Strawberry Rhubarb Shortcakes

When we were kids, our mom would bring us warm strawberry shortcakes just as we finished unloading hay for the day in the hot and dusty haymow. These shortcakes provided a much-needed break before we started the evening milking and chores. We devoured them eagerly, and while our mom was always about cleanliness, bringing us silverware, napkins, and soap to wash our hands, we're pretty sure if she wasn't watching, we would have gobbled them down with our dirty, grubby hands.

To commemorate those memories we're sharing a recipe for Strawberry Rhubarb Shortcakes. The combination of strawberries and rhubarb is a classic pairing, creating a blend that is both refreshing and satisfying, yet unexpected when thinking of shortcake.

What makes this work is roasting the strawberries and rhubarb instead of the traditional step of macerating fruit with sugar. Roasting the strawberries and rhubarb enhances their natural sweetness and creates a rich, caramelized flavor that beautifully balances the tartness of the rhubarb with the sweetness of the strawberries. It also allows us to use less sugar as this method intensifies the juices, making the fruit mixture luscious and flavorful and brings a beautiful ruby red color.

The shortcakes in this recipe are made with buttermilk and Royal Guernsey Creamery European-style artisan butter, which plays a crucial role in achieving a light, soft and flaky crumb. The high butterfat content in European-style butter enriches the dough, adding a depth of flavor and a tender texture that simply cannot be replicated with regular butter.

As the shortcakes bake, the butter melts and creates steam, resulting in a perfectly airy and delicate structure. This is why using high-quality, artisan butter, like the kind we produce at Royal Guernsey Creamery, is essential for baking the best shortcakes. The buttermilk also brings a tangy flavor to the shortcakes, mirroring the tartness of the rhubarb.

When you bite into these strawberry rhubarb shortcakes, you'll experience the buttery, flaky shortcake layers that melt in your mouth, contrasted with the juicy, roasted fruit and the creamy buttermilk whipped cream. It’s a light dessert that showcases the magic of using premium butter in your baking, elevating simple ingredients to create an unforgettable treat. Since rhubarb is a vegetable, could this be considered a healthy treat?

Tips for Perfect Strawberry Rhubarb Shortcakes

• The key to a flaky and soft crumb is using cold European-style butter. Dice the butter and pop it in the freezer while you're roasting the strawberries and rhubarb.
• This shortcake dough comes together easily. You can fold the dough over on itself a few times to add more flakey layers of butter.
• If you like your shortcakes to be round, use a 2½" circular cookie cutter. Don't twist the cookie cutter when you cut the dough; it will prevent your edges from rising high. You can rework the remaining dough to get more shortcakes. The dough should be about 1¼" high.
• The shortcakes bake up nice and pillowy soft. Wrap them individually in plastic wrap and store them on the counter for one day.

Enjoy this re-imagined nostalgic treat, and don’t forget to use our Royal Guernsey Creamery butter for the best results. Happy baking!