This Homemade Strawberry Shortcake recipe features a perfectly sweet and flaky biscuit that makes for the most delicious summer treat! It’s all made from scratch, and you’ll never make strawberry shortcake any other way again!

A homemade strawberry shortcake recipe on a blue and white plate with a sweet biscuit, juicy strawberries, and whipped cream.

The BEST Strawberry Shortcake Recipe

Strawberry shortcake is my obsession. I will choose it over almost any other dessert, and I also don’t see any reason why it shouldn’t be eaten for breakfast too! Just sayin’! Even visiting The Cheesecake Factory, I tend to order a fresh strawberry shortcake. It’s my thing. And I’ve tested and tested the perfect sweet cream biscuit for strawberry shortcakes, exactly how to prepare strawberries, and the best whipped cream to serve alongside it. 

Strawberry shortcake has been my obsession since I was little. Every summer my parents would gather us kids to pick out seeds to plant in our garden and berries were always my choice. We would work so hard to keep that big garden growing. Or so I thought. Now that I’m a mother I can see how hard my littles work for about 10 minutes, which to them feels like hours so I’m sure that was probably the same growing up. 

Either way, by the time dad called out to head in and get cleaned up we were all starving. Mom would run to the store and buy a bag of fried chicken and “jo-jo’s.” Oh I loved those little fried potato wedges! But best of all was when Mom would pull out those little individual angel food cakes, those little circles sealed in packages, and slice up juicy strawberries for strawberry shortcake. 

It was heaven.

What is Strawberry Shortcake?

Strawberry shortcake means deliciousness!! A shortcake is a sweet cake or biscuit made with with flour, baking powder or soda, salt, sugar, butter, milk or cream, and sometimes eggs. The shortcake is then topped with sweetened strawberries and whipped cream to create strawberry shortcake.

A closeup photo of homemade strawberry shortcake recipe on a blue and white plate with a sweet biscuit, juicy strawberries, and whipped cream.

What’s Needed for Homemade Strawberry Shortcake? 

Here’s what you’ll need to make the strawberry shortcake biscuits, macerated strawberries, and whipped cream: 

  • Strawberries 
  • Granulated sugar
  • All-purpose flour
  • Salt
  • Baking powder
  • Unsalted butter
  • Eggs
  • Heavy cream
  • Milk
  • Powdered sugar
  • Vanilla extract

Can I Use Frozen Strawberries in Strawberry Shortcake? 

This is hopefully a no-brainer, but you want to use fresh strawberries in this recipe. You can use frozen strawberries if they are the last strawberries left on earth, but they aren’t going to compare to fresh.

A closeup photo of homemade strawberry shortcake recipe on a blue and white plate with a sweet biscuit, juicy strawberries, and whipped cream.

How to Make Strawberry Shortcake

You can make strawberry shortcake with quick and easy way with store-bought everything, or you can make it the sent-straight-down-from-heaven way and make strawberry shortcake from scratch:

  1. Make the shortcake biscuit dough. 
  2. Roll out into a rectangle and cut with a biscuit cutter. 
  3. Place the biscuits onto a baking sheet and brush with beaten egg white, then sprinkle with sugar. 
  4. Bake the strawberry shortcake biscuits until golden. 
  5. Meanwhile, macerate the strawberries and whip the cream. 
  6. Once the biscuits have cooled, top with cream and berries and dig in! 

What Does It Mean to Macerate Strawberries?

Macerating strawberries is simply mixing sliced strawberries with sugar and allowing them to sit for at least 30 minutes to allow the natural juices to be released. The fruit will create a natural syrup that is perfect for this easy strawberry shortcake recipe.

A photo of homemade strawberry shortcake recipe on a blue and white plate with a sweet biscuit, juicy strawberries, and whipped cream.

Can You Macerate Strawberries Overnight?

Yes! The longer you macerate, the more juicy the strawberries become. So if you want extra juicy, syrupy strawberries, place them in a bowl with sugar, cover the bowl, and pop them in fridge overnight. In the recipe card below, we say not to refrigerate the berries. But if you’re going to leave them overnight, they need to be in the refrigerator.

How Long do Strawberries in Sugar Last?

As long as the strawberries are stored in the refrigerator and covered, they will last up to 3-4 days in the fridge.

Can Strawberry Shortcake Be Made in Advance?

The biscuit dough can be prepared up to 12 hours ahead of time. Cover the dough with a towel and store in the refrigerator. You could also cut the biscuits ahead of time as well, just be sure to cover and refrigerate them. Do not brush them with egg white and sugar until right before baking.

Note that the homemade strawberry shortcakes shouldn’t be assembled until right before eating them. If they sit too long, the strawberries will make the biscuit soggy and the whipped cream will start to fall. They are best served fresh!

A photo of homemade strawberry shortcake recipe on a blue and white plate with a sweet biscuit, juicy strawberries, and whipped cream.

