 oz 11 Simona’s Flour mix – 2 cups

  • 2.3 oz 2.3 Granulated sugar – 1/3 cup

  • 2 1/2 tsps 2 1/2 Baking powder

  • 1 tsp 1 Baling soda

  • 1/2 tsp 1/2 Salt

  • 4 oz 4 Butter – 1/2 cup

  • 2 large 2 Eggs

  • 4 oz 4 Sour cream – 1/2 cup

  • 2 Tbsps 2 Heavy cream – as needed

  • 2 Tbsps 2 Demerara Cane sugar

  • For the strawberries
  • 1 lb 1 Ripe strawberries

  • 2 Tbsps 2 Granulated sugar

  • For the Whipped Cream
  • 12 oz 12 Heavy cream – 1 1/2 cups

  • 2 Tbsps 2 Confectioners’ sugar

  • 1/2 tsp 1/2 Vanilla extract

Directions

  • Prepare the strawberries
  • Slice the strawberries 1/4 inch thick and stir the 2 Tablespoons of sugar in them. Taste the berries, adding more sugar if necessary. Let the berries sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.
  • Make the biscuits
  • Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 425°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment.
  • Place the flour, the 1/3 cup of sugar, the baking powder, and baking soda into a large bowl. Stir in the salt. Using a pastry blender, a fork, or your fingertips, work the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal.
  • In a small bowl, beat the egg and sour cream with a fork. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in the cream mixture. Mix with the fork until the dough is evenly moistened and just comes together. If the dough seems dry and doesn’t form a cohesive mass, add some heavy cream, 1 tsp. at a time.
  • Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and shape it into a 3/4 -inch-thick disk. With a 2 1/2-inch biscuit cutter, press straight down to cut the dough into rounds and lift straight up to remove (don’t twist the cutter or it will seal the sides of the biscuits and interfere with rising).
  • Transfer the rounds to the prepared baking sheet. Gather the dough scraps, gently press them together, and cut out more biscuits until you have a total of 6.
  • Place the baking sheet in the freezer for 30 minutes. Lightly brush the biscuit tops with cream (about 1 Tbs.) and sprinkle with the Demerara sugar. Bake, rotating the baking sheet once, until the biscuit tops are lightly browned, 20 to 25 minutes. Let the biscuits cool slightly while you whip the cream.
  • Whip the cream
  • In a large metal bowl whip the heavy cream and confectioners’ sugar to soft peaks with an electric hand mixer. (Use immediately or refrigerate, covered until ready to serve).
  • Assemble the shortcakes
  • Using a serrated knife, split the warm biscuits in half horizontally and transfer the bottoms to 6 dessert plates. Spoon about three-quarters of the macerated berries and their juice evenly over the biscuit bottoms. Cover each with a biscuit top. Spoon a generous dollop of whipped cream next to the shortcake and serve immediately.

Notes

  • The biscuits have a short shelf life, since they tend to become tough once they cool down. Make sure to bake the amount of biscuits you need. You can keep the rest frozen up to a month.

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