Strawberry Shortcake
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Warm buttermilk biscuits filled with juicy, sweet strawberries and whipped cream make the best strawberry shortcake.
Tender, sugar-crusted biscuits filled with macerated strawberries and fresh whipped cream, strawberry shortcake is a must during the spring and summer months. It’s best when all of the components are made from scratch (ditch the store-bought pound cake and whipped topping!), using the juiciest, sweetest strawberries you can find. My shortcake biscuits are easy to prepare in one bowl, and instead of rolling and cutting the biscuit dough with it with biscuit cutter, I shape it into free-form balls. Not only is this method much easier, but it also gives the biscuits a craggy texture with lots of nooks and crannies, perfect for soaking up all the strawberry juices without getting soggy.
What You’ll Need To Make Strawberry Shortcake
As you can see, the recipe calls for buttermilk. If you’d rather not buy a whole carton for this recipe, it’s easy to make your own. Simply add 2-1/2 teaspoons of lemon juice or white vinegar to a liquid measuring cup. Then add milk to the 3/4-cup line and let sit for 10 to 15 minutes, or until slightly curdled and thickened.
How To Make Strawberry Shortcake
Begin by making the biscuits. These are a lightly sweetened version of my Southern-style biscuits. True Southern biscuits typically call for White Lily flour, a low-protein flour primarily available in the southern US states that makes for ultra-tender, melt-in-your-mouth biscuits. I can’t find White Lily flour easily where I live, so my secret is to add a little cornstarch to the flour to get the same effect.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, granulated sugar, and salt.
Add the pieces of cold butter.
Use your fingertips to rub the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs with pea-sized clumps of butter within.
It should look like this.
Add the buttermilk. (Note: If you’d rather not buy a whole carton of buttermilk for this recipe, it’s easy to make your own. Simply add 2-1/2 teaspoons of lemon juice or white vinegar to a liquid measuring cup. Then add milk to the 3/4-cup line and let sit for 10 to 15 minutes, or until slightly curdled and thickened.)
Stir with a rubber spatula until the dough comes together into a sticky, shaggy mass. Do not overmix.
With lightly floured hands, form the dough into 8 craggy-looking balls and place on the prepared baking sheet. (They should be bigger than golf balls but smaller than tennis balls.) Don’t worry about making them perfect — it’s better if they are a little rough around the edges. Sprinkle the tops with the turbinado sugar.
Bake for 13 to 15 minutes, until the biscuits are golden. Set aside to cool.
While the biscuits cool, prepare the strawberries.
Put one-third of the berries in a medium bowl and, using a potato masher or a fork, mash them into a chunky purée.
Mix in the remaining berries, along with the raspberry jam and granulated sugar.
Let the berries sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes, until saucy.
Meanwhile, make the whipped cream. In an electric mixer or by hand, whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form, then sprinkle the sugar over the cream and beat until soft peaks return. Do not overbeat.
How To Assemble Strawberry Shortcake
Using a serrated knife, split the biscuits in half horizontally and transfer the bottoms to 8 dessert plates. Spoon about three-quarters of the macerated berries and their juice evenly over the biscuit bottoms. Let some of the berries spill out onto the plate. Top with a generous dollop of whipped cream and cover each with a biscuit top. Spoon more berries and cream over each shortcake and serve immediately.
More Strawberry Desserts
- Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp
- Strawberry Cake
- Strawberry and Orange Salad with Citrus Syrup & Mint
- Summer Berry Trifle
Strawberry Shortcake
Warm buttermilk biscuits filled with juicy, sweet strawberries and whipped cream make the best strawberry shortcake.
Ingredients
For the Biscuits
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 10 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch chunks
- ¾ cup buttermilk (see note)
- 2 tablespoons turbinado sugar
For the Strawberries
- 2 pounds strawberries, hulled and sliced ¼-inch thick
- 3 tablespoons seedless raspberry jam
- ½ cup granulated sugar
For the Whipped Cream
- 1½ cups heavy cream
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
Instructions
For the Biscuits
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Line a 13x18-in baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, granulated sugar, and salt.
- Add the pieces of cold butter. Use your fingertips to rub the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs with pea-sized clumps of butter within. Add the buttermilk and stir with a rubber spatula until the dough comes together into a sticky, shaggy mass. Do not overmix.
- With lightly floured hands, form the dough into 8 craggy-looking balls and place on the prepared baking sheet. (They should be bigger than golf balls but smaller than tennis balls.) Don't worry about making them perfect -- it's better if they are a little rough around the edges. Sprinkle the tops with the turbinado sugar. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes, until the biscuits are golden.
