Gluten-Free Strawberry Shortcake

A popular American dessert that makes its way to most barbecues, picnics and soirées in the month of June is Strawberry Shortcake: a rich, buttery, crunchy biscuit with lightly sweetened whipped cream and slightly macerated berries. Edible East End challenged my gluten intelligence and asked for a gluten-free summertime dessert for my, What's in Season column in their low summer 2014 issue. At my home, Sheridan Green, I recently hosted my first dinner party for friends who are gluten intolerant—the challenge was perfect timing. We are well acquainted with food allergies to peanuts, and even strawberries, but nowadays, gluten has risen to the top as the biggest culprit. So, why not give gluten-free cooking a whirl? At some point we all have encountered this at a dinner party, “Is this gluten-free?” or, “How can I make this gluten-free?” At Edible East End you can read about my journey to create a high-rise biscuit.

On the East End of Long Island, strawberries kick-off the summer fruit season in June and by the end of the month, during its peak, if you happen to be standing in a strawberry patch—picking your own of course—at Patty’s Berries and Bunches in Mattituck or Hank’s Farm Stand in Southampton, a fruity aroma carried by a summer wind, will captivate you in a Wizard of Oz poppy field trance. And, once you come out of your hypnotic state with bushels in hand you can consider making: smoothies, pies, preserves, salads, cakes, ice creams, juices, Greek yogurt panna cotta, and maybe even a gluten-free strawberry shortcake.

Gluten-Free Strawberry Shortcake

Macerated Strawberries

ingredients

• 1 pound strawberries trimmed and cut in half; about 4 cups
• ¼ cup honey
• ⅓ cup water
• Pinch of sea salt

Combine the honey, water and salt in a small saucepan. Simmer over medium until the mixture is slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Once done cool and toss with the strawberries. Set aside for 1 hour to allow strawberries to release their juices.

Whipped Cream

ingredients

• 2 cups whipping cream
• 1 vanilla bean split and seeded
• ¼ cup powdered sugar

directions

1. Place a large bowl in freezer to prep for the cream. In a medium bowl place the cream; cut vanilla bean in half lengthwise, scrape seeds into cream along with the bean; gently whisk. Cover cream mixture and refrigerate for 1 hour.
2. Strain cream mixture through a fine mesh sieve into the chilled bowl. Add the powdered sugar and with a balloon whisk begin to beat the cream into soft peaks. (You can use a KitchenAid with a whisk attachment or a handheld beater.)

Set aside in refrigerator.

Gluten-Free Biscuits

ingredients

• 1¼ cups brown rice flour
• ¼ cup tapioca starch
• 3 teaspoons xanthan gum
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon agave syrup
• 1 stick cold butter, cut into ½-inch chunks
• 2 large eggs
• ⅓ cup whole milk Greek yogurt

directions

1. Preheat oven to 425°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and sprinkle with two tablespoons of brown rice flour. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients and mix together with a whisk.
3. Add the butter and use your fingertips to combine into the dry ingredients, try to work quickly to keep the butter cold.
4. In another bowl, add the eggs, yogurt and agave and whisk together; add mixture to the dry ingredients and with a wooden spoon stir the dough together until a ball forms. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.
5. Turn dough out onto a clean surface and, working quickly, pat the dough into a 10- by 8-inch rectangle, fold into a 5- by 8-inch rectangle, and again into a 5- by 4-inch rectangle. (Repeat this one more time.)
6. Then press dough into a rectangle, ½-inch thick; 10 by 8 inches. Using the top of a glass or a 31/4-inch circle cutter, cut out 2 biscuits; you will not be able to get 6 biscuits in a 10- by 8-inch pass so you will need to repeat this step again, however your rectangle will be smaller, keep with the ½-inch thickness for good measure.
7. Arrange the biscuits with ample room in between each one; they need room to grow while baking.
8. Bake in preheated oven for 12 to 14 minutes, or until golden brown. Allow biscuits to cool before assembling.

Assembly

Split each biscuit and place the bottom half on plate. Top with the berries and its juices and then top with the whipped cream. Then place the top of the biscuit on the shortcake.

My Grandfather's Ricotta Cheesecake

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I have never felt comfortable sharing my grandfather's ricotta cheesecake recipe as it has been a work in progress. My recollection of his recipe is slightly different than my mother’s and unfortunately it did not make it to my grandmother’s recipe box. We will have lengthy conversations about what type of pan or pot he may have used and the exact technique when whipping the egg whites and folding them into the ricotta mixture; my mother remembers the egg yolks being whipped separately—I don’t. What we do agree on is how long it took my grandfather to fold the egg whites into the ricotta mixture; it was like watching a symphony with four movements: fold to the right, fold to the left, fold up and then fold down and continue until the mixture crescendos into a light consistency. And, if you open the oven, before 1 hour, while it is slowly cooking at 325°, my grandfather would scream. Back in those days his industrial oven did not have a convenient window to peek through, he innately knew at one hour to check the cheesecake. My grandfather would pick up homemade whole milk ricotta from the cheesemongers of the Arthur Avenue Retail Market; I remember how thick and creamy the consistency was. If you want to try your hand at making spring whole milk ricotta you can read my column, What’s in Season, for Edible East End. I used raw spring milk from Chris Wines’s Jersey cows of Ty Llwyd Farm in Riverhead, truly a wholesome treat. 

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This recipe for ricotta cheesecake is a work in progress and is worth the effort as it is truly delicious. In the meantime, I practice and pray that my grandfather comes to me in my dreams and explains in detail the exact way to make it.

Ricotta Cheesecake Recipe

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ingredients

• 3 pounds of whole milk ricotta
• 9 large eggs, separated
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt
• Zest of 1 orange
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 1/3 cup of flour
• 1 tablespoon of butter
• Pinch of sea salt

directions

1. Preheat oven to 325°; set rack in middle of oven.
2. Butter and flour a 9 x 3-inch springform pan and tap out excess flour. Place on a baking sheet.
3. Separate the eggs; yolks in one bowl and whites in another.
4. In a large bowl, combine the ricotta and zest; whisk until smooth. Add the sugar, egg yolks, pinch of sea salt and vanilla; gently mix until combined.
5. Put egg whites in a stand mixer and beat on high until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into the ricotta mixture. 
6. Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 2 hours. Check the cheesecake at 1 hour—it should be a light golden color. Make sure the edges of the cheesecake do not burn; if edges are getting to dark, cover with tinfoil. The center should be fairly firm and jiggle ever so slightly in  the middle. 
7. Cool cheesecake completely on a wire rack; room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled and set, about 3 hours.