One Perfect Bite: shortcake

Monday, October 21, 2013

Winter Apple and Cherry Shortcake

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...If you like the simplicity and down-home goodness of old-fashioned desserts, I hope you'll give this newfangled interpretation of shortcake a try. It pairs fall harvest fruits with spiced biscuit layers to create a dessert that is delicious and well worth the minimal effort that it takes to prepare. The recipe was created for Midwest Living magazine, and their developers took an already simple dish and made it easier still. They paired a canned pie filling with frozen cherries and used the combination to fill and top the shortcake. I made one small change to their recipe. I used 1/8 teaspoon of cinnamon oil in place of the vanilla extract called for in the recipe below. I thought the cinnamon flavor was more in keeping with the fall nature of the dessert and hoped it would better mask any tinny flavor that might be associated with the canned apples. You can purchase cinnamon oil on the King Arthur website if you are unable to find it at your neighborhood supermarket. This makes a nice fall dessert, so I do hope you'll grab your can openers and give the recipe a try. Here is how the winter shortcake is made..

Winter Apple and Cherry Shortcake...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Midwest Living

Ingredients:
Shortcake
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
1 beaten egg
2/3 cup milk
Apple-Cherry Filling (see recipe below)
3/4 to 1 cup whipping cream, whipped

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Grease an 8 x1-1/2 inch round cake pan. Set aside.
2) To make shortcake: Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and salt in a large bowl. Cut in butter to resemble coarse crumbs. Mix egg and milk in a small bowl, then pour into flour mixture and stir just until moistened. Spread batter into prepared pan and bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan. Split into 2 layers.
3) Meanwhile prepare filling using recipe below. Spoon half of warm filling over bottom shortcake layer and top with half of whipped cream. Top with second layer, remaining filling and whipped cream. Serve immediately. Makes 8 servings.

Apple-Cherry Filling

Ingredients:
1 (21-oz.) can apple pie filling
1 cup frozen tart red cherries
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
In a saucepan, combine apple pie filling and cherries. Cook and stir mixture till heated through. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla.

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Monday, May 2, 2011

Strawberry Shortcake

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I should be ashamed to admit it, but this homely, pedestrian dessert is one of my personal favorites. In fairness to myself, I must tell you that this is not the shortcake of childhood memory. The base of this dessert is a berry laced cream scone that is topped with fruit that's been macerated in orange liqueur and then covered with a small scoop of soft ice cream. The ice cream I make comes from a recipe developed by David Liebovitz and you can see that recipe here. I make the ice cream to his specifications just before serving to keep it soft. If you don't want to make ice cream, you can achieve a similar affect by placing a commercial ice cream in the refrigerator for an hour before serving. You can also replace the ice cream with whipped cream. Most of you are familiar with my recipe for cream scones. I've altered it slightly to use for shortcake, adding a bit of almond extract and strawberries to the original recipe. In order to finish the shortcakes, I top them with additional berries, a drizzle of warm strawberry jam and a top hat of whipped cream. This really is a lovely recipe. I hope you will enjoy it.

Strawberry Shortcake...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
Strawberries
4 cups sliced strawberries
1/4 cup granulated Sugar
2 tablespoons orange-flavored liqueur
Whipped Cream 1 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar
1/8 teaspoon almond extract
Shortcakes
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar, divided use
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup diced strawberries
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1-1/4 cups heavy cream
Ice Cream
2 small scoops per serving

Directions:
1) To make strawberries: Wash, drain and slice strawberries. Sprinkle with sugar and toss to coat. Sprinkle with orange liqueur and lightly toss again. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
2) To make whipped cream: Combine ingredients in stainless steel bowl. Whip to stiff peaks. Refrigerate.
3) To make shortcakes: Combine flour, 1/4 cup sugar, baking power, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Cut butter into dry ingredients. Stir in strawberries. Add heavy cream and almond extract and stir by hand just until dough forms. Dough will be soft and sticky. Cover and refrigerate 2 hours.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently until dough just holds together. Press dough into a 8 to 9-inch circle, 1-inch thick. Cut into 8 3-inch rounds. Place scones on baking sheet and sprinkle with reserved sugar. Bake 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees or until scones are a light golden brown on top.
4) To serve: Cut shortbread in half horizontally, separating top from bottom half. Place bottom half of biscuit in a medium bowl. Cover biscuit bottom with 1/2 cup of strawberry mixture. Place two small scoops of vanilla ice cream in center of biscuit bottom. Place remaining biscuit half on top of ice cream. Spoon additional berry mixture over biscuit top to moisten it. Finish with a dollop of whipped cream. Serve immediately. Yield: 8 servings.