Apricot Berry Shortcake Recipes

MIXED BERRY SHORTCAKE

Steps:

• For the biscuits: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Add the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt to the bowl of a food processor (or a large bowl). Add the butter pieces and pulse until the butter is completely cut into the flour mixture (or use a pastry cutter if using a bowl). Combine the buttermilk and vanilla in a measuring cup and while pulsing (or stirring) the dough, drizzle in the buttermilk mixture until the dough just comes together and is no longer crumbly.
• Drop the mixture in 8 clumps between 2 baking sheets, then bake until golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Set aside and allow to cool completely.
• For the berries: Wash the berries, slice the strawberries and transfer to a bowl. Sprinkle on the granulated sugar, then add the orange zest and juice. Stir gently, then set aside for 15 to 20 minutes to allow a syrup to develop.
• For the sweet yogurt cream: In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the cream, yogurt, granulated sugar and brown sugar on high until stiff. (Note: It won't get quite as stiff as regular whipped cream.)
• To serve, lay one biscuit on a plate, top with syrupy fruit, then top with a good spoonful of cream.

MIXED BERRY SHORTCAKE

Steps:

• In a heavy saucepan, combine 1/2 cup sugar and cornstarch. Stir in milk until blended. Bring to a boil over medium-low heat; cook and stir for 1-2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from the heat. Stir a small amount into egg yolks; return all to the pan, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat; stir in vanilla. transfer to a bowl; press a piece of plastic wrap on top of custard. Refrigerate., In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and remaining sugar. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in buttermilk until a soft dough forms. Pat gently into a 9-in. square baking pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400° for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack., Cut shortcake into 3/4-in. cubes. In parfait glasses, alternate layers of shortcake, custard, sliced strawberries and blueberries. Garnish with halved strawberries and a dollop of whipped topping.

PERFECT BERRY SHORTCAKES

Steps:

• Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat to 425 degrees. Mix flour, salt, baking powder and 3 Tbs. sugar in a medium bowl. Grate 2 Tbs. of the butter on the coarse holes of a box grater into dry ingredients; toss to coat. Repeat grating and tossing with remaining butter. Combine egg and half-and-half; pour into flour mixture. Toss with a fork to form large clumps. Lightly press clumps into a ball; add a teaspoon more half-and-half to the bowl if dough won't come together.
• Turn dough onto work surface; press into an 8-by-4- to 5-inch rectangle. Cut into 6 squares, placing them 1 inch apart on a small baking sheet. (Can be refrigerated up to 2 hours before baking.) Before baking, brush tops with optional egg white for a particularly attractive sheen. Sprinkle with remaining 2 Tbs. sugar. Bake until golden brown, about 12 to 14 minutes. Let cool until warm, 5 to 10 minutes.
• Mix thawed and fresh berries with sugar in a bowl; let stand until sugar dissolves. With a hand mixer, beat cream to soft peaks, gradually adding 1 Tb. sugar, then vanilla.
• Split each cake crosswise; spoon a portion of berries over each cake bottom, then a dollop of whipped cream over berries. Cap with cake top and serve immediately.

TRIPLE BERRY SHORTCAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add 1 egg at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. In another bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating well after each addition., Transfer batter to a greased 13x9-in. pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 25-30 minutes. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack., For topping, in a large bowl, combine berries; add sugar and toss gently to coat. Serve with cake; top with whipped cream if desired.

SUMMER BERRY STACKED SHORTCAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400 degrees. Trace an 8-inch circle onto two pieces of parchment paper. Line two baking sheets with the paper, writing-side down.
• Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Whisk together buttermilk, cream and egg in a liquid measuring cup.
• Use a pastry cutter or your fingers to cut the butter into the flour mixture until it is the size of small peas. Make a well in the center and pour in the liquid. Stir the mixture together until just combined, then use your hands to knead it a few times until the dough comes together. It will be the texture of thick cookie dough.
• Divide the dough into two equal pieces, place each onto one of the prepared baking sheets and use lightly damp hands to press it into a circle just inside the traced line. (Do your best to pat the tops flat while keeping the edges perpendicular to the pan.) Chill the dough on the baking sheets in the refrigerator until firm, about 15 minutes (dough can be chilled up to 4 hours). Just before baking, sprinkle each round with 1 teaspoon turbinado sugar.
• Bake the shortcakes until golden and cooked through, 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the pans from front to back and top to bottom halfway through the baking time. Cool completely.
• While the shortcakes are cooling, macerate the berries and make the cream: Add berries, sugar, lemon and vanilla to a large bowl. Use a fork to gently mash up to 1/4 cup of the berries. (This doesn't have to be exact, but you want to create a little bit of liquid if your berries aren't naturally super juicy.) Stir gently to combine and let sit for about 30 minutes.
• For the cream, add the yogurt, sugar, vanilla and salt to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Mix on medium speed until combined. Add the heavy cream, and whip until very firm peaks form. (You can complete the shortcakes, cream and berries up to 4 hours in advance, refrigerating the cream and berries until ready to serve.)
• To serve, place one of the cooled shortcakes on a serving plate. Top with half of the cream followed by half the berries. (Don't spread the cream quite to the edges, as it will spread when you add the other shortcake.) Repeat with the remaining shortcake, cream and berries. If there is a lot of extra berry juice left in the bowl, serve it alongside the cake.
• Slice the cake with a long serrated knife and serve. The shortcake can be layered up to about 1 hour in advance and stored in the fridge. It will soften as it sits.

