Strawberry Shortcake

This recipe was featured in the newest Taste of Home magazine. We tried it this week. It is definitely a recipe I will make again. 

Ingredients: 

3 cups strawberries, sliced

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

Shortcake:

1 1/2 cups flour

2 1/2 Tbs sugar, divided

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

6 Tbsp cold butter, cubed

1/2 cup buttermilk (I added 1/2 tbsp vinegar to 1/2 cup milk)

1 Tbsp heavy cream

Topping: 

3/4 cup heavy cream

1 Tbsp sugar

1/4 tsp vanilla 

(The kids preferred reddi-whip, so I will probably just use that as topping instead)

Start by combining the strawberries, sugar, and vanilla. Mash slightly and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Whisk the flour, 2 Tbsp sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. Cut in butter until it is crumbly. Add the buttermilk Stir until just combined. Drop about 1/3 cup of the batter on a baking sheet. (I used my baking stone and made 5 shortcakes with this amount of dough.) Brush the tops with the heavy cream and sprinkle with remaining sugar. Bake for about 18 minutes. 

If you want to make your own topping, beat the 3/4 cup heavy cream until it begins to thicken. Add the sugar and vanilla and continue to beat until peaks form. 

Cut the shortcakes in half and fill with strawberries and whipped cream and place more strawberries and whipped cream on top.