Strawberry Shortcake Shortcuts using Pound Cake

5 Fast and fresh, sweet and simple semi-homemade desserts

Strawberry shortcakeUnsplash

Summer is around the corner and we all still want a sweet treat and great dessert, but we also want it fast and fruity… So here are some fun, summer favorites with some sweet and simple tricks.

Secret Ingredient Shh — It’s Sara Lee — All Butter Pound cake

A picture of Sara Lee's All Butter Pound CakeSara Lee

You can simply slice it with some fresh or macerated berries and add some whipped cream on the top, bottom, or both. You can also make a large or single-serving trifle with layers of fruit, and whipped cream.

Either way, the combination of berries, cake, and whipped cream is hard to resist.

The following recipes are fast and fresh desserts ranging from a fancy slice with a fruity and creamy topping to luscious layers of cake, pudding, and berries.

#1 Single Sliced Strawberry Shortcake

It’s simply generous slices of pound cake with fresh fruit of your choice and a generous dollop of whipped cream and

*I don't add exact measurements because it's based on your taste

#2 Whole Strawberry Shortcake — Luxury Layers

Ingredients

Sara Lee pound cake
Use vanilla flavored stabilized whipped cream
1 pint macerated strawberries — if using strawberries I would slice each strawberry

Directions

1. Cut the pound cake in half lengthwise
2. On the bottom layer put a layer of whipped cream
3. Add a layer of berries on top of the whipped cream you carefully place them in a layer or just spoon them on to make a layer
4. Then place the top half of the cake on top and top with whipped cream and whole berries for decoration

#3 — The 3 Ingredient Trifle

Ingredients

Sara Lee pound cake
Stabilized whipped cream (see above recipe)
Macerated strawberries - 1 pint

Special Equipment: Trifle bowl or any deep glass bowl

Directions

1. Cut the pound cake into 1-inch cubes and divide in half
2. In a trifle bowl or any clear glass bowl, layer cubed pieces of pound cake, then whipped cream and berries.

#4: Fast & Fancy Trifle or 7 Layer Strawberry Shortcake

Ingredients

Sara Lee Pound cake, Vanilla pudding (2-3 cups), Stabilized whipped cream, (1 pound) of sliced, macerated strawberries (leaving 2-3 whole berries for garnish)

Using pound cake and instant or premade pudding make a quick and easy company ready or individual dessert that will make guests go from ok to oh yeah!

The directions are the same as the 3-Ingredient Trifle except you replace the whipped cream with vanilla pudding and reserve the whipped cream for the top layer

Cake Cubes Layer 1 — The bottom, base layer
Pudding Layer 2
Berries Layer 3
Cake Cubes Layer 4
Pudding Layer 5
Berries Layer 6
Whipped Cream Layer 7 — The top layer — is garnished with whole fruit

#5 — Jaw-dropping jars

For a special thank you, guest gift, or simply to-go dessert option make one of the trifle recipes in mason jars.

The back story -

My Gam wasn’t a from-scratch cake baker. She was more a cake-mix Grandmomma, or she’d let Sara Lee handle it. Yes, Sara Lee’s All Butter Pound Cake was my Gam’s Strawberry Shortcake base. It was simple, she literally placed heaping spoonfuls of freshly macerated strawberries and juice on top of thick room temperature or slightly warmed slices of Sara Lee pound cake.

I remember taking a bite and feeling that it must be some type of soul food. It was just something about this sweet treat that just made me feel loved and fancy — especially if we had whipped cream.

My Gam’s strawberry shortcake may have had some help from Sara Lee, but it was and still is one of my favorite childhood memories.

Originally published on Medium.com