I decided to welcome the new year with this luscious strawberry cream shortcake. The cake was done and the scene was set for my perfect shot of the cake. And just as I disappeared into my study to bring in a lens, I came back in time to see my little mischief monger at work! Deeply scrutinizing and slaughtering my perfect slice with the fork and spoon as if it were play dough.

And out went my plans for that “dreamy” shoot as half the cake was devoured by the adults no sooner than it was done. I managed to take the main shot just before the entire cake was relished and eaten up!

“You deserve a prize for this” declared Ro, after he had eaten a few spoons and complimented me further by saying that it was one of the best things he has eaten. And my dear husband, if you are reading this, do take note that I’m still waiting for that prize!

Ever since I had seen Kurma’s shortcake, I had been wanting to make it and with strawberries in season here, I thought that this would be the best thing to bring in the new year.

I even made a batch of fresh strawberry jam as I had none on hand but with plenty of strawberries lying in the refrigerator, I had nothing to fear!

This strawberry shortcake is elegant, full of flavour and beautiful colour and something that  instantly appeals to the heart. It is so easy to make a strawberry creation look striking because of their natural ruby red colour. You can go all out to decorate this cake for a special occasion or leave it simple like I have for a simple family affair, making it look a bit rustic yet charming at the same time! Cake, jam and cream always make for a super delicious treat and with all of this going in together here and topped with fresh seasonal strawberries, what more can one ask for? Make this and revel in the contentment of the happiness of your loved ones.

Eggless Strawberry Cream Shortcake Recipe

The base used here is not as soft as a sponge cake but not as hard as a tart, but something in between if you know what I mean. When strawberries are not in season you can use other seasonal produce like peaches, mangoes or other ripe berries. Since I didnt have full fat cream on hand, I had to use low fat and blend it with a few other ingredients to get the required thickness. If you have access to good full fat cream, you might want to use that too.

 Ingredients:

The shortcake base:

40 gm (1/3 cup) walnuts, powdered

210 gm (11/2 cups) plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

100 gm (1/2 cup) salted butter, melted (if using unsalted butter add a pinch of salt)

140 gm (1 cup) fine sugar

250 gm (1 cup) yogurt (not thick)*

5 to 6 tablespoons water, if required

1 tsp vanilla extract

The cream topping:

200 ml cream (I used low fat)

2 tbsp milk powder

2 tbsp cashew butter (50 gm cashew powdered and blended with 2 tsp oil)

2 tbsp icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

Topping ingredients:

6 tbsp strawberry jam

250 gm whole strawberries

 Method:

Lightly butter the base and the sides of a fluted 9” pie tin. Alternatively use a cake pan.

Preheat the oven to 175C/350F.

Pulse the walnuts in a food processor and make sure that it does not get pasty.

In a bowl mix the flour, baking powder and baking soda and sieve once. Mix in the powdered walnuts with a whisk.

Put in the melted butter and mix with your hands until the mixture starts to resemble breadcrumbs.

In another bowl put in the yogurt and whip until smooth and mix in the sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves. Put in the extract and mix well.

Pour the yogurt into the flour mixture and mix until smooth. Add the additional water if the batter is very stiff. The batter is not supposed to be stiff and also not of pouring consistency.

Put the batter into the in and bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until done.

For the cream topping, combine all the ingredients in a chilled bowl and beat until you get soft peaks. You can also beat cream into stiff peaks and pipe it over the cake.

Assembly:

Place the cake on a serving platter and spread the jam over it. Pour the cream in the centre and tilt the plate for the cream to spread evenly all over. Decorate with fresh strawberries and serve.

Makes one 9” shortcake.

 

• My homemade yogurt was not thick so I didnt have to use much water.
• You might want to place the cream in the refrigerator to thicken it a bit.

 

Loosely adapted from Kurma Das’s recipe.