Get ready for summer and fresh strawberries! It’s really one of my favorite treats to dunk giant, juicy strawberries into lightly sweetened homemade whipped cream. We’ve taken a classic dessert to the next level with delicious Vitality essential oils. Try our Jazzed Up Strawberry Shortcake at your next barbecue or neighborhood cookout.
Jazz it Up with Vitality Oils
Let’s talk about these delicious oils! The vibrancy of summer comes alive with the flavor combinations in this recipe. Your guests will be pleasantly surprised by the light, lemony flavor of the shortcake. The Jade Lemon Vitality adds a fresh, zesty flavor to the shortcakes while also helping to bring out the maple sweetness of the brown sugar.
We add a single drop of Bergamot Vitality to the strawberries to bring out their tartness and fresh flavor. Strawberries are only mildly sweet and the citrusy Bergamot Vitality adds a pop of flavor that highlights the flavor of the berries.
I love homemade whipped cream and this recipe tweak will delight you with the fresh hint of Spearmint. With a single drop of Spearmint Vitality essential oil the whipped cream isn’t just a sweet topping. It’s a fresh flavor of summer to top off a delicious and flavorful treat. The spearmint flavor is not overpowering and strong. It’s just a hint of minty freshness much like placing a single mint leave into a fruit salad. Delightful!
There are a few items that make this recipe so much easier (because who wants to be in the kitchen all summer long?!). I use my Ninja Kitchen System [1] almost every single day. It really helps this recipe go faster. I use the food processor bowl for the dough part of the recipe. Pulse a few times and the butter is perfectly blended in.
Then I add the liquids and 10 seconds later it’s ready to roll out. But then I can also use one of the Nutri Ninja cups to make the whipped cream. It’s perfect. I love how easy this makes it for me. The faster I get these things out of the oven, the happier my family is!
Another item that gets a lot of use in my kitchen is this set of Silpat baking mats [2]. No sticking. EVER! And the bottoms of my cookies or shortcakes are perfectly and evenly browned. Replace your parchment paper with these mats [2] today.
New to essential oils? Learn more about how we use them and why you should use them as well. [3]
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour [7]
- 1/2 cup oats [8]
- 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup white sugar + 1 tablespoon divided
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup cold butter
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons demerara sugar [9]
- 1 pint strawberries (cleaned and hulled)
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar [10]
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 drop Spearmint Vitality Essential Oil
- 1 drop Bergamot Vitality Essential Oil
- 4 drops Jade Lemon Vitality Essential Oil
Instructions
- Heat oven to 375 degrees.
- Line a baking pan with a tray liner or parchment paper. I like these pan liners.
- In a bowl, combine the flour, oats, brown sugar, 1/4 cup of white sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir until all ingredients are combined thoroughly.
- Use a pastry blender or fork to cut in the butter until the mixture is crumbly. I like to pulse this recipe in my food processor. It’s so much faster for me!
- Add the milk and Jade Lemon Vitality Essential Oil and stir until dry mixture comes together. There will still be some dry spots. Don't worry. If you do this step in your food processor, then pulse about 6 or 7 times until the crumbles start to pull away cleanly from the side of the bowl.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead the dough tenderly. You can skip the flour if you roll them onto a separate tray liner. They’re nonstick so it’s perfect!
- Turn it over onto itself about 5 times. Not too many times! You don’t want dry and tough shortcakes.
- Divide the dough into 12 equal portions. Mold each portion into small ball and smash it gently with your hand onto the lined pan. Do this quickly so you’re not melting the butter with your hot little hands.
- Sprinkle each with the demerara sugar. I like to pour the sugar into a dish and then dip the top of the shortcakes in there to coat them thoroughly.
- Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes. They might be only slightly browned on the bottom. This is perfect. Do not overbake!
- While the shortcakes are baking, slice your strawberries and place them into a small bowl with 1 tablespoon of white sugar and the Bergamot Vitality Essential Oil. Stir gently and allow them to sit on the counter. Room temperature strawberries are sweeter than when they’re cold. And the sugar will form into a nice glaze. Yum!
- In a mixing bowl or Nutri Ninja, combine the whipping cream, powdered sugar, and Spearmint Vitality Essential Oil and whip until light and fluffy and stiff peaks form. Place this in the fridge until time to assemble the shortcakes.
- When shortcakes come out, allow them to cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack. Cut in half and serve with strawberries and whipped cream.
- If you have any leftover, store all the components separately in the refrigerator.