Seductive Strawberry Shortcake

Warning:  Consumption of Dorie Greenspan’s recipe for Strawberry Shortcake may cause sudden and severe side effects.   This dessert is a powerful aphrodisiac.  Known side effects include popping open a bottle of champagne, leaving a trail of rose petals in the kitchen, and humming “Strawberry Fields Forever”.

Strawberries are the “sexy” fruit.   Think about it, how many movie scenes have you seen that conjure up romantic images of couples nibbling on long stem strawberries and champagne?  There is something seductive about the strawberry.  But shortcake is not considered sexy, at least not until now.  Strawberry Shortcake is one of those “All American” girl next door desserts that appears throughout summer starting Memorial Day and lasts through Labor Day.  But Dorie Greenspan decided to make Strawberry Shortcake her sophisticated take on it changed everything.  Why is her Strawberry Shortcake so scintillating?  It’s the secret ingredient that takes this from family dessert to date night dessert.

Driscoll’s hosted a Google Chat with Dorie Greenspan in May and she revealed her secrets to making the perfect Strawberry Shortcake.  According to Dorie, the perfect base for the shortcake is a biscuit.  Not just any biscuit, but one that is infused with lemon zest.   The lemon zest brings a bright flavor to the biscuit.

Then instead of just slicing strawberries and macerating with sugar, she makes strawberry compote. In all my years of cooking, I’ve never made compote for strawberry shortcake and now that I have tried her compote I can’t go back to my old ways.  She takes a perfectly delicious strawberry and makes it even better.  The flavor becomes more concentrated.  Then she adds a secret ingredient.

Strawberries are part of the Rose family.  Dorie learned this fact when she visited Driscoll Farms this past spring.  When Dorie learns something that may seem trivial to others, it becomes a weapon in her cooking artillery.  Dorie’s secret ingredient is Rose Water.   It is a match made in culinary heaven.  The fragrance fills the kitchen and dining room with the aroma of roses.   You might even trick yourself into thinking that your special someone just filled the room with a bed of roses just for you.  It provides a tantalizing flavor to the strawberries.   With each bite you long for another bite until you just can’t take it any longer and you cave in to the desire to finish your entire Strawberry Shortcake.

Dorie also shared that whipped cream earned its place in American Shortcakes in 1910.  The popularity of the cream is credited to French Pastry Chefs.  It is only fitting that Dorie adds a little French flair crème fraiche and rose water to her whipping cream.  It is an intoxicating aroma.

This simple secret ingredient elevates this from the summer barbeque dessert to date night cuisine.   This is an elegant and refined dessert worthy of sharing with someone special.

Thank you to Driscoll’s for hosting the Google Chat with Dorie Greenspan. Thank you Dorie Greenspan for sharing your Strawberry Shortcake Secrets with the world.

Dorie Greenspan's Double Strawberry & Rose Shortcake

 

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This recipe can be found at http://www.driscolls.com/recipes/view/10718/Dorie-Greenspan-s-Double-Strawberry-and-Rose-Shortcakes along with numerous other great recipes featuring berries.

Author: Dorie Greenspan

Recipe type: Dessert

Cuisine: French-American

Ingredients

• Rose Petal Decoration
• 3 unsprayed roses
• 1 to 2 very fresh organic egg whites
• granulated sugar
• OR
• store bought candied rose petals
• Strawberry Compote
• ¾ pound (about 3 cups) Driscoll's Strawberries, hulled
• 1½ tablespoons granulated sugar (plus more for sprinkling)
• ¾ teaspoon pure rose extract
• Lemon-Buttermilk Biscuits
• 1½ tablespoons granulated sugar (plus more for sprinklilng)
• freshly grated zest of 1 lemon
• 2 cups all-purpose flour (plus more for dusting)
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
• ¾ cup cold buttermilk
• Whipped Cream
• 1 cup very cold heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar, sifted
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• ¾ teaspoon pure rose extract
• 1 tablespoon cold sour cream (optional)
• red or pink food coloring
• Topping
• ½ to ¾ lb. (about 2 to 3 cups) Driscoll's Strawberries, hulled

