Strawberries, Two Ways

Strawberry Shortcakes, c/o Baking Illustrated

A few weeks ago, at the height of strawberry season, I was eating strawberries with everything (especially Greek yogurt). This having been my first strawberry season with my new copy of Baking Illustrated in hand, I knew I had to make their strawberry shortcakes. They turned out great - slightly sweetened biscuits, mascerated strawberries, a generous portion of whipped cream - just about everything you'd want. Thankfully, my obsession didn't stop there.


Strawberry Brown Butter Bettys, c/o Smitten Kitchen
Just as this unbelievably delicious and easy banana bread cobbler recipe rendered banana bread obsolete, the strawberry brown butter bettys on smittenkitchen.com were so perfect that I'll probably never make strawberry shortcakes again. Still, both of these recipes are well worth your time.

Fruit

• 8 c strawberries, hulled
  
• 6 Tbsp sugar

Shortcakes

• 2 c (10 oz) AP flour
  
• 5 Tbsp sugar
  
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
  
• 1/2 tsp salt
  
• 8 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-in cubes
  
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
  
• 1/2 c plus 1 Tsbp half-and-half or whole milk
  
• 1 egg white, lightly beaten
  
• 2 c whipped cream (+ 1 tsp vanilla)
  

Directions

1. For the fruit: Crush 3 cups of the hulled strawberries with a potato masher. Slice the remaining 5 cups of berries and stir into the crushed berries, along with the sugar. Set the fruit aside and mascerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours.
   
2. For the shortcakes: Set an oven rack to the lower-middle position and preheat to 425 degrees. Pulse the flour, 3 Tbsp of the sugar, baking powder, and salt in a food processor. Scatter the cold butter over the dry ingredients and pulse until it resembles coarse meal, about fifteen 1-second pulses. Transfer to a medium bowl.
   
3. Mix the beaten egg and half and half in a mesuring cup. Add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients and mix until large clumps are formed. Turn onto a floured work surface and lightly knead until combined.
   
4. Pat the dough until a 9"x6" rectangle, about 3/4" thick, making sure not to overwork the dough. Cut out 6 dough rounds with a 2 3/4" biscuit cutter. Brush with beaten egg white, and sprinkle with remaining sugar.
   
5. Bake until golden brown, 12 to 14 minutes. Place the baking sheet on a wire rack and cool until warm, about 10 minutes.
   
6. Split each shortcake, portion fruit over the bottom, add a dollop of whipped cream, and cap with the cake top.