FOURTH OF JULY SHORTCAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Butter an 11-by-7-by-1 1/2-inch baking dish. Line pan with parchment paper, allowing paper to extend 1 inch above pan.
• Stir together flour, salt and baking powder; stir in bran.
• Beat cream cheese and butter; add sugar and beat until fluffy. Beat in lemon zest, egg and lemon juice. Stir in dry ingredients.
• Spread dough in a very thin layer over bottom of pan and up sides to form a shell. Press a piece of parchment paper down into the shell. Fit close to dough at all points and let extend an inch above the pan. Fill with pie weights or dried beans or rice.
• Bake 20 minutes or until dough is set. Remove top parchment paper and weights. Reduce oven to 350 degrees and bake 15 minutes longer or until golden brown.
• Set pan on wire rack and let cool. Lift out shell. Spread interior of shell with apricot preserves.
• Make the filling: Slice strawberries, and sprinkle them and blueberries with sugar to taste. Arrange fruit in pastry shell in four segments, alternating berries.
• Make the topping: Beat ricotta with milk until smooth. Blend in sugar and vanilla. To serve, drizzle topping on each piece of shortcake.

OLD-FASHIONED BERRY SHORTCAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter two 9-by-2-inch round cake pans; set aside. In a large bowl, sift together flour and cornstarch; set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with whisk attachment, combine eggs, egg yolks, granulated sugar, salt, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat on high speed until mixture is thick and holds a ribbonlike trail on the surface when you raise the whisk, about 5 minutes.
• Place reserved flour mixture on a large piece of parchment paper. Holding paper like a funnel, add flour mixture to egg mixture. With machine running on low speed, mix until just combined. In a steady stream, immediately add oil; mix until just combined. Remove bowl from mixer; detach the whisk. Using the whisk, fold mixture several times.
• Divide batter between pans. Bake cakes, rotating pans halfway through baking time, until the centers spring back when you touch them with your finger, about 30 minutes.
• Immediately turn cakes out onto a wire rack; let stand until completely cool.
• Combine cream, confectioners' sugar, and remaining teaspoon vanilla extract in clean mixer bowl. Scrape in vanilla seeds; reserve pod for another use. Starting on low speed and increasing to medium high, whip until stiff peaks form, about 2 minutes.
• Using a serrated knife, slice cakes in half; place one layer on a serving plate. Spread one-fourth of whipped cream over the layer; arrange strawberries on top. Repeat process with remaining layers, cream, and berries. Refrigerate until serving; garnish with mint.

APRICOT SHORTCAKE (SPC)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 180 Degrees Celsius.
• Mix first 7 ingredients together in a large bowl until combined.
• Spoon into a teflon coated or lightly greased 20cm x 5 cm deep cake pan.
• Sprinkle over extra oats or sunflower seeds.
• Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
• Remove, stand for 10 minutes, turn onto a wire rack and cool.
• VARIATION:Omit oats and mix 2 tablespoons natural yoghurt with 1 cup sifted icing sugar and spread over cake when cool.

APRICOT NECTARINE SHORTCAKE WITH VANILLA WHIPPED CREAM

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• In the food processor combine the flour, 2 tablespoons of sugar, baking powder and salt. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture looks like grated Parmesan cheese. Add the cream and pulse until the mixture looks very crumbly but sticks together.
• Remove the blade from the processor and form craggy looking dough balls about the size of a small tennis ball. Put the dough balls on a baking sheet lined with a silpat or parchment paper. Sprinkle each ball with a little sugar. Bake in the preheated oven for about 11 to 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.
• Add the butter to a saute pan and melt it over medium heat. Add the fruit and saute for 2 to 3 minutes. Sprinkle in the sugar and saute for another 2 to 3 minutes.
• In a mixing bowl combine the cream and vanilla. Using a whisk or hand beater, beat the cream until it starts to thicken. Sprinkle in the sugar and beat until the cream is very light and fluffy and it holds soft peaks.
• Cut the shortcakes in half. Spoon a generous amount of the warm fruit filling on the bottoms of the shortcakes. Replace the top and garnish with the vanilla whipped cream.