Instructions

1. Rose Petal Decoration
2. Several hours ahead or the day before, separate the rose petals, rinse them quickly in cold water and pat them dry. Put one egg white in a small bowl and whisk until it's foamy. (You may or may not need the second white.) Put the sugar in another small bowl and place a sheet of parchment paper or a silicone baking mat on the counter. One at a time, dip a petal into the white and let the excess drip back into the bowl. Drag the petal through the sugar to coat both sides very lightly. Dry the petals on the paper or mat in a cool, non-humid place for at least 6 hours or for as long as overnight.
3. Strawberry Compote
4. Coarsely chop the berries and toss them into a small saucepan with the sugar. Put the pan over medium heat and cook, stirring, for 5 to 8 minutes, or until the juices are slightly thickened and syrupy. Scrape the berries and syrup into a bowl, stir in the rose extract and cool to room temperature. (You can make the compote up to 3 days ahead and keep it covered in the refrigerator.)
5. Lemon-Buttermilk Biscuits
6. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
7. Put the sugar and lemon zest in a large bowl and, working with your fingertips, rub the ingredients together until the sugar is moist and fragrant. Add the rest of the dry ingredients to the bowl and whisk to combine. Drop in the pieces of cold butter and, again using your fingertips, crush, rub and blend the butter in. You'll have flakes of butter and small pieces and this is just right. Pour the cold buttermilk over the mixture, switch to a fork and toss and stir everything together until the milk is absorbed - your dough might look like curds, but that's fine. Don't stir too much, too vigorously or for too long and if there are a few dry spots in the bottom of the bowl, ignore them. Reach into the bowl and knead the dough gently, folding it over on itself and turning it over 6 to 8 times.
8. Dust a work surface lightly with flour, turn out the dough and, still using your hands, pat the dough out until it is ½ inch thick. (The thickness is what's important here.) Using a high-sided 2 inch cutter, cut out biscuits and place them on the baking sheet. Pat the scraps together until they're ½ inch thick and cut out as many more biscuits as you can. (The leftover dough can be cut into biscuits, but they won't rise as high or as evenly as the others - you can keep them as your baker's treat). Sprinkle tops with sugar.
9. Bake for 15 to18 minutes, or until the biscuits have risen gloriously and their tops and bottoms are golden brown. Transfer the baking sheet to a cooling rack and allow the biscuits to cool until they reach room temperature. (The biscuits can be made up to 6 hours ahead; keep them uncovered at room temperature.)
10. Whipped Cream
11. Working with an electric mixer, beat the cream just until it mounds softly. Still beating, add the sugar, followed by the vanilla and rose extracts. When the cream is fully whipped and holds firm peaks, quickly beat in the sour cream, if you're using it. To tint the cream, beat in just one drop of coloring; continue adding coloring a tiny drop at a time until you get the shade of pink you want. (The whipped cream can be made up to 3 hours ahead and kept tightly covered in the refrigerator; whisk a couple of times before using.)
12. Topping
13. Just before you're ready to put the shortcakes together, stand the berries up and, using a thin-bladed knife, cut each berry into 4 or 5 thin slices.
14. Assembly
15. If you'd like to pipe the whipped cream, either spoon the cream into a pastry bag fitted with an open star or plain tip, or spoon the cream into a zipper-lock plastic bag and snip off a corner. Alternatively, you can simply spoon on the cream.
16. Slice off the top of the biscuit to create an even surface for piping the cream. Save the tops to nibble on later. Put a teaspoonful of strawberry compote and syrup in the center of each biscuit. Pipe (or spoon) a circle of whipped cream around the compote, leaving a bit of compote uncovered. Finish each shortcake by pressing two or three slices of strawberry together, fanning them out a little and placing them, broad side down, in the center of each cake. Add a rose petal for the finishing touch. (If you have any extra compote and/or cream, cover and keep in the refrigerator to enjoy at another time.)
17. Arrange the shortcakes on a platter. Scatter the remaining rose petals around the platter and serve immediately

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