16 Ways to Make the Best Strawberry Shortcake

Buttermilk Strawberry Shortcake
Photo: sweetserenade

Purists may disagree, but there's more than one way to make strawberry shortcake. You might prefer a classic biscuit-type shortcake base, or maybe a sponge cake with a baked-in hollow to hold the filling is more to your liking. You can even use homemade or store-bought pound cake or angel food cake. Whichever you prefer, you'll spoon on strawberries macerated in sugar until they're juicy and dripping with syrup, and top it all off with whipped cream — and you'll call it strawberry shortcake. And we're here for it. Here are 16 ways to make strawberry shortcake, from classic to creative, including shortcut versions.

01 of 17

Strawberry Shortcake

Strawberry Shortcake
Pam Ziegler Lutz

This classic strawberry shortcake is made from scratch from start to finish. Recipe creator Denyse describes this as "An old-fashioned, tender shortcake with two layers of strawberries topped with whipped cream." Note that the shortcake in this recipe is biscuit-like instead of spongy, and gets its moisture from the juicy strawberries.

02 of 17

Chef John's Classic Strawberry Shortcake

Chef John's Classic Strawberry Shortcake
The Gruntled Gourmet

"For this strawberry shortcake recipe, I modified the way my grandfather made his and used self-rising flour and toasted butter for a nutty flavor. I'm hoping Armand Cianfoni would approve." –Chef John

03 of 17

Petra's Strawberry Shortcake

Petra's Strawberry Shortcake
hello kitty

If you're looking for more of a sponge cake as a base, this recipe is for you. Recipe creator Petra says, "As a teenager (born and raised in Germany) I made what we call Biskuitteig weekly, which is similar to sponge cake. I never really liked Bisquick for shortcake and remembered the spongy, tender texture of the Biskuitteig. I altered an old German recipe and came up with this delicious version. Also good with other fruit toppings!"

04 of 17

Glazed Doughnut Strawberry Shortcake

Glazed Doughnut Strawberry Shortcake
thedailygourmet

This fun-loving twist on strawberry shortcake uses a glazed donut for the shortcake base, but you'll still pile on the whipped cream and strawberries. Recipe creator voraciousgirl says, "Use store-bought doughnuts or your own glazed doughnut recipe."

05 of 17

Skillet Strawberry Shortcake

Skillet Strawberry Shortcake
Darcy Lenz

"This impressive skillet strawberry shortcake recipe eliminates much of the hassle and mess of traditional strawberry shortcakes. Instead of flouring the counter and rolling and cutting out individual biscuits, you'll bake one giant skillet biscuit cake that's topped with macerated strawberries and whipped cream." —Darcy Lenz

06 of 17

Gluten-Free Strawberry Shortcake

Gluten-Free Strawberry Cheesecake
Buckwheat Queen

You can be gluten-free and eat your shortcake, too: This top-rated version is made with brown rice and tapioca flours. "AWESOME!" raves reviewer DESLUE. "This was very good. My whole family enjoyed it. I just kept eating it even plain without the strawberries. It's a keeper."

07 of 17

Easy Strawberry Shortcake

Easy Strawberry Shortcake
Lela

How easy it is? Four ingredients are all you'll need to make this dessert using store-bought sponge cake dessert cups. "This is how my mom and grandma put these together for us growing up & yummmm... just like home," says reviewer Madeline Shannon.

08 of 17

Strawberry-Citrus Shortcake

strawberry citrus shortcake
Meredith

Homemade lemon pound cake forms the base for this citrus-kissed shortcake. (You can certainly use a store-bought pound cake for a time-saving shortcut.) Toast the pound cake slices to get crispy edges before topping with strawberries and whipped cream, if you like. Reviewer PULLEYHEATHER says, "If you don't have cake flour you can use 1 3/4 cups all-purpose mixed with 1/4 cup cornstarch."

09 of 17

Cottage Pudding (Cake for Strawberry Shortcake)

cottage pudding (cake for strawberry short cake)
Andread Muller

Kaylene says, "This is a wonderful shortcake recipe my grandmother used to make for strawberry shortcake. It is moist and sweet and can be eaten by itself too. Reviewer Jamie says, "Oh my gosh this is so yummy! The only change was I made it with butter instead of shortening. I served it with fresh strawberries and pineapple topped with homemade whipped cream with a bit of cream cheese in it."

10 of 17

Strawberry Shortcake Ice Pops

Strawberry Shortcake Ice Pops
Allrecipes Magazine

Look what you can make with strawberries, cookies, and pudding mix! "These were amazing!" says reviewer Sicily. "They only lasted two days in the freezer before we gobbled them up. The only change I made in the recipe was to add a dash of kosher salt to the pudding and cookie crumb mixture."

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11 of 17

Red, White and Blue Strawberry Shortcake

Red, White, And Blue Strawberry Shortcake
Mar Smith

Yellow cake from a box mix is your shortcut to this festive strawberry shortcake. KIM20 sliced the cake in half horizontally so she could put a layer of strawberries and blueberries in the middle along with strawberry glaze. Then she decorated the top layer with whipped cream, and places blueberries and strawberries to make a flag.

12 of 17

Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream Cake

Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream Cake
thedailygourmet

Recipe creator thedailygourmet says, " This recipe is fast to assemble and while you can absolutely buy the ingredients pre-made, I prefer to make the cake part myself. You can also use angel food cake (loaf shape) or your favorite pound cake."

13 of 17

Buttermilk Strawberry Shortcake

Buttermilk Strawberry Shortcake
sweetserenade

Buttermilk adds a tang to this biscuit-style shortcake. Jillian says, "What a simple, easy, and delicious dessert! I had some buttermilk I had to use up and this was just perfect. For the shortcakes, I froze the butter and grated it which is much easier."

14 of 17

Strawberry Shortcake Punch Bowl Cake

Strawberry Shortcake Punch Bowl Cake
WestCoastMom

You can use store-bought or homemade angel food cake to make this easy strawberry shortcake trifle. Reviewer WestCoastMom says, "Perfect summer dessert! Simple, easy, no cooking involved! I used fresh strawberries instead of frozen and used real whipped cream."

15 of 17

Italian-Style Strawberry Shortcake

Italian-Style Strawberry Shortcake
Karen Ferrara

Mascarpone cheese makes this trifle that much richer and more decadent. "Wonderful! Five minutes to make (not counting letting the berries sit), beautiful presentation, and absolutely delicious. Made this for a family dinner," says reviewer CookinginColorado.

16 of 17

Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes

Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes
Chef V

"All the flavors of strawberry shortcake, in cupcake-form! Can be made even easier by prepping the day before a party. The final, assembled cupcakes can be stored in the fridge up to an hour before serving." —canmcg27

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