Strawberry Cornmeal Shortcake
Rustic Strawberry Shortcake Recipe – Just like Grandma used to make! Fresh seasonal strawberries piled high on tender, sweet cornmeal shortcake biscuits.


Sommer’s Recipe Notes
Let’s Make Amazing Strawberry Shortcakes!
Real shortcakes are squatty sweet biscuits that can be cracked in the middle to provide a top and bottom. Shortcakes are a member of the “quick bread” family, so it’s best to use very cold ingredients and to work fast, so the dough goes into the oven cold.
This allows the cool butter clumps to work their magic and produce light, flaky layers. Therefore, the shortcakes are delicate and fluffy, making them a wonderful complement to fresh summer berries and cool whipped cream. This is a fresh Strawberry Shortcake Recipe, just like grandma used to make!
Here, I’ve added a little cornmeal to the mix to provide a distinct color and texture. Cornmeal shortcakes are rustic with the aroma of sweet grains. They are texturally appealing, and also fabulous with blueberries!
Prep-Ahead: You can make the shortcakes ahead of time and put them into the fridge until ready to bake. Cover them well with plastic.

Ingredients You Need
My Strawberry Cornmeal Shortcake Recipe isn’t limited to berry season alone. However, I think it’s best with fresh strawberries, ripe off the vine!
For the Cornmeal Shortcake Recipe:
- All-purpose flour
- Cornmeal
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Granulated sugar
- Cold unsalted butter
- Egg
- Whole milk (or half & half)
For the Strawberries and Whipped Cream:
- Fresh strawberries, sliced
- Granulated sugar
- Cold heavy cream
- Vanilla extract






How To Make Cornmeal Shortcakes
Find the full Cornmeal Shortcakes recipe with ingredient proportions, detailed instructions, and storing tips in the printable form below.
How to Open Shortcakes
Find a crack in the side of each shortcake and gently separate them into tops and bottoms. Spoon berries over the bottom half of each shortcake, add a large dollop of whipped cream, and place the shortcake top on the cream.
More Strawberry Recipes
- Strawberry Pudding
- Strawberry Rhubarb Muffins
- Strawberry Bundt Cake
- Strawberry Pretzel Dessert
- Strawberry Crunch Cake
- Strawberry Smoothie Recipe
Rustic Strawberry Shortcake Recipe
Ingredients
For the Shortcakes:
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour + more as needed
- 1/2 cup cornmeal
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar + 2 tablespoons for tops
- 8 tablespoons cold unsalted butter 1 stick
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup whole milk (or half & half) + 1 tablespoon for tops
For the Strawberries:
- 5 cups fresh strawberries, sliced
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
For the Whipped Cream:
- 2 cups cold heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
Instructions
- Place 1 cup of strawberries in a large bowl and smash (macerate) them with 1/4 cup of sugar. Use the back of a ladle or a wooden spoon to do this. Mix with the rest of the berries into the bowl and chill until ready to serve.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Combine the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt, and 1/4 cup sugar in the food processor. Pulse to mix.
- Chop the cold butter into cubes and add to the processor. Pulse the processor several times until the pieces are the size of peas. Add 1 egg and 1/2 cup whole milk to the food processor. Pulse one or two times, until just combine. You still want to be able to see butter clumps.
- Dump the dough onto a floured work surface and shape with your hands into a rectangle about 3/4- to 1-inch thick. Use a 3-inch cookie cutter to cut out 6-8 shortcakes.
- Place them on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Brush the shortcakes with milk and sprinkle the extra 2 tablespoons of sugar over the tops.
- Bake for 12-14 minutes, until golden. Cool the shortcakes for just a few minutes.
- Whip the heavy cream in an electric mixer, with the vanilla and 3 tablespoons sugar, until soft peaks form.
- Find a crack in the side of each shortcake and gently separate them into tops and bottoms. Spoon berries over the bottom half of each shortcake, add a large dollop of whipped cream, and place the shortcake top on the cream. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
Other Great Dessert Ideas
- Angel Food Cake by Sally’s Baking Recipes
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Wow, What an amazing Recipe. It is looking too delicious in the picture, so you can imagine its taste. I will try it on this weekend.
Looks delicious. I am from the UK and your recipe for shortcake is very similar to the quintessential British scone, which is eaten with jam and clotted cream.
i want to take all these recipes out of my screen and taste it.it’s mouth watering.
Lovely receipt and useful info thanks
a very delicious recipe
Shortcake is a must have for summer. These look delicious!
Just in time! . Love strawberries. I must try your recipe. x
This has to be the best looking shortcake that I’ve ever seen! I must try this very soon.
Hey it's Serena, I came to your last cooking class w Kerry. Just saw you in one of her pictures and wanted to let you know I made to strawberry shortcake last night and it was delicious! Good job teaching the us how to cook! ;) Hope you had a great Memorial weekend.
cornmeal shortcake…how awesome..i love strawberry season…bookmarked..yum
sweetlife
Although I love strawberries I really look forward to blueberry season which starts in a few weeks! These shortcakes are so divine! Just scrumptious.
How wonderful Sommer!
I love cornmeal period! And I love summer strawberries, period! So there you have it – you've combined the best of both worlds in this delightful seasonal creation.
Ciao, Devaki @ weavethousandflavors