Easy Strawberry Shortcake

I always love to see ripe berries when I go to Trader Joe’s.  There is just something so “summery” about seeing all those containers of blueberries, raspberries and strawberries. Recently our Trader Joe’s in Tucson had the nicest looking strawberries. We even purchased two containers thinking…wow the look sooo good!

One plan that was starting to form in my mind on the way back from the store… strawberry shortcake!  While we did not have all the ingredients on hand for traditional strawberry shortcake, we think you will agree that the ones we made were, in their own special way, just marvelous.

Great items from Trader Joe's

What made our strawberry shortcake so unique? Well, we started by using the Trader Joe’s Baking Mix to make our shortcakes (great and easy shortcut!), and then we substituted Vanilla flavored thick Greek yogurt for the whipped cream (a decadent tasting substitute that is for sure!)

What you need:

Scones:

• 1 ½ cups Trader Joe’s baking mix
• 3 Tablespoons Sugar + extra for sprinkling (Trader Joe’s granulated Sugar)
• 2 Tablespoons Butter (cold)
• 1/3 cup milk (Trader Joe’s whole milk)
• Dash Trader Joe’s pure vanilla extract

Trader Joe’s  0% Fat, Vanilla Greek Yogurt

Strawberries

How to:

Scones

1.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Measure baking mix into a bowl, and add the cold butter. Use your fingers to pinch and rub the butter into the baking mix, until it disappears. Add the sugar and mix lightly.

2. Measure out the milk and add a dash of vanilla extract to it. Add the milk mixture to the dry ingredients and mix until a soft dough forms.  Divide into 4 parts and spoon onto a foil lined baking pan (I sprayed mine with non-stick cooking spray first). Make sure you leave some room between these shortcakes- they really grew in the oven! Sprinkle the tops with sugar

3. Bake in the oven until fully cooked, about 10 minutes.  The next time I make these, I am going to leave them in the oven for a few minutes more- I would have liked them to be a bit more golden.   Let them cool to room temperature before you serve them

Strawberries

1. Wash, trim and slice the strawberries while the shortcakes bake.  Toss in a small bowl with a spoonful of sugar- and a dash of vanilla if you like (my secret ingredient).

To make your strawberry shortcakes:

Cut your shortcake in half, and place on a plate. Spoon some strawberries on top and then a spoonful of the yogurt. Add the top of the shortcake and more strawberries and yogurt.

Another way to serve these is to place some strawberries in a dish and crumble the shortcake on top and then add a scoop of yogurt.

These were simply fantastic- and the best part was that we had most of the ingredients in the house already – No special trip back to the store (Thanks Trader Joe’s!)

Give this easy recipe a try and let us know what you think!