When I was growing up. "Strawberry Shortcake" meant a red-headed, freckle-faced doll wearing an outlandish costume, complete with mob cap and stripy green and white stockings, which smelled like a lolly pop. My only other experience with "shortcake" was the nickname that the Fonz had for Joanie on Happy Days.
Fast forward a few years to when I started blogging, and learned that in the US, a shortcake is a biscuit (what we would call a scone) filled with strawberries and cream. I even made them in the dim dark past when I first moved back to Melbourne and was house-sitting for some friends.
Today, for Tuesdays with Dorie, we are once again making shortcakes - this time, with a twist. These are strawberry shortcakes "Franco-American style", which means that instead of filling a biscuit with strawberries and cream, we had to make discs out of lady finger batter and fill those with the strawberries and cream.
The lady finger discs lighten up the shortcake considerably, making this version of a shortcake akin to a fire engine cocktail - it doesn't feel like you are consuming much, and they are delicious, so you could easily overindulge.
Dorie also suggested macerating the strawberries in sugar and cloves, then roasting them and adding saba (I added verjuice instead - close enough, though I probably should have used balsamic vinegar), olive oil and cracked pepper to the mix. This really amped up the flavour of the strawberries. and made them easier to eat in the context of this soft dessert.
These strawberry shortcakes are a pretty little dessert that would be a welcome accompaniment to an afternoon tea party or for dessert after a heavy, rich dinner.
To see what the other TWD bakers thought of these shortcakes, visit the LYL section of the TWD website.
I really like the sound of this version although to be honest I love the original too! :D
ReplyDeleteWe like the original better, but this was still a delicious alternative. And I've been yearning to roast strawberries for a couple years---once again, Dorie gave me the push I needed :)
ReplyDeleteThis sounds lovely and elegant. I haven't had strawberry shortcake in ages, but this is a nice twist on a classic dessert!
ReplyDeleteGrowing up in our house we got these sponge cups that I am afraid are comparable to Twinkies in taste and texture. These are lovely and light and so delicious and elegant! Yours look great!
ReplyDeleteLOL re the Strawberry Shortcake doll - my sister had that and I had the blueberry one! I LOVE this version of this dessert - much more than the original. So light!
ReplyDeleteI absolutely loved this one. I have to think of it as a completely separate dish from the traditional shortcake. For me it's like comparing apples and oranges!
ReplyDelete"akin to a fire engine cocktail - it doesn't feel like you are consuming much, and they are delicious, so you could easily overindulge." Exactly! Couldn't have said it better.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter had a Strawberry Shortcake doll…LOL! And she smelled like strawberries!
ReplyDeleteWhen I was growing up, my mom always made Strawberry Shortcake…it was one of our very favorite summer desserts! She always made hers on sponge cake, so I loved the ladyfinger disks. They were light and spongy…perfect for strawberry shortcake! Yours looks lovely, Gaye!
I remember the strawberry shortcake character - think she is still about - never eaten a strawberry shortcake - yours looks great
ReplyDeleteI knew the strawberry shortcake girl before the food too :D I loved her, and then loved edible shortcake when I discovered it. I haven't had it for ages though!
ReplyDeleteYour dessert looks lovely. I much prefer this lightened version to the scone version.
ReplyDeleteYour berries look great! Love that I learned how easy ladyfingers are to make. My husband has never liked biscuity shortcakes.
ReplyDeleteLooks delish! I love the traditional strawberry shortcake and this one looks even better! I have to try this one very soon, while the strawberries are so sweet and good.
ReplyDeleteI remember both of your strawberry shortcake references:) We loved these too especially the roasted strawberries.
ReplyDeleteI remember the Strawberry Shortcake doll! That was a nice blast from the past. Your shortcakes look great!
ReplyDeleteLol on the Strawberry Shortcake doll and the nickname on Happy Days...you always have a way of bringing a smile for memories in my own life that I have completely forgotten about until I read your references to them! Your strawberry shortcake dessert looks wonderful. I have to say, all the many versions of it, strawberry shortcake is probably my most favorite dessert always. But what can you expect from the girl who grew up in Strawberry Point, Iowa, right? :-) I need to make this one. Such fun to hear about the differences between the US and Oz...always makes for an interesting read for us all.
ReplyDeleteYou're right, these are lighter than the regular strawberry shortcake! That means I can eat more, right? :-)
ReplyDeleteCan I tell you that I had every single Strawberry Shortcake doll growing up. (My parents would not let me have Barbie dolls, but SS was acceptable :-) ) I still have them all sitting in a box somewhere. Either my seventh or eighth birthday party was SS themed. Sigh.
ReplyDeleteYes, it was easy to keep eating these. It was a nice surprise.
Cher, what fun! I loved the smell of those dolls. I didn't own any, but my friend had Strawberry Shortcake and the Huckleberry Fin doll.
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