ALMOND AND MIXED-BERRY SHORTCAKES

Steps:

• Position rack just above center of oven and preheat to 375°F. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment. Whisk egg white and 3 tablespoons sugar in small bowl to blend. Mix in almonds.
• Blend 1/2 cup sugar and almond paste in processor until fine meal forms. Add flour, baking powder, lemon peel, salt, and ginger; blend 5 seconds. Add butter and cut in, using on/off turns, until coarse meal forms; transfer to large bowl. Whisk egg yolk, buttermilk, and vanilla in small bowl. Gradually add buttermilk mixture to dry ingredients, tossing until moist clumps form. Using floured hands, gather dough together.
• Divide dough into 8 equal pieces; roll each into 2-inch ball. Place balls on prepared baking sheet, spacing 2 to 3 inches apart. Gently press top of each ball to flatten slightly. Divide almond topping (including egg white) among biscuits; spread to cover. Bake biscuits until golden brown and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 26 minutes (biscuits will spread). Cool on sheet 5 minutes. Transfer to rack and cool. (Can be made 8 hours ahead. Cover; store at room temperature.)
• Combine berries, lemon juice, and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in medium bowl. Stir in preserves. Let stand until juices form, at least 1 hour and up to 2 hours, stirring occasionally.
• Cut biscuits horizontally in half. Place bottoms on plates. Top with berry mixture, cream, and biscuit tops.
• *Available in specialty foods stores and in the baking products section of most supermarkets.

APRICOT AND BERRY TART

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400 degrees, and have ready an ungreased 8-inch tart pan with removable bottom. In a medium bowl, toss together the apricots, berries, and 4 tablespoons sugar. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, cornmeal, 3 tablespoons sugar, salt, butter, egg yolk, and vanilla; pulse until dough begins to come together. Press dough into tart pan; set pan on a baking sheet. Bake until golden and slightly puffy, about 15 minutes. Remove from oven. Using a spatula, gently flatten bottom of crust.
• Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees. Arrange fruit in crust. Bake 30 minutes; sprinkle with remaining tablespoon sugar. Bake until apricots are juicy and tender, about 15 minutes more. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Remove tart from frame; serve with whipped cream, if desired.

APRICOT SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4 and grease and line a 20cm square shallow cake tin with baking parchment. Put the apricots and conserve in a small pan with 4 tbsp water, simmer over a medium heat until thick, then mash the apricots a little with a fork and set aside to cool.
• Tip the butter, sugar and vanilla into a large bowl, and beat with an electric whisk until pale and fluffy. Add the flour and ground rice, using a wooden spoon and then your hands to bring the mixture together as a dough. Divide into 2 pieces.
• Use your fingers to spread 1 piece of shortbread dough over the bottom of the tin. Spread the apricots over the top, leaving a small border around the edge. Roll out the remaining dough to a 20cm square and place on top of the apricot filling. Use your finger to make an indent all around the edges of the shortbread, then prick the top all over with a fork. Bake for 25-30 mins until the edges are just starting to turn golden. Leave to cool in the tin, then sprinkle with caster sugar and cut into 16 squares.

VERY BERRY SHORTCAKES

Steps:

• Put the strawberries in the colander. Rinse with cool water. Gently pat strawberries dry with the paper towels.
• Remove the stems from strawberries. Cut strawberries into bite-size pieces on the cutting board, using the knife. Put strawberries in a medium bowl.
• Add the 1/2 cup sugar to strawberries. Gently stir with the wooden spoon. Cover bowl with the plastic wrap, and put in refrigerator.
• Heat the oven to 425°. Make the shortcakes by putting the 2 1/3 cups baking mix, half-and-half, 3 tablespoons sugar and margarine in the large bowl. Stir with wooden spoon to make a soft dough.
• Sprinkle the 2 tablespoons baking mix over a clean surface (such as a kitchen counter or breadboard). Put dough on surface. Roll ball of dough around 3 or 4 times. Curve your fingers around and fold dough toward you, then push it away with the heels of your hands, using a quick rocking motion. Repeat 10 times.
• Roll the dough with the rolling pin or pat the dough with your hands until 1/2 inch thick. Use the ruler to measure, if you like. Dip the cookie cutter into a small amount of baking mix, then cut the dough with the cookie cutter. Carefully put dough on the cookie sheet (you do not need to grease the cookie sheet).
• Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until shortcakes are golden brown. Use the pot holders to take cookie sheet out of oven. Take shortcakes off cookie sheet, using the pancake turner. Cool shortcakes on the wire cooling rack before topping them.
• Cut the shortcakes in half to make a top and a bottom. Put bottoms of shortcakes on the dessert plates. Spoon some of the strawberries over the shortcake bottoms. Cover with shortcake tops. Top with the rest of the strawberries and the whipped topping.

RASPBERRY-APRICOT SHORTCAKES

Steps:

• Place apricots in large bowl. Combine 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water in small saucepan. Bring to boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Mix sugar syrup into apricots. Cool completely.
• Place 1 tablespoon water in small cup. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin over. Let stand until gelatin softens, about 5 minutes. Set cup in 1-inch-deep simmering water in medium saucepan; stir until gelatin dissolves, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Using electric mixer, beat whipping cream and powdered sugar in large bowl just until mixture thickens. Gradually add warm gelatin mixture, beating until cream forms medium-firm peaks. (Apricots and whipped cream can be prepared 8 hours ahead. Cover separately and refrigerate.)
• Cut biscuits horizontally in half. Place 1 biscuit bottom in each of 10 shallow bowls. Spoon apricots with some syrup over bottoms. Top with whipped cream, raspberries and biscuit tops. Drizzle remaining syrup from apricots around shortcakes and serve.