Strawberry Shortcake with Crunchy Drop Biscuits
Make your own super easy crunchy, whole wheat drop biscuits for a strawberry shortcake that beats any store-bought version - and with just a fraction of the sugars in other desserts.
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
For Drop Biscuits (see note below):
- 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1/2 cup cold butter cut into 8 pieces
- 1 cup milk
For Strawberry Shortcakes:
- 6 warm biscuits
- 1 pound strawberries about 2 to 3 cups sliced
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1 cup whipping cream
- 1 tablespoon honey or sugar, to taste
Instructions
- To Make Biscuits:
- Heat oven to 425 degrees and line a baking sheet with a baking liner or parchment.
- Add flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar to the bowl of a food processor* and pulse to mix. Toss in the butter pieces and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal.
- Add milk all at once and pulse until the dough comes together (don't process too much). The dough should be a "wet' dough.
- Using a 1/4 c. scoop,** drop onto prepared pan 2-3 inches apart.
- Bake 15 minutes, turning halfway through if needed for even cooking. Let cool on a wire rack until serving.
- For Strawberry Shortcakes:
- Slice strawberries, sprinkle with 1/2 tsp. of sugar and toss gently. Let sit at room temperature until serving.
- Whip cream with honey (or sugar) until stiff peaks form. This can be done and hour or two in advance and kept in the fridge until serving (if you use honey, it helps keep the cream from separating after whipping, so it stores better).
- To serve, split each biscuit needed and place the bottoms on small plates or bowls. Top with about 1/2 cup of sliced strawberries, replace tops and add a spoonful of whipped cream.
Notes
Biscuit Note: this will make ten 1/4 cup size biscuits - the extras freeze beautifully and can be thawed and crisped again in a toaster oven. *To make by hand: add ingredients to a medium bowl and cut in butter with a pastry cutter. Use a wooden spoon to mix in the milk. **Use a smaller scoop or two spoons if you'd like a smaller size for your shortcakes.
Nutrition
Serving: 1shortcake | Calories: 288kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 59mg | Sodium: 161mg | Potassium: 368mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 678IU | Vitamin C: 27mg | Calcium: 130mg | Iron: 1mg
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Looking for more ways to use strawberries?
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Alison says
These turned out really well. I decided to soak the grains overnight in buttermilk (in place of the milk), and followed the rest of the recipe as written. (My body likes soaked grains a lot better…) They turned out just right! And I love how little sugar is used, and they still taste nice and sweet.
Jami says
So glad to know that worked to soak them, Alison! It’s amazing how we can get used to smaller amounts of sugar, isn’t it? I find I can cut the sugar down in most recipes and never notice. 🙂
Julie Pullum says
These look so good, I will have to try the drop version, I’ve always rolled mine out and used a cutter, oh roll on strawberry season!
Jami says
I think you may be converted, Julie. 😉
JaneInAZ says
My mom always made drop biscuits for the strawberry shortcake when I was growing up in the 50’s. She did use Bisquick, though I’d probably use your recipe for making my own biscuit mix instead if I were indulging now. Have to watch my carbs, so my strawberries have no shortcake. But the drop biscuits sure are wonderful and make the dessert so much more interesting than those sponge cakes. Thanks for the memory.
Jami says
I hear you on the carbs, Jane! I only make this a couple times a year and often just have one half – and it’s worth it. 🙂
Kris says
This is going to sound weird, but my grandmother taught me to add a sprinkle of salt to the berries. It brings out the juices and enhances the flavor. I could never figure out why her strawberry shortcake tasted so much better than mine did – we used the same family biscuit recipe. Then it came out one day: not only does she put in sugar, she sprinkles salt on the berries too! I guess if you’re watching your sodium intake, you should be careful, but it’s so worth it! If you’re ever having a “brave” moment, you should try it! You won’t be disappointed!
Can’t wait for Michigan berry season! Yum!
Jami says
Oh, wow – I will try that, Kris! I have often heard how a sprinkle of salt on unusual things boosts flavor, so we’ll have to do a taste test this year.
J. Mac Neal says
Your discovery (of using drop biscuits with their lovely crunchy texture for perfect strawberry shortcake) is better late than never. Glad you shared it. A lot of people don’t know that those sad little sponge fingers are pretenders. I grew up with the real thing. My mom always made drop biscuits for strawberry shortcake. She always added a little sugar to the dough, and always, ALWAYS, mashed half the strawberries (with a tiny bit of sugar added unless they were really sweet), and slicing up the rest of the strawberries. She’d split the biscuits into serving bowls, and butter the open tops. Setting aside a little of the juice from what she crushed, she’d ladle the rest of the delicious, juicy slurry over the unbuttered bottom halves. The biscuit bottoms held the crushed berries nicely, while letting some of the juice run in red rivulets off their sides, and allowing some of the juice to seep in. Mom then would heap the sliced berries on top of the crushed, and pop the buttered biscuit tops on, slightly askew. The final touch was to dollop on some whipped cream, and drizzle the reserved juice across the whipped cream. Sooo good. I do buy strawberries and other berries year round, but really look forward to strawberry season here in New Jersey. Nothing like homegrown, especially if you pick ’em yourself.
Jami says
Oh, your word picture literally made my mouth water. 🙂
J. Mac Neal says
Forgot to say how Mom would make sure she had everything standing by and ready when the biscuits came out of the oven. So everything was dished up and served while the biscuits were still nice and warm. It was great, too, when she’d serve the shortcake with ice cream instead of whipped cream… rich, cold vanilla ice cream melting down onto strawberry heaven on a warm, buttered biscuit!
Cheryl says
My mom always made biscuits for strawberry shortcake. Tried to get the recipe, but got “page not found” instead
Jami says
Sorry Cheryl – thanks for letting me know! I had to fix the html, which is not my strong point. 🙂