Summer = Strawberries

By the calendar, summer came one day early (the leap year added one day to February).  But in truth, summer arrives when the strawberries are ready for picking.

And go picking today we did!

So now our household is all about whipped cream and shortcake and berries-a-plenty.  Alice Waters’ “The Art of Simple Food” has this recipe for Cream Biscuits – a/k/a shortcake; just add strawberries and whipped cream!

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Stir together in a large bowl: 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 4 teaspoons sugar (optional), 2 teaspoons baking powder.

Add 6 Tablespoons cold butter, cut into small pieces  then add the butter into the flour using your fingers or a pastry blender until they are the size of small peas.

Measure 3/4 cup heavy cream then remove 1 tablespoon and set that tablespoon aside.  Lightly stir into the flour the remainder of the cream with a fork until the mixture just comes together. Without overworking it, lightly knead the dough a couple of times in the bowl (this is pretty vague and not sure we hit the mark) turn it out onto a lightly floured board, and roll out about 3/4 inch thick (ours was about 1/4″ thick).

Cut into 1 1/2 inch circles or squares (we ended up with three or four times as many, but they worked fine all the same).  Reroll the scraps if necessary. Place the biscuits on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and lightly brush the tops with the reserved cream. Bake for 17 minutes, or until cooked through and golden.  Let cool, then top with strawberries and whipped cream.

…and we hope you find a field to forage…