Ingredients
- BISCUITS FROM SCRATCH:
- 3 baskets of fresh strawberries (about 6 cups)
- 1/2 cup white granulated sugar for the strawberries
- Whipping cream
- Vanilla
- Powdered sugar
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 3 Tbsp sugar
- 1 1/2 Tbsp baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 12 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Preparation
Step 1
Cut the stems away from the strawberries and discard. Cut the strawberries in half, and then either quarters or thick slices. Put the cut strawberries into a large bowl and sprinkle with sugar. Start with 1/4 cup of sugar and then add up to another 1/4 cup depending on how sweet your strawberries are. Gently stir the strawberries until they are all coated with some sugar. Let sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes, until the berries soften and begin to release their juices.
After 20 minutes or so, mash about half of the berries in the bowl with a potato masher and stir to mix. You don't want to mash all the berries, just enough of them for their juices. Let sit while you bake the biscuits.
Bake the biscuits using the recipes below.
While the biscuits are baking, whip the cream, adding a drop or two of vanilla and a teaspoon of powdered sugar. Cover with plastic and place in the refrigerator to chill until ready to serve.
To serve, break up one biscuit per person into big pieces into a bowl. Ladle strawberries over the biscuit. Add a dollop of whipped cream.
BISCUITS RECIPE:
In a large bowl, vigorously whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut the butter into the flour mixture, either using your fingers, a pastry cutter, a fork, or a food processor, until the largest pieces of butter are the size of peas. Mix the vanilla and cream together. Make a well in the center of the flour and pour the cream into it. Mix with a fork until the mixture is just combined. It should look rather shaggy and feel a little dry. Gently knead by hand a few times to form a loose ball of dough.
Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and form it into an 8-inch square, about 3/4-inch to an inch thick. Place it on a parchment or silicone-lined baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and chill for 20 minutes. Heat the oven to 425ºF. Remove the dough from refrigerator. Cut the dough into 9 even squares and spread them about 2 inches apart from each other on the baking sheet. Bake until the biscuits are medium golden brown, 18 to 20 minutes.