In this video, learn how to make Chef John's Strawberry Almond Shortcake with this simple cooking tutorial. This dessert masterpiece combines juicy strawberries with the nutty richness of almonds, nestled between layers of buttery shortcake. Chef John's expert tips and step-by-step instructions ensure a perfect balance of flavors and textures. Impress your guests with this irresistible treat that's perfect for any occasion!
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00:00 Hello, this is Chef John from FoodWishes.com with Frangipane Strawberry Shortcake!
00:09 That's right, strawberries and almonds are one of the most delicious and most underrated
00:13 food pairings of all time.
00:15 Which is why using an almond flavored shortcake is such a great twist on this summer classic.
00:20 And if you are a fan of the traditional version, which almost everybody is, you are going to
00:24 absolutely love this.
00:26 And to get started, I'm going to butter and then line with parchment paper 4 ramekins.
00:31 And these are a fairly standard size, about 5 and a half ounces.
00:35 But if you want, you can use a muffin tin or just a regular baking dish and then cut
00:39 squares.
00:40 And we'll explain those options in the written recipe.
00:43 But anyway, once those are prepped, we can add a little touch of sugar to a stick of
00:47 butter.
00:48 And then we'll take an electric mixer, or a whisk if you want a little bit of a workout.
00:53 And we'll cream this together until it's light and fluffy.
00:56 And no, I'm not going to do this self-effacing humor about me forgetting to take the butter
00:59 out in time, which results in too cold, too firm butter that doesn't mix in very well.
01:04 But yes, I did it again.
01:06 And if you do the same thing, don't worry.
01:08 It will eventually soften up and whip up nice and light like this.
01:12 And once it does, we will stop.
01:14 And we will toss in one large egg, which should be at room temp.
01:19 But if we didn't remember the butter, we probably didn't remember the egg.
01:22 And then we'll also toss in a little splash of milk, as well as a little bit of all-purpose
01:27 flour, plus the small but important addition of some baking powder.
01:31 No, not baking soda, baking powder.
01:34 We'll also do a little bit of pure real vanilla extract, plus just a few drops of almond extract,
01:41 if you have it.
01:42 It's not a deal breaker, but a little touch does add a little certain something.
01:46 So if you have it, I would definitely add it.
01:49 And then what we'll do is work all this over with the mixer until it's light and fluffy
01:52 again.
01:53 Oh, and one quick tip I want to share here.
01:56 Whenever we're mixing something, and we have a few seconds to think, we always want to
02:00 try to remember what we might have forgot.
02:03 Which for me, this time was the salt.
02:05 So as soon as all this was blended together, I tossed that in, which we'd usually add with
02:10 the flour.
02:11 But it really doesn't make any difference, as long as you get it in.
02:15 And then we'll finish up with one of the stars of the show, some almond flour, also known
02:20 as almond meal.
02:21 And if yours seems kind of chunky and clumpy, go ahead and sift it before you toss it in.
02:26 And that's it, we'll give that one last mix.
02:29 And once we feel like everything's beautifully incorporated, we will stop.
02:33 And we will transfer that into our prepared ramekins.
02:36 Or like I said, you could use a muffin tin.
02:38 Although the cups in a muffin pan are not going to be as big.
02:41 So you'll probably end up with like six smaller ones.
02:44 Or you don't have to do individual portions at all.
02:47 You could just transfer this into a small baking dish, or a pie pan, and bake it all
02:51 together, and then just cut it up for service.
02:55 And as we're transferring in the batter, we want to kind of push the spoon down a little
02:58 bit and move it around to make sure we don't have any big air pockets.
03:02 But anyway, once we have that equally divided, I'm going to finish the top with some sliced
03:06 almonds, which not only look super cool when this bakes, but I think they add a very important
03:11 textural element.
03:14 So just like the almond extract, these are technically optional, but highly recommended.
03:19 And that's it.
03:20 Once the tops are nutted, and we have these properly spaced on the pan, they are ready
03:24 to transfer into the center of a 375 degree oven for about 30 to 35 minutes, or until
03:31 they're beautifully golden brown, and the tops are crowned, and they look like this.
03:37 And as usual with this kind of thing, we will test with a toothpick.
03:41 And if everything goes according to plan, that should come out clean, which mine did.
03:47 And then once baked, we'll let these cool for about 20 minutes before we try to unmold
03:51 them, which if you grease these with enough butter, should be pretty easy.
03:55 Right, all we need to do is take a thin small knife and slide that all the way around the
03:59 outside, around the outside, around the outside.
04:04 And once we know the outside's not attached, since we have parchment on the bottom, these
04:07 should come out with a perfect shape, except this one did not.
04:12 As you can see, we have a little bit of crumbling around the bottom edge.
04:15 But you know what, these things will happen.
04:17 And if it does, don't worry, since this is going to be sitting in a pool of syrupy strawberries.
04:22 Right, in the business, we refer to that as hiding the evidence.
