Amish Strawberry Shortcake Recipe with Fresh Strawberries

This strawberry shortcake is from Gramma’s Amish Recipe Collection. My Amish grandmother was an excellent cook who loved to experiment, and this version is a light vanilla-style cake rather than the traditional biscuit shortcake. Baked in a cast-iron skillet, it’s wonderful topped with fresh strawberries and your choice of whipped cream, cold milk, or ice cream. More notes follow the recipe.

Follow along for more Amish recipes and feel free to leave a rating or comment below!

Amish Strawberry Shortcake (made in a skillet)

marilynpeight

This skillet shortcake is a refreshing summer dessert featuring fresh strawberries and cream. It’s an old family favorite and a great way to showcase fresh berries.

5 from 1 vote

Prep Time
15 minutes

Cook Time
40 minutes

Course Dessert

Cuisine Amish

Servings 8

Equipment

Cast iron skillet (10-inch recommended)
Mixing bowl
Whisk

Ingredients

1/2 cup buttersoftened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggsbeaten
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Toppings:

Fresh strawberries or berries of your choice
Whipped cream (or ice cream/milk)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a large bowl, cream the softened butter and sugar together. Add one beaten egg and mix well, then add the second egg and mix again. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, salt, and baking powder together.
Add half of the dry ingredients to the creamed butter mixture along with half of the milk. Stir in the vanilla. Add the remaining dry ingredients and the rest of the milk, mixing until combined and smooth.
Lightly grease a 10-inch cast-iron skillet with butter, then pour in the batter. Bake at 350°F for about 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. While the cake cools slightly, hull and slice the fresh strawberries. Serve slices of shortcake topped with strawberries and whipped cream, milk, or ice cream.

Notes

We like to serve this shortcake with cold milk or a scoop of vanilla ice cream in addition to whipped cream.

Notes and photos follow, plus a few gardening tips for growing strawberries.

Keyword Amish, Strawberry shortcake, cast iron skillet, cakey shortcake

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Equipment needed for this Amish strawberry skillet shortcake:

Cast iron skillet — a 10-inch skillet produces a thicker shortcake; a 12-inch yields a flatter, sheet-cake style result.
Mixing bowls — stainless steel bowls work well for combining wet and dry ingredients.
Whisk — useful for smoothing the batter and removing lumps.

One of my favorite things about summer is growing fresh produce. These strawberries came from my garden and were particularly sweet and juicy. Below are photos and a few strawberry-growing tips.

This batter yields a cakey shortcake rather than the biscuit-style version. From family experience, the cake-style shortcake was a quick and simple way Amish cooks served fresh berries to busy families during summer.

If you don’t have a cast-iron skillet, a 9×13-inch baking dish works fine. When baked in cast iron, the edges may become slightly crispier and the center may bake a bit differently—those caramelized edges are delicious.

All the tastes of summer—serve with fresh cow’s milk and whipped cream for a traditional touch, or add a scoop of ice cream if you prefer.

These plants were recently transplanted from an older patch and have thrived. A few practical tips for growing strawberries:

Avoid bark mulch if you notice rot or poor ripening; straw often helps keep berries cleaner and drier, reducing rot.
If plants begin producing smaller, rotting berries, consider transplanting or replacing older plants to refresh the patch and improve yield.
Feeding with an organic berry fertilizer after transplanting can boost production in subsequent seasons.

Feel free to pin this recipe for later and tag me on Instagram to show your own version of this Amish strawberry shortcake.