Kids Strawberry Shortcakes
By America's Test Kitchen KidsPublished on January 4, 2023
Time
1½ hours
Yield
Serves 4
What Kids Are Saying
“Good balance of tart strawberries and sweet cream.” —Owen, recipe tester, age 11
Ingredients
Before You Begin
To make 1 cup whipped cream: In large bowl, combine ½ cup cold heavy cream, 1½ teaspoons sugar, and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract. Use electric mixer on medium-low speed to whip cream for 1 minute. Increase speed to high and whip until cream is smooth and thick, about 1 minute. Stop mixer and lift beaters out of cream. If cream clings to beaters and makes soft peaks that stand up on their own, you’re done. If not, keep beating and check again in 30 seconds. Don’t overwhip cream.
Instructions
- Place half of strawberries in large bowl. Use potato masher to crush strawberries. Slice remaining strawberries and add to bowl with crushed strawberries.
- Add 3 tablespoons sugar to strawberries and use rubber spatula to stir until combined. Let sit until sugar has dissolved and strawberries are juicy, at least 30 minutes or up to 2 hours.
- Meanwhile, adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In liquid measuring cup, use fork to stir buttermilk and melted butter until butter forms small clumps.
- Add buttermilk mixture to bowl with flour mixture. Use clean rubber spatula to stir until combined.
- Spray inside of ⅓-cup dry measuring cup with vegetable oil spray. Use greased measuring up to scoop batter and use butter knife to scrape off extra batter. Drop scoops onto baking sheet to make 4 biscuits, leaving space between biscuits. Sprinkle each biscuit generously with extra sugar.
- Place baking sheet in oven. Bake biscuits until tops are golden brown, 12 to 14 minutes.
- Use oven mitts to remove baking sheet from oven and place on cooling rack (ask an adult for help). Let biscuits cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes. (This is a good time to make whipped cream.)
- Turn biscuits on their sides and use tip of clean fork to carefully split each biscuit in half (see “Step-by-Step: How to Split Biscuits,” below). Transfer biscuits to individual serving plates. Use spoon to divide strawberries evenly among biscuit bottoms. Top each with spoonful of whipped cream and 1 biscuit top. Serve.
Time
1½ hoursYield
Serves 4What Kids Are Saying
“Good balance of tart strawberries and sweet cream.” —Owen, recipe tester, age 11Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
In this recipe, kids can see the science of maceration in action (in this instance, mixing fruit with sugar and letting it sit). Have them observe the bowl of strawberries right after they mix in the sugar in step 2 and then again after the strawberry-sugar mixture sat for 30 minutes to 2 hours. The mixture should end up much juicier, and the strawberries should be softer. As the berries sit, the sugar pulls water out of the fruit’s cells through a process called osmosis—that’s what makes things juicy. And when the cells lose enough water, they become limp, leaving you with softer berries.
Want more? Read the whole storyBefore You Begin
To make 1 cup whipped cream: In large bowl, combine ½ cup cold heavy cream, 1½ teaspoons sugar, and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract. Use electric mixer on medium-low speed to whip cream for 1 minute. Increase speed to high and whip until cream is smooth and thick, about 1 minute. Stop mixer and lift beaters out of cream. If cream clings to beaters and makes soft peaks that stand up on their own, you’re done. If not, keep beating and check again in 30 seconds. Don’t overwhip cream.
Instructions
- Place half of strawberries in large bowl. Use potato masher to crush strawberries. Slice remaining strawberries and add to bowl with crushed strawberries.
- Add 3 tablespoons sugar to strawberries and use rubber spatula to stir until combined. Let sit until sugar has dissolved and strawberries are juicy, at least 30 minutes or up to 2 hours.
- Meanwhile, adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In liquid measuring cup, use fork to stir buttermilk and melted butter until butter forms small clumps.
- Add buttermilk mixture to bowl with flour mixture. Use clean rubber spatula to stir until combined.
- Spray inside of ⅓-cup dry measuring cup with vegetable oil spray. Use greased measuring up to scoop batter and use butter knife to scrape off extra batter. Drop scoops onto baking sheet to make 4 biscuits, leaving space between biscuits. Sprinkle each biscuit generously with extra sugar.
- Place baking sheet in oven. Bake biscuits until tops are golden brown, 12 to 14 minutes.
- Use oven mitts to remove baking sheet from oven and place on cooling rack (ask an adult for help). Let biscuits cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes. (This is a good time to make whipped cream.)
- Turn biscuits on their sides and use tip of clean fork to carefully split each biscuit in half (see “Step-by-Step: How to Split Biscuits,” below). Transfer biscuits to individual serving plates. Use spoon to divide strawberries evenly among biscuit bottoms. Top each with spoonful of whipped cream and 1 biscuit top. Serve.
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