For the Strawberries
- Put one-third of the berries in a medium bowl and, using a potato masher or a fork, mash them into a chunky purée. Mix in the remaining berries, along with the raspberry jam and granulated sugar. Let the berries sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes, until saucy.
For the Whipped Cream
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or beaters), whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form. Sprinkle the granulated sugar over the cream and beat until soft peaks return. Do not overbeat. (Alternatively, the whipped cream can be beaten by hand in a deep mixing bowl with a whisk.)
To Assemble
- To assemble the shortcakes: Using a serrated knife, split the biscuits in half horizontally and transfer the bottoms to 8 dessert plates. Spoon about three-quarters of the macerated berries and their juice evenly over the biscuit bottoms. Let some of the berries spill out onto the plate. Top with a generous dollop of whipped cream and cover each with a biscuit top. Spoon more berries and cream over each shortcake and serve immediately.
- Note: If you’d like to make your own buttermilk, check out the easy method here.teaspoons of lemon juice or white vinegar to a liquid measuring cup. Then add milk to the ¾-cup line and let sit for 10 to 15 minutes, or until slightly curdled and thickened.
- Make Ahead: The unbaked biscuits can be refrigerated for up to 1 hour before baking. They can also be frozen for up to 3 months. To freeze: place the unbaked biscuits on a baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and freeze until solid. Remove the firm biscuits from the freezer, place in an airtight bag, and store in the freezer. Bake the biscuits directly from the freezer, allowing a few extra minutes baking time. The whipped cream can be made a few hours before serving but err on the side of under-beating. Store it covered in the refrigerator and give it a final whip by hand to get it to a pillowy consistency just before serving. The strawberries cannot be made ahead.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (8 servings)
- Serving size: 1 strawberry shortcake
- Calories: 565
- Fat: 32 g
- Saturated fat: 20 g
- Carbohydrates: 67 g
- Sugar: 35 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 6 g
- Sodium: 533 mg
- Cholesterol: 100 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Jenn, your recipes never fail me!! Your cookbook is my most used (and tabbed). You’ve made me look like I know what I’m doing in the kitchen to my friends and family lol! I’ve recommended your books and blog to many. Thank you 😊
Btw…this recipe is the best!!!
My students and I made this recipe at baking club and we LOVED it. The recipe was very easy to follow and they asked for seconds even though we were out.
Jenn, if I froze the biscuits, would you know how many extra minutes I should leave it in for? I have the tendency to overbake things because I worry they’re not done.
Hi Paulette, So glad everyone enjoyed! I’d add 2 to 3 min. more if baking from frozen.
Just made this strawberry shortcake and it was fabulous. I followed your directions just as it was. Our guests loved it. Thank you so much.
Best ever shortcake EVER! I add just a few small drop of vanilla when I added the buttermilk
10 stars out of 5
Best ever shortcake EVER! I add just a few small drop of vanilla when I added the buttermilk
10 stars out of 5
Jenn,
By chance have you made your strawberry shortcake biscuit gluten free? Thanks, Jaynie
Hi Jamie, I haven’t tried these with gluten-free flour so I can’t say for sure, but I think you can get away with it. Oftentimes, readers will write in if they’ve used a gluten-free flour for a recipe but it appears that no one has mentioned that thus far so if you try it, please report back on how they came out! 🙂
Biscuits are not shortcake. We always served strawberries over genoise.
Fabulous recipe! I have made strawberry shortcake many times over the years … this recipe surpasses everything I have tried! it is so simple and absolutely perfect!
Tried these biscuits and they were a wonderful change from the biscuits I usually make for shortcake, husband said they were better so the recipe is a keeper. Did not have turbinado sugar, never heard of it so I used regular sugar. Will look for turbinado next time I go for groceries. Thank you.
I decided to make larger bisquits so I made 6 and baked 16 minutes. I didn’t have turbinado sugar so I used regular sugar. Worked well. The raspberry jam addition sounded unique and delicious but I didn’t have any, so just strawberries and sugar. I didn’t sweeten the whip cream out of personal preference – in my family’s restaurants we always used unsweetened. Thanks for another great recipe – I can always depend on your recipes!
Has anyone made these the day before? Are they good the next day?
Hi DJ, I wouldn’t recommend making them more than a few hours ahead.
Just made this for Father’s day- we think it’s the BEST way to do strawberry shortcake– soooo delicious and perfect for summer! Thank you!!
An absolute 10!!
I made this for a brunch dessert- not A crumb left on anyones plate !
Especially delicious because strawberries are at their peak.
I froze the uncooked biscuits , and they baked up great.
I just added the inside of one vanilla bean to the sugar used for the whipped cream.
Another superb recipe, easy and delicious, from Jenn Segal.