Tips for Making Strawberry Shortcake From Scratch

Making the Strawberry Shortcake Biscuits. You’ll want to be sure to have a pastry cutter and biscuit cutter on hand when making the biscuits. When you cut your biscuits, don’t twist the biscuit cutter. Just push straight down and pull straight up. Twisting the cutter seals off the edges and won’t allow the biscuit to rise as effectively.

And be sure to measure your flour properly! All the details can be found in our post on how to measure flour.

Prepping the Strawberries. We recommend using the pastry cutter to smash the about 1/4 to 1/3 of the strawberries, then mix in the sugar and other berries. This will make them extra syrupy and delicious. Also, don’t refrigerate them while they macerate. Refrigeration actually restricts the juices from flowing.

Making the Whipped Cream. Who doesn’t love to fill their mouths with the canned Reddi Wip style whipped cream? It’s fast, easy, and delicious, but fresh whipped cream is all we ever use. It is super simple and has the best flavor. We recommend using a chilled glass bowl to beat your whipped cream in.

A photo of homemade strawberry shortcake recipe on a blue and white plate with a sweet biscuit, juicy strawberries, and whipped cream.

This is the best strawberry shortcake recipe in town! It is the perfect summer dessert and scales so easily no matter how many people are sitting at your table. Make these homemade strawberry shortcakes of love and be sure to invite me!

More Strawberry Shortcake Recipes: 

Now, let me prove my obsession with strawberry shortcake recipes… 

More Easy Fruit Desserts:

You can find all our fruit dessert recipes here, but here are a few of our faves: 

More Mouth-watering Summer Fruit Desserts:

Carrian's Obsession Strawberry Shortcake

4.37 from 11 votes
Servings: 8
Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 12 mins
Total Time: 32 mins

Description

This Homemade Strawberry Shortcake recipe features a perfectly sweet and flaky biscuit that makes for the most delicious summer treat!

Ingredients 

For the Strawberries

  • 8 Cups Strawberries, Fresh, hulled and sliced
  • 1/4 Cup Granulated Sugar, (or to taste)

For the Biscuits

  • 2 Cups All-Purpose Flour, (properly measured)
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
  • 1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
  • 5 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar
  • 1/2 Cup Butter, Unsalted, cut into pieces
  • 1 Large Egg, whisked
  • 1/4 Cup Heavy Cream, Plus 1 Tablespoon
  • 1/4 Cup Milk
  • 1 Egg White, , whisked
  • Additional Sugar for biscuits

Whipped Cream

  • 2 Cups Whipping Cream, Heavy
  • 1/2 Cup Powdered Sugar
  • 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Instructions

For the Biscuits

  • Adjust your oven rack to lower middle position; heat the oven to 425 degrees F.
  • Mix flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar in a medium bowl.
  • Toss the butter with flour to coat. Using a pastry cutter, mix the butter into the flour until it appears to be like a grainy mixture.
  • Mix a beaten egg with the milk and cream; pour into flour mixture.
  • Toss with fork until large clumps form. Turn mixture onto floured work surface and lightly knead only just until it comes together.
  • Using a silicone mat with measurements, gently press the dough into a rectangle no bigger than 9 x 6 inches.
  • Flour 2 3/4-inch biscuit cutter and cut 6 dough rounds. Gather the scraps together and cut out 2 to 4 more biscuits.
  • Place the biscuits 1 inch apart on a small baking sheet; brush dough tops with egg white and sprinkle evenly with a good coating of sugar.
  • Bake until golden brown, 12 minutes. Place baking sheet on wire rack to cool.
  • Carefully turn the biscuit on its side and find a natural crack. Insert a knife, wiggling gently and then carefully open with your hands.
  • Pile the bottom biscuit with berries and whipped cream, topping with the lid of the biscuit.

For the Strawberries

  • At least 30 minutes before serving, using your pastry cutter or a fork, smash 1/4-1/3 of the strawberries. Stir in the sugar and remaining berries. Set aside to allow the syrup to form. Do not refrigerate as it will stunt the juices from flowing.

For the Whipped Cream

  • Using a chilled glass bowl, beat the cream until soft peaks form. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and beat again until perfect peaks stand, but do not over beat or you will make butter.

Notes

  • The biscuit dough can be prepared ahead of time. Cut it out using a biscuit cutter, but do not brush with egg white and sugar up to 12 hours ahead of time. Just set the dough in the fridge, covered with a towel.
 

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 486kcalCarbohydrates: 52gProtein: 7gFat: 29gSaturated Fat: 18gPolyunsaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 99mgSodium: 319mgFiber: 4gSugar: 26g
Author: Sweet Basil
Course: Over 100 Easter Recipes for Spring, Over 100 Favorite Fruit Dessert Recipes
Cuisine: American

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A homemade strawberry shortcake recipe on a blue and white plate with a sweet biscuit, juicy strawberries, and whipped cream.

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