This classic Strawberry Shortcake recipe is the real deal and is so easy to make at home. With its sugar-crusted sweet flaky biscuits, juicy strawberries, and freshly whipped cream you’ll be wanting to make this dessert all summer long.
Strawberry Shortcake with whipped cream is the perfect single-serving dessert to make for dinner parties, backyard BBQs, or summer dinners at home. Feel free to add a little lemon curd, ice cream, or other fresh berries if desired.
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Classic Strawberry Shortcake Recipe
Once strawberry season hits, this classic Strawberry Shortcake recipe is one of the first I jump to make. If you’ve never had a shortcake made from scratch you are in for a real treat.
These flakey, lightly sweet biscuits are worlds better than the little round sponge cakes that you can buy at the store, and they use ingredients you likely already have at home. After your biscuits are made, they’re sliced open so that they can hold a heaping spoonful of sweet, juicy strawberries and a mound of freshly whipped cream.
Key Ingredients
Sweet Biscuits
- Flour - this recipe calls for all-purpose flour.
- Baking Powder - the baking powder is what helps to give the biscuits a little rise in the oven.
- Sugar - we use regular white granulated sugar for this recipe.
- Butter - use unsalted, room temperature butter.
- Milk - you can use either whole milk or 2% milk. A good substitute would also be buttermilk.
- Egg Wash - you’ll need 1 large egg and 1 tablespoon of milk for your egg wash.
- Raw Sugar - often called “Sugar in the Raw,” this can be found in the baking aisle at the store. It adds a nice crunch to the tops of sweet biscuits.
Strawberries
- Fresh Strawberries - you can slice or dice however you’d like.
- Sugar - mixing them with a little sugar and letting them macerate ensures the sweetest, best-tasting strawberries.
Whipped Cream
- Heavy Whipping Cream - for best results, make sure that your heavy whipping cream is cold when you go to whip it.
- Powdered Sugar - we prefer using powdered sugar to sweetened whipped cream because it won’t leave any gritty texture.
- Vanilla Extract - pure vanilla extract tastes best.
How to Make Strawberry Shortcake
- Make the sweet biscuits. Add soft butter to the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Blend with a fork until it resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well, add the milk, and mix until it comes together. Let the dough rest for 2-3 minutes.
- Roll and cut the biscuits. Lightly knead the dough, then roll to about ¾" thick. Cut with 3-4" round biscuit cutter and place 1-2" apart on a lightly greased baking sheet. Make a small indent with your thumb in the center of each.
- Bake. Top with egg wash and sprinkle with raw sugar. Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for about 12-15 minutes, then remove from the oven and brush with melted butter.
- Macerate the strawberries. Wash and cut strawberries and place in a medium bowl. Add sugar and mix, then cover with plastic and let the strawberries sit at room temperature for 30 minutes or up to 4 hours.
- Whip the cream. In a large chilled bowl, add the cold heavy cream and whip on medium high until soft peaks form. Add half of the powdered sugar, whip, then add the rest of the sugar and the vanilla. Whip until medium peaks form.
- Assemble and serve. Cut each biscuit in half. On the bottom of the biscuit, add a couple of heaping spoonfuls of the prepared strawberries. Top with a generous dollop of whipped cream, then cover gently with the top biscuit. Serve immediately and enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Strawberry Shortcake is a classic American dessert that includes a sweet shortcake (usually a sweet, crumbly biscuit or scone) sliced and served with fresh strawberries and whipped cream.
We always recommend macerating strawberries in a little sugar. This brings out as much sweetness as possible and softens the berries. Also, adding a little lemon juice and lemon zest really balances the sweetness and compliments the overall flavor.
Sure! We recommend combining the strawberries and sugar, covering the bowl and letting it macerate in the refrigerator overnight.
For the most part, yes. You can make the biscuits and macerate the strawberries up to 1 day in advance. Store the biscuits in an airtight container at room temperature and store the macerated strawberries in an airtight container in the fridge. When you plan to serve the Strawberry Shortcake, all you need to do is whip the cream and assemble.
Storing Instructions
- Biscuits: store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- Strawberries: store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Whipped cream: store the whipped cream in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Before using it again, whip back up with a whisk until it forms soft peaks.
Classic Strawberry Shortcake Recipe
Ingredients
Sweet Biscuits
- 2 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1 ½ Tablespoons Baking Powder
- ¼ cup Sugar
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ⅓ cup Butter room temperature
- ¾ cup Milk
Egg Wash for Biscuits
- 1 large Egg
- 1 Tablespoon Milk
- 2 Tablespoons Raw Sugar to top Biscuits before baking
- 1 Tablespoon Butter melted, to brush on after baking
Strawberries for Strawberry Shortcake
- 1 pound Strawberries
- ¼ cup Sugar
Whipped Cream for Strawberry Shortcake
- 1 ½ cups Heavy Whipping Cream
- ¼ cup Powdered Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Instructions
Sweet Biscuits for Strawberry Shortcake
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt.
- Add the room temperature butter to the dry ingredients and use a fork or pastry blender to mix until it resembles coarse crumbs.
- Make a well in the center of the butter and flour mixture, then add milk and mix just until the dough comes together (dough will be sticky and a little lumpy). Let the dough rest for 2-3 minutes.
- On a floured surface, lightly knead dough by hand until smooth (about 30 seconds), then roll dough out with a rolling pin until the dough is even and about ¾" thick.
- Cut dough with a 3-4" round biscuit cutter or the bottom of a cup/jar (you can also cut into squares using a sharp knife) and place 1-2" apart on a lightly greased baking sheet. Use your thumb and make a small indent on the top of each biscuit (this will help them rise straight on all sides).
- Make the egg wash by whisking together the egg and milk, then brush over the tops of each biscuit using a pastry brush and sprinkle them with raw sugar.
- Bake the biscuits in a preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and brush with melted butter.
Strawberries for Shortcake
- Wash fresh strawberries and remove the stems. Cut strawberries as desired, then place in a medium bowl. Add the sugar and mix until combined.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the strawberries sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, or up to 4 hours.
Homemade Whipped Cream
- In a large chilled bowl using an electric mixer, or a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, add the cold heavy cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract.
- Whip the cream on medium high speed for about 3-4 minutes, or until soft peaks form.
Assembling Strawberry Shortcake
- Cut each biscuit in half. On the bottom of the biscuit, add a couple of heaping spoonfuls of the prepared strawberries.
- Top with a generous dollop of whipped cream, then covor gently with the top biscuit. Serve immediately and enjoy!
Nutrition
More Of The Best Summer Dessert Recipes
- Baked Peach Pie
- Peaches and Cream Pie
- Strawberries and Cream Pie
- Cherry Pie
- Blackberry Crumble Bars
- American Flag Brownies
- Strawberry Cream Scones
- Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries
- More Easy Dessert Recipes
- More Summer Recipes
This classic Strawberry Shortcake recipe is made with sweet flaky biscuits, juicy strawberries and freshly whipped cream. It uses simple ingredients that you likely already have at home and is so good you'll be making it all summer long.
Kathy
I’m sure you know this is a great recipe, but you don’t know my husband never liked biscuits for straw shortcake before. He’s over the moon with these biscuits!!! Thank you so much for this outstanding recipe!!
Jill Baird
This made my day! So happy to hear he loved it so much!
Marie
Can I make biscuits and wait to bake them?
Jill Baird
I'd bake them within an hour or two or you run the risk of them getting a little dry and crumbly.