Why cornstarch in a biscuit recipe
Hi Kathryn, Southern biscuits usually call for White Lily flour, a low-protein flour primarily available in the southern US. It helps make for tender, melt-in-your-mouth biscuits. I can’t find White Lily flour where I live, so I add a little cornstarch to the flour to get the same effect. Hope you enjoy if you make them!
Made this recipe for the first time and it was perfect. Had 7 people for dinner and everyone loved it. I followed the recipe exactly for the biscuits, and they were delicious. I put them in the fridge for about 30 minutes before baking them, and when they came out I kept them covered on a warming tray for over an hour and they were perfect. I only added 1 1/2 tbl of jam, and about 1/4 cup of sugar and the berries were plenty sweet. I will make this recipe again for sure.
Hi, If I freeze the biscuits do I still add the turbinado sugar or wait until I bake them? Thank you!
You could go either way here, Sandy, but I’d probably do it before.
Before you bake them or before you freeze them?
Before you bake them. You can see Make-Ahead instructions at the bottom of the recipe. 🙂
Hey, Jen! As soon as I saw this recipe, I was in a hurry to know how it would turn out. I have always had a sweet tooth, so desserts like this excite me. I love how it was so fast and such a breeze to make. I did encounter a small problem. The biscuits turned out flat, but it still tasted great.
So I do live in the South and purchase White Lilly ( the best! used for generations ). Question do I still need the cornstarch? I’m making while local strawberry farm is picking this week.
Hi Cat, I would replace the cornstarch with more flour. I’d love to know how they turn out! 🙂
Why do you not need the cornstarch with White Lilly flour?
White Lily flour has a lower protein content. Adding cornstarch to regular flour mimics that so it’s not necessary if you use the White Lily. Hope that clarifies!
Just made the biscuits for a dinner we are having tonight. Their rustic look is much more appealing than cookie cutter biscuits . Recipe was easy and they are delicious! I have to admit that I forgot to buy the turbinado sugar and I’m sure it would have added just bit more sweetness that would be great but not having it didn’t disappoint! I know that because my husband and I already shared one. He couldn’t wait and neither could I.
I didn’t have turbinado sugar so I used regular granulated sugar and it worked fine.
Definitely THE BEST shortcake recipe ever! Previously tried the NYTimes recipe, this beats theirs a million times, hands down! Definitely a keeper. Thank you for sharing 😊
I am looking at different strawberry shortcake recipes and I LOVE JENN SEGAL’s recipes. She has never let me down. I use so many of her recipes and they are AMAZING. But I did notice the NYT recipe as well. So this is a very helpful review for me. Thank you! Jenn Segal’s recipe it is… again!
EASY. QUICK. AWESOME.
After making ur cheesecake I thought I try the strawberry shortcake & again it came out perfect, even using strawberries from Mexico. Can’t wait till July for fresh Ontario strawberries. Instead of raspberry jam, I used strawberry jam. It may not have looked as pretty as urs but it tasted great. Thanks from a retired truck driver
perfect recipe! super quick, full of flavor, highlights strawberries!
Delicious!! Summer in a bowl. I omitted the granulated sugar from the strawberries because they tasted sweet enough with just the raspberry jam, and I used Kefir instead of buttermilk in the biscuits.
Hi Jen
I made the biscuits a few days and froze the unbaked biscuits. I just baked them til golden . Waited a little and sliced with serrated knife.
Bottom is perfect but top cracked and crumbled slightly.
Any suggestions before I make the rest?
Thanks
Ellen
Hi Ellen, I suspect if they were crumbly, that they needed to cool a little longer, so keep that in mind for the next batch. Hope that helps!
Thanks so much.
Can I bake biscuits in morning, and then in afternoon slice or leave unsliced til dinner?
Delicious even crumbly.
Enjoy your 4th.
Hi Ellen, It won’t make a big difference either way, but I’d probably wait until dinnertime. Have a great 4th! 🙂
I just found three frozen shortcakes in my freezer from last July. And since I had some strawberries on hand, I baked the shortcakes. I figured I had nothing to lose… if the shortcakes tasted like freezer burn, we could just eat the strawberries and whipped cream. I’m happy to report that even after almost a year in the freezer (!), these were delicious — with a great texture!
Shortcakes were always ‘take ’em or leave ’em” to me until I made these. They are absolutely delicious, pure perfection. The search stops here!
I can’t wait to make strawberry shortcakes for the first time. What can I replace the raspberry jam with if I don’t like raspberries? Thanks!
Hi Netta, you can use strawberry jam instead. Hope you enjoy!
The biscuits where perfection! I followed the recipe exactly as is (didn’t have buttermilk but made it with lemon juice & milk)….thank you, thank you! My new favorite way to make strawberry shortcake!!
