Warm Peach Shortcake With Brandy Whipped Cream Recipes

PEACHES 'N CREAM SHORTCAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside
• Sift flour, 4 1/2 teaspoons sugar, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl. Rub in butter with your fingers until mixture resembles course crumbs. Stir in 1/2 cup milk and mix into a soft dough.
• Divide dough into 4 equal parts and flatten each part into a 2-inch diameter disc. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Brush the tops with 1 tablespoon milk.
• Mix remaining 1 teaspoon sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Sprinkle the top of each biscuit with cinnamon sugar.
• Bake in the preheated oven until biscuits begin to brown on the edges, about 12 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.
• Meanwhile, whisk water, sugar, cornstarch, and cinnamon together in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add sliced peaches and cook until sauce begins to thicken, stirring occasionally to coat all of the peaches. Remove from heat and cool.
• Whip heavy cream in a bowl until stiff peaks form.
• Cut each biscuit in half horizontally. Place the bottoms on a serving plate. Add a dollop of whipped cream, top with 1/4 of the peaches, another dollop of whipped cream, and the biscuit top. Serve immediately.

WARM PEACH SHORTCAKE WITH BRANDY WHIPPED CREAM

Steps:

• Make the shortcake: Preheat the oven to 375°F Spray a 9-inch cake pan with nonstick vegetable spray. In a small bowl, stir 1 tablespoon sugar with the cinnamon. In a large bowl, whisk the flour with the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar, the baking powder, nutmeg, salt and baking soda. Using a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in the cold butter until it is the size of small peas. Make a well in the center and add the buttermilk and the beaten eggs. Stir with a fork, until a dough forms. Scrape the dough into the prepared cake pan and bake for 35 minutes, until the top is golden, Brush the top of the hot cake with the melted butter and sprinkle with the cinnamon-sugar. Transfer the shortcake to a rack to cool for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, make the filling: In a small bowl, pour the brandy over the raisins and let stand for 20 minutes. In a large skillet, melt the butter. Add the peaches, cover and cook over moderately low heat until the peaches just begin to soften, about 6 minutes. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the brandy. Add the remaining brandy and the raisins to the skillet along with the brown sugar and cinnamon. cook the peaches over moderate heat, stirring often, until glazed and crisp-tender, about 8 minutes.
• In a medium bowl, whip the cream with the reserved 1 tablespoon of brandy until soft peaks form. Remove the shortcake from the pan and transfer to a serving plate or cake stand. Using a serrated knife, slice the cake in half horizontally; slide the top of the cake onto a plate. Spoon the peaches and their sauce over the bottom of the shortcake. Top with the other half of the cake. Cut the shortcake into wedges and serve with a dollop of brandy whipped cream.
• Note: The shortcake can be baked up to 1 day ahead and kept at room temperature.
• FYI: I like my whipped cream a little sweeter, so I add about 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar to heavy cream along with the 1 tablespoon of brandy before whipping the cream.

WHISKEYED PEACH SHORTCAKES

Steps:

• For the shortcakes:
• Heat the oven to 475°F. In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, granulated sugar, and salt. Add the butter to the dry ingredients and work the mixture between your thumbs and fingers to stretch the butter into flat pieces. Leave a few larger chunks of cold butter in the flour mixture. Start by adding 3/4 cup half- and-half, and stir it into the flour mixture with a large spoon. If the mixture is too dry, add a little more half-and-half until it holds together. Do not overmix.
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and gently knead-just two to three turns-and form into a ball. Pat the dough ball down to create a flat surface. With a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the dough out to 1 inch thick. With the tines of a fork dipped in dry flour, pierce the dough about every inch, making sure to pierce through to the bottom of the dough, to create holes for steam to escape. Using a pastry brush, lightly coat the surface of the rolled-out dough with the egg wash, then sprinkle the turbinado sugar across the top evenly. Using a 3-inch biscuit cutter, cut out the shortcakes with a deliberate vertical push and then gently remove from the cutter. Place shortcakes side by side on a parchment-lined baking sheet, with edges touching. Use scraps of dough to fill in any large gaps between shortcakes; this helps the cakes hold their shape.
• Bake until the cakes are golden brown and spring back when lightly touched, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
• For the whipped sweetened crème fraîche:
• Whisk the heavy cream and sugar to combine. Add the crème fraîche and whisk rapidly until it tightens up to whipped cream consistency with soft peaks, 1 to 2 minutes. If the mixture gets overwhipped, fold in a little more cream to thin it out.
• For the whipped sweetened crème fraîche:
• Combine the cream and buttermilk in a shallow container that holds the liquid at a depth of 1 to 2 inches. Cover the container with a lid or plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature overnight. Refrigerate when thickened.
• Variation:
• When we made this dessert for the photo shoot, recipe tester Deborah Geering layered the extra shortcake halves, peaches and their juices, and whipped crème fraîche in a casserole dish like a summer pudding.
• Make the whiskeyed peaches:
• In a large skillet over high heat, melt the butter until foamy. Add the peaches, lemon juice, whiskey, sugar, salt, and vanilla and sauté, stirring to prevent burning, until the peaches are tender, 5 to 10 minutes, depending on their initial firmness. Remove from the heat and let cool. (You should have about 3 cups.) Make the sweetened crème fraîche.
• To assemble:
• Split the shortcakes in half and place the bottoms, cut side up, on each plate. Spoon a large dollop of the sweetened crème fraîche onto each half, then layer a scant 1/3 cup peach mixture and some of the syrup onto each half. Layer with more sweetened crème fraîche and then set the other halves on top.

BROWN SUGAR SHORTCAKE WITH WARM BOURBON PEACHES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Butter a baking sheet. In a bowl, combine flour, 55 grams of sugar, cornstarch, baking powder and salt, and whisk well. Cut in cold butter with a pastry cutter, two knives, or your fingers. When butter is in pea-size pieces, mix in cream and egg until a soft batter forms.
• Dump batter onto a floured surface and knead until it holds together. Divide batter into 2 pieces, one slightly larger than the other. Press larger piece of dough into a 1/2-inch-thick round, roughly 8 inches in diameter. Place on baking sheet and brush with butter. Press remaining dough into a 1/2-inch-thick round and place on top of first dough round. It should be smaller in size. Brush with butter and sprinkle with more sugar. Bake until shortcake is golden brown and firm to the touch all over, 20 to 30 minutes. Let cool.
• Meanwhile, prepare the peaches. In a medium skillet, heat bourbon and add 1 tablespoon water and 25 grams of sugar. Cook until sugar dissolves, then add peaches. Let cook until peaches are warmed through and release their juices, about 2 minutes.
• Carefully cut smaller top round off shortcake. Place shortcake bottom on a serving plate and cover with warm peaches and their liquid (reheat fruit if necessary). Spoon whipped cream over peaches and place shortcake top over cream. Serve immediately.