Amish Strawberry Shortcake

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This is the best Strawberry Shortcake because of the buttery sugar streusel topping that gets baked into the top. An easy shortcake recipe.

When I first got married, I received an Amish cookbook, Amish Cooking, as a gift at my wedding shower. I highly recommend this cookbook and have used it from Day 1.It is full of some wonderful, traditional Amish recipes such as oatmeal pie and this from scratch streusel topped strawberry shortcake.

overhead view of strawberry shortcake on a table

About this Strawberry Shortcake Recipe:

You’re going to love this recipe because it is quick and easy.  You know those little packaged shortcakes you see in the store sitting by the strawberries?  Those don’t come anywhere close to the taste of this easy strawberry shortcake.

  • Flavor: In general, shortcakes are very mild in flavor because you want the sweet strawberries to shine through. The sweetness in our recipe comes from the streusel topping. Yes, it’s an extra step to add the streusel topping, but you do not want to skip it. Trust me.
  • Texture: It’s a thick dough that bakes up like a biscuit. By mixing it carefully and not over mixing, you’ll end up with a super soft, sugar topped shortcake that is good enough to eat on its own.

How to Prepare Strawberries for Shortcake

For the fresh strawberries, you’ll want to plan ahead. They’ll need 3-4 hours at minimum to sit in the fridge and create all of those sweet juices that will sink into your shortcake.

Cut and quarter about 4 pounds of strawberries (more or less, depending on how many you need to serve) and sprinkle about ½ cup of sugar on them. Add more or less sugar, depending on the sweetness of the berries and the taste you would like.  This process is called macerating strawberries. The sugar pulls out the juices, so mix that sugar into the strawberries, cover the bowl and pop it in the fridge.

strawberries in a bowl with shortcake on the side.

How to Make Strawberry Shortcake

There’s no need to use an electric mixer for this because you don’t want to over mix it. Simply use a bowl and a heavy duty spoon.

  • Preheat the oven to 350ºF and spray a 9×9″ baking pan with cooking spray. You can also line the pan with parchment paper if you want to easily be able to remove the entire shortcake.
  • In a large bowl, add the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar and shortening. Cut the ingredients together to make coarse crumbs.
  • Add the milk and egg to the crumbs, mixing just until combined. Do not over mix or the shortcake will be tough. You want it to be tender. The batter will be very thick.
  • Spread the mixture evenly in the prepared pan. Set aside.
  • In a small bowl, use two forks or a pastry cutter to cut together the flour, sugar and butter. This mixture will be crumbly. Sprinkle it on top of the shortcake batter.
sprinkling streusel over shortcake in a pan
  • Bake for 25-27 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
overhead view of shortcake in a pan

Can I double this recipe?

Yes. Many times that amount of shortcake is just not enough, so I double it and put it in a 9×13 pan.  I didn’t have to bake it any longer when I did this, and was surprised by that. If you decide to double the recipe, leave extra time for a few more minutes baking, just in case.  And sometimes when I double it, I double the topping…because like I said…the topping is the best part!

a piece of the best shortcake on a spatula

Homemade Whipped Cream

You can top strawberry shortcake with Cool Whip, whipped cream in a can, ice cream or simply with heavy cream poured on top.

But what I love most is homemade whipped cream. It’s so easy! Simply pour a cup of heavy whipping cream and about ⅓ to ½ cup of powdered sugar in a stand mixer. Add ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract, then using the whisk attachment, whip on high speed until soft peaks form. That’s it!

Cover and refrigerate homemade whipped cream until you are ready to serve it.

Recipe Variations

  • Love lemon? Try adding lemon zest to the batter and a little bit of fresh lemon juice to the strawberries.
  • More fruit is always a good idea. Try adding raspberries and blueberries.
strawberry shortcake with whipped cream in a bowl
strawberry shortcake with whipped cream in a bowl

The Best Strawberry Shortcake

4.72 from 134 votes
The streusel topping on this Amish Strawberry Shortcake makes a delicious shortcake that can be served many different ways!
Servings 9
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes

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Ingredients
 

For the strawberries:

  • 4 pounds strawberries (cleaned, hulled and quartered)
  • 1/2 cup sugar (to taste)

For the shortcake:

For the topping:

Instructions
 

Prepare the strawberries:

  • The strawberries will need about 3-4 hours to sit in the fridge and make juice, so plan ahead. In a large bowl, mix together the cut strawberries and sugar. You can add more sugar as you'd like. Cover and place in the fridge.

Make the shortcake:

  • Preheat the oven to 350ºF and spray a 9×9" baking pan with cooking spray.
  • In a large bowl, add the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar and shortening. Cut the ingredients together to make coarse crumbs.
  • Add the milk and egg to the crumbs, mixing just until combined. Do not over mix or the shortcake will be tough. It will be very thick.
  • Spread the mixture evenly in the prepared pan. Set aside.
  • In a small bowl, use two forks or a pastry cutter to cut together the flour, sugar and butter. This mixture will be crumbly. Sprinkle it on top of the shortcake batter.
  • Bake for 25-27 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
  • To serve, top pieces of cake with strawberries, whipped cream, or ice cream.

