Drop Shortcakes with Limoncello Berries and Cream
This biscuit-style Drop Shortcake recipe makes the lightest, fluffiest, melt-in-your-mouth shortcake; topped with berries, macerated in Limoncello (lemon-flavored liqueur) and Chambord (black raspberry liqueur) Chantilly Cream, it’s like floating on a cloud of summer.
Around these parts, shortcakes are most often made in a drop biscuit form. Lightly sweetened, these biscuit shortcakes are the perfect vehicle for any fruits you love. Of course, the ubiquitous strawberry shortcake is a favorite. But don’t feel like you have to just use strawberries.
Most fruits work great with shortcake. I particularly love summer berries on mine, but I’ve also made shortcake with peach slices, mango slices, and even baked apples or pears in the Autumn and Winter months.
The shortcakes themselves are a combination of flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, butter and cream that is “dropped” biscuit-style onto a baking sheet. I brush the tops of mine with a tiny titch of cream and sprinkle on sanding sugar for a nice, sugary crunch on top, but that’s optional.
The berries I’ve used this time are blueberries, blackberries and raspberries. I also had a few cherries in the refrigerator, so I threw them into the bowl also. The fruit is macerated in Limoncello, a lemon-flavored liqueur and a little bit of sugar. The lemon flavor of the liqueur really brightens the berries during maceration. “Maceration” is the process of softening something in liquid. For the fruit, the sugar and the liqueur will draw out the natural juices, creating a flavorful sauce to soak into the shortcakes.
Chantilly Cream is whipped cream that is slightly sweetened. And while it can also have vanilla added, this time I’ve used Chambord instead. Chambord is a black raspberry liqueur and I thought the slight raspberry flavor would work beautifully in the whipped cream for this berry combination. I know that many people don’t whip cream, instead using packaged whipped toppings. But, it only takes a minute to whip real cream and there is a huge difference.
Since the Fourth of July approaches in just days now, I thought this would be the perfect dessert for your celebrations. I hope you’ll try it!
P~
- FOR THE BERRIES:
- 1 pint blueberries
- 1 pint blackberries
- ½ pint raspberries
- ⅓ cup Limoncello (or any lemon liqueur)
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- FOR THE CREAM:
- 1½ cups heavy cream
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon Chambord (or vanilla)
- FOR THE BERRIES:
- Add all of the ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine.
- Allow to sit at room temperature for an hour (or more).
- Chill prior to serving.
- FOR THE CREAM:
- Place all the ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer, or food processor.
- Beat on high until stiff peaks form.
- Remove from the mixer to a bowl, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 12 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
- 1½ cups heavy cream
- sanding sugar for the tops, optional
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In the bowl of a food processor, add the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt and pulse to combine.
- With the processor running, drop in the butter and pulse until the butter is incorporated.
- With the processor running, pour in the cream and pulse until the dough pulls away from the bowl.
- There will be bits of flour remaining in the bottom of the bowl, just dump the dough onto the counter and knead until those bits are incorporated. Do not overwork the dough.
- Spoon off pieces of dough, about ⅓ of a cup, and place on the prepared baking sheet, leaving about 3 inches of space around each one.
- Optional: brush the tops with cream and sprinkle with sanding sugar. About 1 tablespoon of sanding sugar will be enough for all of the shortcakes.
- Place the baking sheet into the preheated oven and bake for 15 - 18 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Remove from oven and allow to partially cool before serving. Best served warm.
Oh wow! YUMMMM! Perfect for summer! 🙂 💯
I swear, I could eat that Chantilly cream by itself. Add the shortcakes and berries and it’s like heaven.