This strawberry rhubarb shortcake is a fun twist on classic strawberry shortcake! Fresh strawberries and rhubarb are cooked down into a thick, jammy compote and then layered with whipped cream onto soft, flaky biscuits!
You can prep all the components up to 3 days in advance and assemble right before serving!
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What is Strawberry Rhubarb Shortcake?
A shortcake is a classic dessert with a crumbly biscuit like pastry, sandwiched with whipped cream and fruit!
This strawberry rhubarb shortcake has a cooked, jammy strawberry rhubarb compote. It's sweet and tangy and perfect for spring!
For the shortcakes I like to make biscuits that are like a cross between a biscuit and a scone. They're softer and sweeter than biscuits but still perfectly light and flaky!
You might also like this strawberry balsamic shortcake or this roasted peach shortcake!
Ingredient Notes
You just need a few ingredients to make these strawberry rhubarb shortcakes!
Strawberries - I prefer fresh strawberries, but frozen will also work well for the filling! Just be sure to wash and hull the strawberries before cutting up for the filling.
Rhubarb - Rhubarb is a very tart spring vegetable that looks similar to celery and pairs beautifully with strawberries! The leaves of rhubarb are toxic so be sure to discard them, but luckily most of the rhubarb sold in stores already has the leaves removed. Choose rhubarb where the stalks are thin, crisp, and have a deep color.
Pastry Flour - I always use pastry flour or cake flour when making biscuits so that they have a super light, tender texture. However, all purpose flour will work great if that's all you have!
Butter - I like using frozen grated butter for the flakiest biscuits.
Egg - Adding egg to the dough is what makes these shortcake biscuits more similar to scones. It helps give them that softer, fluffier texture.
Heavy Cream - Instead of cream you can substitute buttermilk if you have it on hand!
Whipped Cream - I use my basic homemade whipped cream recipe for this strawberry rhubarb shortcake because it's not too sweet and mellows out the tart fruit.
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
Shortcake Biscuits
Place the butter in the freezer for at least 30 minutes before grating. Use a box grater to carefully grate the butter into small pieces. Keep the grated butter in the freezer until you're ready to use it. [If you don't want to use grated butter, just cut the butter into small chunks and keep chilled until ready to use.]
In a small bowl, whisk together the heavy cream, egg, and vanilla extract then set aside.
In a medium bowl, add in the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt and whisk together.
Add in the frozen grated butter and mix in until it's fully coated in the flour.
Then slowly drizzle the wet ingredients over top, combing as you go. Continue mixing until the dough just comes together. The dough will be slightly sticky. If too dry, add in more cream 1 tablespoon at a time.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and gently press into a large disc about 1 inch thick. Cut into 4-5 even 2 ½ inch circles, then reshape the remaining dough and cut out 1-2 more. You should be able to get 6 biscuits.
Place the biscuits a few inches apart on the lined baking sheet. Place in the freezer for at least 20-30 minutes before baking to firm up.
While the biscuits are chilling, preheat the oven to 400°F.
Lightly brush the tops with cream and sprinkle with a little granulated sugar if desired.
Bake at 400°F for 18-24 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool.
Strawberry Rhubarb Compote
Wash and hull the strawberries and cut in half. Discard any rhubarb leaves, then wash and trim the ends. Cut the rhubarb stalks into 2 inch pieces.
In a large pot over medium heat, combine the strawberries, rhubarb, sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla bean paste.
Cook, stirring frequently, until the strawberries and rhubarb begin to break down and the filling starts to simmer and thicken, about 10 minutes.
Remove from the heat and allow to cool completely to room temperature, then store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Assemble Shortcake
I love my strawberry rhubarb shortcake with warm biscuits and warm strawberry rhubarb compote so the whipped cream gets all melty and delicious. But you can also wait for everything to fully cool!
Simply slice the biscuits in half and layer with the strawberries and rhubarb and whipped cream!
Once assembled, the shortcake is best when eaten immediately. However, you can store the biscuits at room temperature, and the strawberry rhubarb compote and whipped cream in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Tips for Flaky Pastries
Use cold ingredients! For most baked goods you want to use room temperature ingredients, but for flaky pastries (like scones, biscuits, or pie crust) the ingredients need to be very cold! Keep any butter, eggs, milk, etc. in the fridge until right before you need to use them!
Chill before baking! Chilling the dough for at least 15-20 minutes before baking helps ensure the butter in the dough is nice and cold and helps the pastries hold their shape. Cold dough + hot oven = perfect flaky pastry!
Don't overwork the dough! You want to mix the ingredients until just combined so that there are still distinct pieces of butter in the dough. This is what gives you those buttery, flaky, air pockets!