Video

Notes

*Use aluminum free baking powder to prevent a metallic taste.
**You can use cold butter instead of shortening if you’d like. It will change the flavor and texture slightly, but it works well.
Refer to the article above for more tips and tricks.
The calories shown are based on the cake being cut into 9 pieces, with 1 serving being 1 slice of cake with strawberries on top. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate. **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information. The information in the nutrition box are calculated through a program and there is room for error. If you need an accurate count, I recommend running the ingredients through your favorite nutrition calculator.**

Nutrition

Calories: 401kcal | Carbohydrates: 67g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 32mg | Sodium: 245mg | Potassium: 559mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 34g | Vitamin A: 189IU | Vitamin C: 119mg | Calcium: 140mg | Iron: 3mg
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Calories 401
Keyword amish, cake, patriotic, strawberries, summer
About JulieJulie Clark

About Julie Clark

I'm Julie Clark, CEO and recipe developer of Tastes of Lizzy T. With my B.A. in Education and over 30 years of cooking and baking, I want to teach YOU the best of our family recipes.

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4.72 from 134 votes (108 ratings without comment)
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Brynn
5 years ago

Hi There!

Do you think I’d be able to make this recipe using muffin tins instead of 1 large pan?

Liz
5 years ago

5 stars
Soooooo good!!!! I grated the cold butter and barely had to stir it in. I also melted the butter for the topping, which made easy mixing. This recipe is going in my recipe book! TY!

Craig
5 years ago

So so hood and I dont do alot of baking I added a extra spoon of sugar to both mixes and it was just right with my sweet strawberrys love it

Anonymous
5 years ago

5 stars
Ionwould use store cups now I will make this all the time I dibbled added 1 1/2 table spoons sugar to mix and 1 table to topping I eat it alone and have been eating strawberry all week so so good love it oh i dont bake much as a man i only like making pies

Joy
5 years ago

5 stars
Fantastic!

Hazel
6 years ago

5 stars
I totally WOWed my office with this. I made real whipped cream to go with it: 1pint heavy whipping cream, 1/4 cup sour cream, 2 tsps vanilla and powdered sugar to taste. I used 1/4 cup. People were amazed by it.

Angela
6 years ago

Thanks for the recipe! I like that it has the traditional biscuit texture without the work of rolling and cutting. The streusel added a nice, buttery crunch. I use unbromated flour, and I always forget to reduce the amount of flour accordingly, so my streusel was a little too dry. A tablespoon of heavy cream made it come together nicely. I also added a pinch of salt to the streusel, since I use unsalted butter. I made my cake with lard, and it was very tender and fluffy. (Like many of you, I grew up in a predominantly-Amish area. Lard… Read more »

David Franks
6 years ago

5 stars
I made this shortcake as the foundation for strawberry shortcake for breakfast this morning (and one or two future uses). The recipe is elegant: easy to make, requires no floured surface, and neat in baking and serving. The streusel adds a nice unexpected texture. My lovely wife enjoyed it very much.

Possible variants:
— Add a teaspoon or so of molasses to the egg as you beat it before mixing it with the milk.
— Use half-and-half instead of milk, and ignore the nutrition facts kindly provided above.
— Use plain bread crumbs instead of flour for the streusel.

Bob Gurth
6 years ago

By far the best shortcake I have ever made, great crumb and holds up well to the juices and ice cream. Added a little cinnamon, nutmeg & cardamom to the topping. Great recipe and easy to make. I’ll use this for fresh peaches as well. My friends agree, my mistake for inviting them for ‘a’ bite.

Thanks
Bob Gurth

Jessica
6 years ago

How far in advance can I make the recipe? I have company coming and am wondering if I can make it ahead and refrigerate for two days or if I should just put it in the oven when we are serving dinner. Thanks! Look forward to sharing the shortcake love!

Mary
6 years ago

5 stars
OMG! I love to bake and I have tried several biscuits for shortcake…this is awesome! I did use butter in the cake, as well as in the topping and it was incredible…It doesn’t happen often, but I am writing this one down on a card and it is going into my recipe box! Thank you!!!!

Cindy
6 years ago

5 stars
Made this for Easter and it was a huge hit! I doubled it, and accidentally forgot to add the sugar in the cake itself and it still turned out great. The topping is amazing and it looked exactly like the picture too. Thanks so much for the great recipe!

Dottie
6 years ago

I find recipes for shortcake r 2 dry I use a little orange liqueur with sugar to macerate berries and add one small frozen Berry bag along with it for juice. Use fresh whipped cream what’s difference it makes

Anonymous
7 years ago

Sounds delicious. Going to make a double batch for a group of friends this week. Will use butter crisco I have on hand and add a little lemon zest. Can’t wait to try the struesal topping. Thanks for the recipe.

Mariah
7 years ago

5 stars
How should you store the leftover shortcake?