I absolutely love this strawberry shortcake dessert with its delicious sponge cake. I so much prefer this over the typical shortcake biscuit that is usually served with strawberries. I found this recipe in my 1960s Better Homes & Gardens Dessert cookbook and it was an instant success. I put the recipe on a recipe card and pulled it out during every yearly strawberry season. Some years later I lent out my cookbook and haven’t seen it since. My family enjoys this strawberry shortcake so much that I always double the recipe. (Everyone’s been known to eat the cake even when all of the berries are gone.)
Ingredients
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup sifted flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2-3 pints fresh strawberries
whipping cream or vanilla ice cream
Directions
Preheat oven to 350° F. Before beginning, take eggs out of the refrigerator 1-2 hours earlier, so they are at room temperature. Once you are ready to begin the shortcake, heat the milk, so it is quite hot (not quite scalding). Add the butter to the hot milk. Set this mixture aside. Also, sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together. Set aside.
With an electric mixer, beat the room-temperature eggs on high speed for 3 minutes. Continue beating the eggs for 4-5 more minutes, lowering the speed to medium. At this time, add the sugar to the egg mixture very slowly. Once the egg mixture has been beaten for 7-8 minutes total, stop the beater. Quickly fold in the sifted dry ingredients. Begin mixing at a low speed. Give the milk and butter mixture a quick blending stir, and then gradually add it to the batter. Once well combined, add the vanilla. Blend the batter well.
Pour the batter into a greased and floured (or paper-lined) 8” x 8” pan. Bake at 350° F for 25-30 minutes. Do not over-bake; it should be moist and spongy (however, not raw). Cool on a rack for at least 15 minutes before serving. Place a generous piece of cake on each plate. Pour strawberries over it and then add a scoop of whipped cream or ice cream. Eat and enjoy.