Measure your flour correctly! It's most accurate to use a kitchen scale, but if you're measuring by volume you want to spoon and level! Fluff up the flour a bit with a spoon, and then spoon flour into the measuring cup. Once it's overflowing, use the back of a knife to level it off. Don't ever pack flour into the measuring cup or you'll end up with way too much! Improperly measured flour can lead to dry, dense baked goods. [Measure cocoa powder the same way!]
Make sure you baking powder is fresh! Baking powder is important for helping certain baked goods rise properly, but it has a relatively short shelf life once opened, so it's one of the few items I never buy in bulk! To test if your baking powder is still fresh, add a small amount to boiling water. If it bubbles it's still good to use, but if not it's time to toss it!
Use an oven thermometer! Just because your oven says it's 350, doesn't mean it is! If you oven hasn't been calibrated recently, it can be as much as 30 degrees off, which will negatively affect all baked goods from cakes to macarons! An oven thermometer is the easiest/cheapest way to ensure your oven is always at the proper temperature. Some ovens also take longer than the standard "preheat" time to actually come up to the proper temperature.
Recipe FAQ's
Once assembled, the shortcake is best when eaten immediately. However, you can store the biscuits at room temperature, and the strawberry rhubarb compote and whipped cream in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Rhubarb has a very tart flavor that's similar to a green apple (which is why it pairs great with the sweet strawberries). It's crunchy and has a similar texture to celery when raw, but when cooked becomes perfectly soft and tender.
Tips for Success!
For best results I always recommend using weight measurements (especially when baking) because it's the most accurate. Kitchen scales are super affordable and also reduce the number of dishes you have to do! However, all my recipes also include US customary measurements for convince. Use this chart to convert measurements for common ingredients!
Substitutions: In all my recipes, I've included substitutions that I know will work, but I cannot guarantee results if you substitute ingredients that I have not recommended. [For example, granulated sugar and honey are indeed both sweeteners but they have very different properties so they can not always be swapped 1:1. Using honey in a cookie recipe that calls for granulated sugar will yield a giant mess.] In the recipe card you'll find links to the specific ingredients/brands that I use.
A note on salt: I almost exclusively use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt because it's the best all-purpose salt for cooking and baking. If you're not using kosher salt, consult this handy guide for a conversion chart! When in doubt, if you're using table salt just reduce the amount by half for baked goods. When cooking, I prefer to under-salt because you can always add more! If you've over-salted, adding a little bit of acid (like lemon juice) can help.
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Recipe Card
Strawberry Rhubarb Shortcake
Special Equipment
Ingredients
Shortcake Biscuits
- ½ cup unsalted butter, frozen
- ½ cup heavy cream, cold
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups pastry flour, substitute all purpose flour
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Strawberry Rhubarb Filling
- 16 ounces fresh strawberries
- 2 cups fresh rhubarb, (about 4-6 stalks)
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste, substitute vanilla extract
Whipped Cream
- 1 ½ cups heavy whipping cream, cold
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste, substitute vanilla extract
Instructions
Shortcake Biscuits
- Place the butter in the freezer for at least 30 minutes before grating. Use a box grater to carefully grate the butter into small pieces. Keep the grated butter in the freezer until you're ready to use it. [If you don't want to use grated butter, just cut the butter into small chunks and keep chilled until ready to use.]
- In a small bowl, whisk together the heavy cream, egg, and vanilla extract then set aside.
- In a medium bowl, add in the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt and whisk together.
- Add in the frozen grated butter and mix in until it's fully coated in the flour.
- Then slowly drizzle the wet ingredients over top, combing as you go. Continue mixing until the dough just comes together. The dough will be slightly sticky. If too dry, add in more cream 1 tablespoon at a time.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and gently press into a large disc about 1 inch thick. Cut into 4-5 even 2 ½ inch circles, then reshape the remaining dough and cut out 1-2 more. You should be able to get 6 biscuits.
- Place the biscuits a few inches apart on the lined baking sheet. Place in the freezer for at least 20-30 minutes before baking to firm up.
- While the biscuits are chilling, preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Lightly brush the tops with cream and sprinkle with a little granulated sugar if desired.
- Bake at 400°F for 18-24 minutes or until the tops are golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool.
Strawberry Rhubarb Filling
- Wash and hull the strawberries and cut in half. Discard any rhubarb leaves, then wash and trim the ends. Cut the rhubarb stalks into 2 inch pieces.
- In a large pot over medium heat, combine the strawberries, rhubarb, sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla bean paste.
- Cook, stirring frequently, until the strawberries and rhubarb begin to break down and the filling starts to simmer and thicken, about 10 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and allow to cool completely to room temperature, then store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Whipped Cream
- While the biscuits and strawberry rhubarb filling are cooling, make the whipped cream.
- Add the cold heavy cream to a large bowl with the powdered sugar and vanilla bean paste. Beat on high with a hand mixer until thickened and medium peaks form.
Assembly
- When ready to serve, simply slice the biscuits in half and layer with the strawberries and rhubarb and whipped cream!
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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