Wednesday, July 4, 2012

the best strawberry shortcake ever



I just noticed that there is a lot of red, white and blue going on in that picture. I swear it is a coincidence that I am sharing this recipe on the Forth of July. Strawberries are only in season for a short while, and you all know my penchant for stripy blue bowls.

Is that enough apologizing to convince you I am a proud Canadian?

Have you ever used hardboiled eggs in baking before? I haven't, but James Beard, father of American gourmet cooking, (I am obsessed with the US of A today) uses them in his recipe for biscuits. The biscuit recipe is fairly standard (flour, sugar, soda, butter and heavy cream) or at least I thought so until I noticed that it called for boiled egg yolks. I won't lie, it was a little extra work, first boiling the eggs then pushing them through the sieve, but the batter really came together perfectly. I did a quick internet search and noticed that hard boiled eggs are standard in many German and Austrian baked goods. Who knew? Violet ate her weight in egg whites while I painstakingly rubbed egg yolks through teeny metal holes. We know how to have a good time around here.

I have ceramic tile countertops which are the absolute worst for rolling out dough (unless you like eating grout) and so I rolled these out on a large wooden cutting board. I use roll in the loosest sense of the word because really all you do is smoosh the dough down with your hands. My only regret is not letting them bake just a little longer. (I had a very hungry helper who needed to eat and then be bathed before I headed out to meet friends.)

If you are looking for an easy, elegant and maybe even retro dessert don't forget about little old strawberry shortcake. She isn't fanciest, but everyone loves her -- sounds Canadian despite the red, white and blue!

xo

Em

Check out the recipe here: http://food52.com/blog/3564_james_beards_strawberry_shortcakes

Check out a funny article about Canadians' envy of Americans here: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/lets-celebrate-july-4th-by-admitting-americans-have-stuff-that-we-want/article4385643/



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