Cherry shortcake is bursting with floral summer cherries and a smoky echo of sweet bourbon. The gentle warmth of brown sugar kissed cream balances flavor as it luxuriates in between rich layers of buttery shortcake biscuits.
I made this juicy cherry compote last summer and have been envisioning it as a shortcake ever since.
With heady sweetness and plenty of tang, I knew as a cherry filling, it would need ultra-buttery, toasty shortcakes that could hold their own as they soak up all of the fruit juices. A warm brown sugar whipped cream seemed just the thing to complement the caramelly bourbon and the subtle heat of cinnamon that winds its way around the fruit.
This bright, juicy dessert feels perfectly at home in peak summer, when cherries are at their sweetest and the long, golden sunlight really hits its stride. Yet something about the combination of gentle spice, warm biscuits, and honeyed bourbon quietly carries this cherry shortcake into the crisp days of early fall too. A transitional recipe that lingers just a little longer than the season of its origin.
Whatever time of year you find yourself reaching for this recipe, we're not chasing perfection here. The shortcakes are immensely forgiving, with their craggy edges that crisp to perfection, and plenty of rustic layers that flake and melt when you take a bite. The cherry compote is meant to be a framework, easily adjusted to be thicker, sweeter, juicier, or more spiced. Add as much or as little brown sugar whipped cream as you like, without worrying too much about how it looks.
This is a messy, beautiful dessert. And if, like me, yours is a messy, beautiful life, this cherry shortcake recipe is sure to fit right in.
ingredients for bourbon cherry shortcake with brown sugar whipped cream
ingredient notes & swaps
- Ingredients for the cherry compote are listed on the recipe card below, and the steps to make it can be found on the Summer Cherry Compote page. Feel free to make the sauce in advance and keep it in the fridge until you're ready for shortcakes! It also freezes well, so these shortcakes are a great way to use up leftover compote.
- For lift, I'm going with mostly baking powder here to give the shortcake biscuits an even, fluffy crumb that highlights the flakiness of the butter. The baking powder isn't going to be working alone though! I found that just a bit of baking soda improves the tenderness of these biscuits and also gives them a richer golden brown color.
- Buttermilk is acidic. When combined with alkaline baking soda, it produces instantaneous bubbling that aerates and softens the shortcake dough. This ingredient is largely responsible for the melt-in-your-mouth tenderness of the biscuits as well as their rich, lightly tangy flavor.
- I use vanilla paste twice in this recipe. Once in the shortcake dough itself, then again in the brown sugar whipped cream. I'm partial to the paste for the way it gives flecks of vanilla bean throughout the biscuits and brown sugar whip, but vanilla extract will work just as well!
- Let's talk about one of my favorite subjects: butter. It is crucial that your butter be frozen for at least 2 hours before using it to make your shortcakes. You'll be grating the butter into shreds before working it into the dough, so you want to make sure it's able to retain that chill even after handling it a bit. Keep it in the freezer until just before you need it!
- A shower of coarse sugar gives the top of your biscuits a sparkly, sweet finish and just a bit of crunchy texture. I am using Sugar in the Raw here, or you can also use sparkling sugar (like this King Arthur version) or demerara sugar.
What are the best types of cherries for baking a shortcake?
You definitely want to go with a variety of sweet cherries when making the compote for these cherry shortcakes. Look for varieties like Bing, Rainier, or Black. The cherries I use here are Black cherries, as you may be able to tell by their dark and moody coloring! They make for a really dark, very juicy filling. Bing cherries will give you a cherry filling that is more red, while Rainier cherries are delicious and lighter in color.
bourbon cherry shortcake with brown sugar whipped cream
Cherry shortcake is bursting with floral summer cherries and a smoky echo of sweet bourbon, while the gentle warmth of brown sugar kissed cream balances flavor as it luxuriates in between rich layers of buttery shortcake biscuits.
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Ingredients
for the cherry compote:
- 1 pound fresh cherries
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
- ¼ cup water
- 2 tablespoons bourbon
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch + 2 tablespoons water
for the shortcakes:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla bean paste
- ½ cup buttermilk
- 6 tablespoons butter, frozen
- Coarse sugar, as needed for topping
for the brown sugar whipped cream:
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar + 1 tablespoon warm water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla paste
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- Make the bourbon cherry compote, then set it aside to cool as you work on the shortcakes. Start by preheating your oven to 425℉ then whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and granulated sugar together in a large mixing bowl. Set aside.
- Whisk the vanilla paste (or extract) into the buttermilk. Set aside
- Grate the frozen butter on the largest holes on a box grater. Add it to the bowl with the flour mixture.
- Work the frozen butter shreds into the flour mixture using a spoon at first, then gently with your hands if needed. You're looking to end up with a loose, shaggy mixture that has butter flecks of varying sizes; those bits are what make the biscuits soft and fluffy!
- Form a well in the center of the buttery flour mixture, then pour the vanilla-buttermilk mixture into it. Stir gently until loosely combined, taking care not to overmix.
- Shape the dough into a rough ball. You can use your hands to fold and press it a few times, but you don't want to knead it like bread dough. Handling it as little as possible will help make sure your shortcakes stay soft and tender.
- Divide the dough into 4 pieces of the same size, then gently shape each into a ball and arrange them on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Pat the dough balls down just slightly, then sprinkle the top of each with coarse sugar.
- Bake the shortcakes for 12-15 minutes, until golden brown and completely set. Take a look at the cracks and crevices on the top of each biscuit; if they are completely dry inside, that's a great sign they're done! Remove your biscuits from the oven and transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Dissolve the brown sugar in the warm water, then stir in the vanilla paste.
- Whip the heavy cream for about a minute, just until it starts holding some air and looking floofy, then drizzle in the brown sugar-vanilla syrup.
- Finish whipping the cream until it holds soft peaks. Look how luxurious 😍
- Slice your fluffy shortcake biscuits in half and get the toppings ready.
- Spoon some bourbon cherry compote onto each bottom half.
- Dollop with brown sugar whipped cream.
- Finish with the top half of the biscuit and enjoy immediately!
Notes
- Click through to find the Step-by-Step instructions for the Cherry Compote. This is a great component to make in advance and either keep it in the fridge for up to 5 days, or store in the freezer for up to 3 months, then warm it gently in a small pot over low heat before serving.
- I tested a version of these shortcake biscuits where I simply dropped the batter onto the baking sheet without any shaping, and found that they cooked unevenly. I found that even just the slightest bit of shaping and gentle flattening gives them the best texture!
- Prep Time: 35 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American, Cakes
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 516
- Sugar: 37 g
- Sodium: 487.5 mg
- Fat: 24.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 67.3 g
- Protein: 5.7 g
- Cholesterol: 66.1 mg
faqs
What makes shortcake different from regular cake?
In baking, "short" means that the dough has a high percentage of fat in it. The dough is characteristically dry and crumbly, like in biscuits, croissants, flaky pie crust, and-shortcake! These baked goods have a rich texture and flaky layers. Regular cake starts with a more liquidy batter and bakes up into a spongy, cohesive crumb that is moist and even.
dig in!
Enjoy & let me know what you think 🌙 💛
