I’ve never met a person who would turn down strawberry shortcake. This fresh milled strawberry shortcake is full of flavor, flaky with a tender crumb, and oh, so good!! Seasonal foods bring nostalgia, and strawberry season is certainly full of that for me! My husband would cheerfully eat a generous helping of strawberry shortcake for all meals and all courses, all day long…

There’s a lot of delicious history in this simple dessert. We’ve all heard the term “melting pot” to describe the U.S. There is much truth to that, which also means that the majority of the food we eat is not native to our culture. Many of the breads and pastries we enjoy have originated in Europe.

Our modern day shortcake can be traced back to England, as early as 1588, because of a recipe found in an old English cookbook. In the 1850’s, strawberry shortcake was a popular biscuit and fruit dessert served warm with butter and sweetened cream. So much so, that in the United States, literal strawberry shortcake parties were held as celebrations of summer fruit harvest. And today, June 14th is designated as National Strawberry Shortcake Day!

What makes Strawberry Shortcake different?

For starters, it has evolved from a biscuit. What we know as shortcake now, while lighter and fluffier than in the past, still is more dense with a flakey tender crumb compared to most cakes.

Classic ingredients found in shortcake include flour, sugar, butter, and milk or cream. I think the addition of fresh milled flour to this dessert results in so much more flavor, tenderness, and moisture! Not to mention the obvious nutrition benefits for your family!

What you’ll need to make this recipe.

For the cake:

Room temperature butter
Cane sugar– I use the Zulka Morena Pure Cane Sugar.
An egg– I keep mine at room temperature.
Vanilla Extract– I love to use Mexican vanilla. The flavor is so much more vibrant!
Buttermilk or regular whole milk
Baking powder– I always purchase aluminum free baking powder.
Salt
Fresh milled soft wheat– I like to use einkorn for this recipe, but any soft wheat will do. Click here if you want to learn more about why I use whole grains.

Whipped Cream:

Heavy whipping cream
Powdered Sugar
Vanilla Extract
Salt

And Strawberries, lots of strawberries, of course!

Tools you’ll need

Electric mixer– my small handheld works just great for this recipe as I only have a Bosch and its not work the bother of cleaning it to get it all messy.

9″ cake pan– I like to bake cakes in a springform pan because they are much easier to remove the cake from.

Kitchen scales– I give the cup options for flour, but I really recommend weighing it for a consistent result. Different grains mill differently, and it makes a difference if you mill directly into a measuring cup or scoop. You may end up with a batter that is too thick or has too much liquid.

How to make Fresh Milled Strawberry Shortcake

Preheat your oven to 350ºF. In the meantime, you can whip up the shortcake!

Cream the room temperature butter with the sugar until nice and fluffy. Next add the egg and vanilla extract and beat til fully incorporated.

Combine all the dry ingredients together, and add them to the main batter, alternating with the buttermilk. Do not over mix the batter.

Line the bottom of the springform pan with parchment paper for easy removal, and grease the sides.

Spread the batter in the pan evenly. Bake for 30-33 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. If overbaked, it will be dry. Allow to cool before removing from pan.

For the whipped cream, combine all ingredients and whip until peaks form. Then spread on shortcake and top with strawberries. Serve immediately.

Or, maybe you are like my husband and you skip the whipped cream altogether and opt for a big bowl and drench the strawberries and shortcake in milk!

Last and final step, prop up your feet and enjoy!