Easy(ish) Strawberry Shortcake

Strawberry Shortcake is one of my favourite desserts. Strawberries + shortcake + cream - whats not to like? This is my third attempt at it and I think I got it right this time. I wanted a quick and easy recipe, so I took shortcuts with the shortcake. But I think I made up for it with the homemade syrup and real cream!

The Shortcake

For the shortcake base, I used an instant 'just-add-water' biscuit mix. I used one called Southern Biscuits, which worked great and was half the price of Bisquick.

Add 1/2 - 3/4 cup sugar to th e biscuit mix and use a little more water than the instructions call for. My instructions said to 1/4 cup, so I added about another 2 tablespoons water to it.

Coat a baking dish with cooking spray, then pour the biscuit mix into it. The mixture will spread to fill the dish when it cooks, so don't worry about the shape. Bake it according to the packet instructions.

The Strawberries

I used 1 lb punnet (is that word used in the US?) of strawberries (about 1lb), washed, topped and halved or quartered depending on their size. I miss English strawberries! But Florida ones are good, just try to get smaller ones. I haven't really enjoyed the California strawberries that I've had so far.

I made a simple dessert syrup for the strawberries. the store-bought glaze is yucky and I didn't really want to use jello/gelatin.

Simple Dessert Syrup
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1 tblsp lemon juice

Add sugar and water to a small saucepan and heat mizture over a medium to high heat. Stir continuously until the sugar dissolves.

When the mixture begins to thicken, add the lemon juice.

Bring to the boil, then remove from the heat and allow to cool.

When the mixture has cooled, pour it over the strawberries and mix so that they are all well covered in the syrup. Chill them in the fridge until you are ready to use them.

The Cream

The only way to do whipped cream is to buy a carton of heavy whipping cream and whip it yourself, either by hand with a balloon whisk or with a hand-held electric mixer (or a stand mixer I guess, but I don't have one of those yet!). Don't add anything to it, just put i t in a big bowl and whip it. I don't like whipped cream that's been sweetened or the stuff from the can. The dessert is sweet enough already and the canned stuff is not rich enough. If you are going to indulge in something this bad for you, you might as well do it right!

Putting it Together

Let the baked biscuit cool a bit. Then pour the strawberries over the biscuit and spread the cream on top. Chill until you are ready to eat it...or just eat it immediately!