Ingredients
- 1 quart (4 cups) strawberries, sliced
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 1/3 cups Original Bisquick(TM) mix
- 1/2 cup milk
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
Directions
- Heat oven to 425degF. In large bowl, mix strawberries and 1/4 cup sugar; set aside.
- In medium bowl, stir Bisquick(TM) mix, milk, 3 tablespoons sugar and the butter until soft dough forms. On un-greased cookie sheet, drop dough by 6 spoonfuls.
- Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Meanwhile, in small bowl, beat whipping cream with electric mixer on high speed until soft peaks form.
- Split warm shortcakes; fill and top with strawberries and whipped cream.
Notes
A "short" cake is one that has a high ratio of butter to flour and sugar. Stir the dough just until the dry ingredients are moistened and a soft dough forms. The shortcakes shouldn't stick to the pan, but you can use baking parchment or a silicone baking mat if you'd like. Mixing sugar with the fruit, whether you stick with all-time summery favorite strawberries or play with juicy peaches and blueberries or raspberries and plum wedges, is a process called "macerating". Macerating is similar to marinating, but it's done with fruit-sometimes letting the fruit sit in flavored liquors, vinegars, or syrups--or sprinkling the fruit with sugar. The sugar draws the moisture out of the fruit, creating a sweetly fruity syrup. The first step in making a successful whipped cream is to refrigerate the bowl (a deep metal one works best) with the cream + the mixer beaters (unless you're a hearty soul and would like to use a large wire balloon whisk). The colder the cream the faster it will whip up but know when to stop-when its stiff enough to form soft peaks. Flavor the fruit or cream 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon vanilla or 1 to 2 teaspoons orange liquor. When whipping the cream, be sure to add liquid when it starts to form soft peaks or the cream might be too loose.