One of the best things about spring and summer, is that they are the seasons for berries! There is such a variety in berries and the recipes they can be featured in are endless. One of my favorite spring / summer desserts is strawberry shortcake. It is so sweet and refreshing!

There are different ways to make strawberry shortcake. Some prefer it to be a soft cake, while others like the classic way to do it with a soft scone as the base, which is what my family has always made to pair with strawberries and whipped cream. My scone recipe is sweetened with sugar (since it is dessert after all! ) but the sweetness doesn’t overpower the flavor of the strawberries. The scone is buttery, soft and moist on the inside, and slightly crisp on the outside. It doubles as a classic tea scone that is delicious with butter and jam or lemon curd and cream. These scones can also be dressed up with some blueberries!

Ingredients for Strawberry Shortcake

cane sugar
egg
fine sea salt
oat milk (gluten free) or milk of choice
baking powder
baking soda
cold, unsalted butter
Cup4Cup Gluten Free Multipurpose Flour or King Arthur Gluten Free Measure For Measure Flour
lemon juice
strawberries
whipped cream

*Both of the suggested gluten-free flours have been successfully tested. Other brands may vary the outcome.

*Vegan butter can also be substituted for regular butter! Miyoko’s Creamery Organic European Style Cultured Vegan Butter (Unsalted) has been tested successfully in this recipe.

*Other milk options include: almond, cashew, and regular milk.

For another scone recipe, check out my Orange Currant Scones. They are especially good in the winter!

These strawberry shortcakes are: pleasantly sweetened, fresh, buttery, slightly crisp, creamy, easy to make, and great for dessert or breakfast!

How to Make Strawberry Shortcake

To begin, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sea salt, and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Stir all of the ingredients together.

Next, add in the butter and use a pastry cutter to chop up the butter until it resembles pea sized crumbs. *A helpful tip is to cut the butter into cubes first before adding it to the flour mixture and using a pastry cutter, as pictured below.

Then add in 1 beaten egg, lemon juice, and milk. Mix together until all ingredients are well-incorporated and it forms into a ball. *The dough will be a little sticky.

Then lightly flour a flat surface and place the dough on it. Use your hands to shape the dough into roughly a 7” X 7” round with about 1 1/4” height. Next, use a round cookie cutter to cut out each scone. (The one pictured is a 2 1/2” cutter) Continue to form scraps of dough into a smaller round until all dough has been cut out.

Chilling and Baking

Next, place the scones on a large plate lined with parchment paper and cover with plastic wrap. Freeze the scones for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Once the 15 minutes have passed, remove the scones from the freezer and place them on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat. *Make sure your baking sheet can withstand the higher oven temperature.

Bake for about 26-28 minutes or until scones are a light golden brown. Let the scones cool for 5 minutes and then use a spatula to move them to a cooling rack.

Finally, once the scones are cool, cut the scones in half and add your sliced strawberries and whipped cream of choice. For my homemade coconut whipped cream recipe, go to my Coconut Chocolate Dream Cake page.

Storage Notes and Tips

For a vegan butter option, these scones have successfully been tested with Miyoko’s Creamery Organic European Style Cultured Vegan Butter (unsalted)
The scones are best stored up to 2-3 days at room temperature in a sealed container
The baked scones can be stored in the freezer for 1 week. They may crumble more easily if stored for longer.
Let the scones thaw for about 10-15 minutes after being in the freezer and toast them before eating (the result is they taste freshly baked)