Shortcakes with Cherry compote

Shortcakes (makes 6 good-sized shortcakes)

Ingredients:

• 200g (1 ⅔ cups) flour
• 100g (½ cup) caster sugar
• 1 small teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• 115g (½ cup) cubed butter
• 80ml (⅓ cup) double cream
• 115g (½ cup) sour cream

Instructions:

Prepare the Dough:

• Preheat the oven to 200°C (390°F) and line a baking tray with greaseproof paper.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, caster sugar, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.
• Add the cubed cold butter to the flour mix.
• Use your fingers to work the butter into the flour, breaking it down into small bits (not fine breadcrumbs, leave some larger lumps for creating air gaps).

Mix the Wet Ingredients:

• In a separate bowl, whisk the sour cream and double cream together until smooth.
• Add the cream mixture to the flour and butter mix.
• Gently mix everything together to form a dough, being careful not to overwork it.

Shape the Dough:

• Turn the dough onto a clean surface and gently press it into a square shape.
• Cut the dough into four pieces.
• Stack the pieces on top of each other and press down. 
• Gently roll the dough into a rectangular shape.
• Cut the dough into 6 even pieces and place them on the prepared baking tray.
• If this does not make sense, head to my Youtube channel for this recipe and fast forward to the 6 minute mark to see how. 

Chill the Dough:

• Sprinkle a little sugar over the top of each shortcake.
• Place the tray in the freezer for 10 minutes to let the butter firm up.

Bake the Shortcakes:

• Preheat the oven to 200°C.
• After chilling, bake the shortcakes for 22-25 minutes until golden brown and cooked through.

Prepare the Filling:

• For the filling, use 250g (1 ¾ cups) of frozen cherries (or any preferred fruit).
• If using fresh fruit, cut it into small pieces and sprinkle with sugar.
• For frozen fruit, defrost it in the microwave for 1 minute.
• Heat the fruit in a pan with 1 tablespoon of sugar and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice.
• Cook for a few minutes until the liquid thickens, but avoid stirring too much to keep the fruit intact.

Whip the Cream:

• Whip 1 cup of cream with ½ teaspoon of lemon juice and ½ tablespoon of icing sugar until soft peaks form.

Serve:

• Once the shortcakes are baked and cooled, slice them in half.
• Fill them with whipped cream and fruit compote.

Enjoy these buttery, flaky shortcakes with your favorite fruit filling and a lovely cuppa tea in the afternoon!

Happy baking 

Del 

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