My Ramblings

Fresh Peach Shortcake
Quarter and peel peaches; slice thinly; place in a bowl. Sprinkle sugar and salt over the peaches; toss gently. Cover peaches and let sit for 10 minutes to dissolve the sugar and exuded some of their juices.

To serve, split the warm tender cake (recipe below), spoon the peaches over the bottom of each. Spoon the whipped cream generously over the peaches; cover with the top halves of the biscuits. Serve immediately.

Warm Tender Cakes
Preheat the over to 450 degrees F.

In a mixing bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt; stir well with a wire whisk to mix. Using your fingers or two forks, quickly work butter into the flour mixture until it is roughly the texture of oatmeal with some larger lumps remaining.  Make a well in the center of the flour mixture; pour in cream. Stir just until blended, adding a little more cream if the dough is too crumbly and dry.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead briefly but assertively, five or six strokes. Roll out the dough to a thickness of 1/2 inch. With a floured dinner fork, prick the surface of the dough all over at roughly 1-inch intervals, taking care that the fork goes all the way though the dough. Stamp out rounds of the dough using a three-inch biscuit cutter, plunging it straight down through the dough, not twisting the cuter. Press scrapes together and cut more rounds making a total of 6.  Place the cakes close together on a parchment or Silpat lined baking sheet, and sprinkle the crushed sugar cubes over the top. Bake in the middle of the preheated oven until the cakes are light golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, and allow to cool briefly on a wire rack. 

Homemade Baking Powder
Sift all of the ingredients together 3 times, and transfer to a clean, tight-sealing jar. Store at room temperature, away from sunlight, for up to 6 weeks.

Whipped Cream
For every cup of heavy cream, add 1 tablespoon sugar and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract. This amount, when whipped, makes enough for four serving of shortcake.

Pour all of the ingredients into a cold mixing bowl. Whip in a circular motion, using only your wrist. Whip only until the cream thickens to a soft consistency that barely mounds and holds its shape, it should not form peaks.

Serve right away. If you do whip the cream ahead of time, keep it in the refrigerator for no more than a couple of hours. If it has started to weep, or separate, gently fold the liquid (on the bottom) into the thicker cream for a few moments with a spatula, then whisk briefly until smooth.  Or, if you’ve over-beaten the cream and it gets to firm or grainy, pour in a few tablespoons of cream and gently incorporate to bring it back to softness.