04:26 And the good news was, the other three were pretty much perfect.
04:30 And you know what, if that's how your worst one looks, you did good.
04:34 You did real good.
04:36 And a little bit of crumbling here and there notwithstanding, I think these are just absolutely
04:40 gorgeous looking, especially if you add those almonds to the top.
04:44 And once our frangipane shortcake component is done, we can move on to the co-star of
04:48 the show, our beautiful sweet ripe fresh strawberries.
04:52 And the first thing we'll do is trim the green part from the top.
04:55 And there are two methods for this.
04:57 There's the quick restaurant method, where we just slice the top straight off like this,
05:01 which is fast, but you do lose a little bit of strawberry.
05:05 And then there's the other method, where we just take the very tip of the knife, and we
05:09 stick that in the top at about a 45 degree angle, and just cut all the way around, which
05:15 takes longer, but you don't lose as much strawberry.
05:18 So you'll have to decide which way to go.
05:20 I mean, you are after all the Martin Mall of your hull, which is what that green top
05:24 is called.
05:25 And that's it.
05:26 Once those are trimmed, we'll simply slice them up about every eighth inch or so.
05:31 And if some of your strawberries aren't quite as ripe as others, you can slice those a little
05:34 bit thinner.
05:35 And then if you have some that are extra ripe, you can slice those a little thicker.
05:39 And that's just so they macerate a little more uniformly, which is going to be the next
05:43 step.
05:44 And to do that, we will take our strawberries, and we will add some white sugar to the bowl,
05:48 and we will give this a thorough mixing.
05:51 And all maceration means is adding sugar to a fruit, and then giving it time to draw out
05:55 all those sweet, delicious juices, which basically, if you let it sit long enough, will produce
06:00 the most incredible strawberry syrup you've ever tasted.
06:04 So like I said, we'll give that a very thorough mix, and then cover it, and let it sit on
06:08 the counter for about 20 minutes.
06:10 At which point, we'll uncover it, and give it another mix.
06:14 And each time you do this, it's going to get juicier and juicier, and syrpier and syrpier.
06:20 And depending on how ripe the berries are, I'll normally give this two stirrings on the
06:24 countertop, letting the strawberries sit for about 20 minutes between stirrings.
06:29 At which point, if they're looking nice and juicy like this, I'll transfer them into the
06:33 fridge, where I like to let them sit for a couple hours before we serve this up.
06:38 So that's exactly what I did.
06:40 And after a couple hours in the fridge, my berries look like this.
06:44 And as predicted, we produced a ton of that syrupy liquid, which for me personally, is
06:48 the most important part of a strawberry shortcake.
06:52 And then as far as service goes, what we'll do is take one of our frangipane shortcakes,
06:56 and what we'll do is go around with a knife, and cut it in half like this, which is definitely
07:00 optional.
07:01 You can serve these as is, but by cutting it in half, we're going to get a little more
07:06 height, plus the top of this thing is so beautiful, I would hate to cover it up with strawberries.
07:11 Speaking of which, let's go ahead and ladle a generous amount of those macerated berries
07:15 over the bottom section.
07:17 And by the way, this recipe is going to make for very, very generous portions.
07:22 And as you saw, we have plenty of that strawberry syrup, so do not be shy.
07:27 And that's it.
07:28 We will use the top to top the top.
07:30 And then I don't know about you, but I have to have whipped cream for my strawberry shortcake.
07:35 So we'll go ahead and pipe on or scoop on some of that.
07:38 And by the way, if you're one of these people still buying whipped topping, please stop,
07:42 and watch our "How to Make Your Own Whipped Topping" video, which is ridiculously easy.
07:47 And then to finish up, because I went to culinary school in the 80s, I'm going to add a nice
07:51 fresh sprig of mint.
07:54 And that's it, our frangipane strawberry shortcake is ready to enjoy.
07:58 And that, my friends, according to me, and my lovely and talented wife, Michelle, is
08:03 the best strawberry shortcake.
08:04 Okay, I'm not exactly sure what it is, but almond seems to intensify the flavor of strawberry.
08:10 And somehow, someway, the strawberry seems to improve the flavor of the almond.
08:15 And they just work together here in perfect harmony.
08:18 But you know what?
08:19 Let's not overthink it or try to over explain it.
08:22 After you take a few bites of this, you will understand.
08:25 And if you can't be bothered to whip up some cream, a nice scoop of vanilla ice cream would
08:29 also be absolutely perfect here.
08:32 Especially on a nice hot sunny day, which is when you should really be enjoying these.
08:37 But no matter when you indulge, or what you serve alongside, if you're a fan of strawberry
08:42 shortcake, there's no way you're not going to love this.
08:46 Which is why I really do hope you give this a try soon.
08:49 So please follow the links below for the ingredient amounts, a printable written recipe, and much
08:54 more info as usual.
08:55 And as always, enjoy.
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