Marie Claire Australia September 2017

marieclaire.com.au 205

SERVES 4

500g strawberries, hulled (halved if large)
100g caster sugar
1 tbsp strawberry liqueur, framboise or brandy
icing sugar for dusting

SHORTCAKE
300g plain flour
112 tsps salt
1 tbsp baking powder
2 tbsps caster sugar
125g butter
125–190ml pouring cream, plus extra for brushing

CHANTILLY CREAM
400ml pouring cream, cold
60g caster sugar 1
2 vanilla bean, seeds scraped (pod discarded)

1. Cover the strawberries with the sugar.
   Leave overnight. 2. Drain, reserving liquid.
   In a small saucepan over medium heat,

reduce liquid to form a light syrup. Add

a splash of strawberry liqueur. Place

strawberries in the pan and squash slightly.

Cook until syrup is thick. 3. For the

shortcake, preheat oven to 200°C. Grease

and line a baking tray with baking paper.

4. Sift flour, salt, baking powder and sugar
   into a bowl. Rub butter into the mixture.
   Add cream and mix until you have a sticky
   dough. Allow to rest for 30 minutes in the
   refrigerator. 5. On a lightly floured work
   surface, roll out dough to a 1cm thickness
   and cut into 7–10cm discs. Place discs on the
   prepared baking tray and brush with cream.
   Bake for 10–12 minutes or until golden.
   Remove from oven, place on a wire rack to
   cool. 6. For the Chantilly cream, place the
   ingredients in a bowl and use an electric
   mixer to whip to soft peaks. 7. To serve, split
   the shortcakes crossways, fill with cream and
   strawberries, and dust with icing sugar.

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE

TIP

Let shortcakes

cool before adding

filling, or cream

may melt.

This is an edited

extract from

Real Food by

Mike by Mike

McEnearney

(Hardie Grant,

$45), out now.