Recently Kitchn did a taste test of four Strawberry Shortcake recipes and the winner came from culinary icon James Beard. The recipe was actually his mother's and uses finely crumbled hard-boiled egg yolks to give the shortcake a rich and tender crumb. I had a few baskets of freshly picked berries from my hometown in the San Joaquin Valley that were itching to be consumed. No better time than the present to see if these shortcakes lived up to the hype.
While the recipe calls for making the dough by hand I always find it's easiest to let a food processor do the hard work. In my opinion the less you handle biscuit or pie dough the better. As I was making the shortcakes I was reminded of British style scones. The ingredients and techniques were actually quite similar, except the shortcakes used heavy cream instead of whole milk as the liquid.
One thing I could have done without was the hour long chill in the fridge once the dough rounds were cut. I'm an impatient baker and would have preferred putting them in the oven straightaway. [Maybe I'll try that next time.] After fifteen minutes in a very hot oven the shortcakes came out beautifully golden brown. Once cooled I split one open to have a taste. I have to admit they did live up to their reputation. The shortcake was rich in flavor and tender in texture. I generous spoonful of lightly sweetened strawberry slices and a dollop of whipped cream was all that was needed for a delightful summertime dessert.