This was delicious! I had an abundance of strawberries from our garden. I’ve never added raspberry jelly to strawberries before. I had a jar in the pantry and tried it. It really works. I was worried about making the biscuits because I’m an over mixer. 🙂 I controlled myself. They were great. Thank you for the recipe!
After nice dinner we wanted nice yummy desserts… omg this was delicious!! Thank you for this recipe Jenn!
Great one! I used sourcream, chopped coconut oil, and coconut cream cuz i didnt have all the ingredients and they turned out great!
Hello Jenn!!
I am a devoted fan and my family enjoys everything I cook from your book and site!!
I have White Lily self rising flour and would like to know if I can use it and omit the cornstarch for this shortcake recipe.
Thank you for sharing your expertise with us all!!
:))
I do think it would work, Stacey. Enjoy! 😊
Hi Jenn!
OMG over the moon 🌙 good!
Thank you for another wonderful recipe.
I’m embarrassed to admit that I’ve never tasted “true shortcake “-especially living in Ca., w/ the fresh produce!
With strawberries being in season this is especially good.
I referred to smother reader’s suggestion of including Cointreau when “making” the strawberries.
Thank you
Lisa
I made this recipe for my niece’s birthday and she said it was by far the best she’d ever had! 😋 delicious- will be making again!
Easy, quick, impressive, delicious!! I added 2 tsp. lemon zest to the strawberries.
UPDATE: I added 1 tablespoon of Cointreau to the strawberries, as another reviewer suggested (and left out the lemon zest). It was unbelievable! Yes, I’m telling you to spend $35 on a bottle of Cointreau for one tablespoon of bright, beautiful flavor- you’ll be glad you did. Then go make a pitcher of margaritas with the rest of the Cointreau.
Good idea Ann!
on our way to Costco now !
I’m always up for a reason to purchase
Grand Marnier or Cointreau!
Lisa
Hello! For Mother’s Day my mom asked me to make strawberry shortcake because she said I did once and it was amazing. The only problem is I have NO recollection of this (she is getting up there in years) but she’s my mom, so how am I going to say no?
That left me scrambling until I stumbled across your recipe and it is clearly the best on the Internet, even though I’ve never actually made it before. I am a complete nervous wreck when it comes to all things baking, and I saw you mentioned white lily powder flour as your go to, and while I am able to acquire white lily flou: I’m not sure which type I should get!
I’ve been doing a lot of biscuit research online trying to find the answer myself, and lots of them seem to use the self-rising variety, but it says I need to knead them in that case, but your recipe doesn’t call for kneading. I am so confused. Would you please tell me which kind of white lily flower to use? And if so, how much of it?
Also, I saw the question about the corn starch/white lily flour (not sure which kind of flour) and you recommended just add a little more flour in place of the cornstarch: how much?
Also you said if I made them ahead of time I could bake them from frozen and they would take a few minutes longer… but do you know how much longer? Also, when I tend to bake things, on the RARE occasions that I do (omg so stressful, lol) I bake on parchment paper, and on something called an air bake tray, would that work for this?
I’m so sorry for this waaay too long post, but it’s for Mother’s Day… This isn’t spam I swear I’m being sincere—-please help me!
Hi Kathryn, Happy to help! While it is possible to tweak the recipe to use white lily flour, because you mentioned that you are a bit of a nervous baker, I’d stick to the recipe as that’s the way I’ve developed and tested it and I can ensure you’ll get good results that way. Also, it should be fine to use parchment paper and the air bake tray. Last, if you’re baking them from frozen, I’d give them 2 to 3 minutes more in the oven. Hope that helps and that your mom enjoys!
Hi Jenn
I am making these for a Spring dinner party dessert. A few guests are Gluten free.
Can I substitute with GF flour- such as Bob’s Red Mill, King Arthur, or Pillsbury.
Thanking you in advance
Myrna Klein
Hi Myrna, I haven’t tried these with gluten-free flour so I can’t say for sure, but I think you can get away with it. Oftentimes, readers will write in if they’ve used a gluten-free flour for a recipe but it appears that no one has mentioned that thus far so if you try it, please report back on how they came out! 🙂
Can I use a pastry cutter instead of my fingers?
Sure – hope you enjoy!
Just made these biscuits for the second time. They came out perfect, golden, with crunchy bits on top. We love them even without the strawberries. Butter and jam! So glad you mentioned mixing raspberry jam with the cut strawberries because I have done that for years and it gives a special something extra to the strawberries. Thanks for all your good hints. I love reading and using your recipes.
AMAZING!!! My family absolutely loved these! Especially when I used fresh-picked strawberries!