Let's welcome fall with a seasonal spin to a classic Americana dessert -- apple shortcakes! These delicate, flaky buttermilk shortcakes are topped with a cinnamon-spiced apple filling and then finished with a big dollop of homemade maple whipped cream for an extra decadent touch. Every delicious bite tastes like autumn, making for one festive dessert that's perfect for any occasion.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Ultra flaky, tender shortcakes. Thanks to a special dough preparation process, these apple shortcakes feature layers upon layers of flaky goodness that no one can resist.
- Puts a fall spin on a classic summer dessert. Who said shortcakes are just for summer? With these apple shortcakes, you can enjoy this beloved dessert right into the fall.
- Makes for a unique Thanksgiving dessert. Nothing against pumpkin pie or pecan pie, but sometimes it's fun to introduce a new dessert tradition. These apple shortcakes are still full of fall flavor, but everyone will love trying a new delicious dessert.
Bonus: If you love shortcakes, don't miss my strawberry-blueberry shortcakes as well!
Ingredients
As you can see, these apple shortcake ingredients aren't overly fancy or complicated, but please see a couple notes for best results.
Let's start with the buttermilk. While you can technically substitute regular milk, the shortcakes will lack flavor.
Don't have buttermilk on hand? Make your own homemade buttermilk! Add 1 ¼ tablespoons lemon juice or distilled white vinegar to 1 ¼ cups whole milk. After the mixture sits for five to 10 minutes, we have our very own buttermilk substitute.
The other ingredient to note is the maple syrup. Please use real maple syrup, not pancake syrup. Real maple syrup is much richer and more complex with caramel, vanilla and dried fruit notes. Pancake syrup just can't hold up, and it will affect the final dish.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Ready to start baking? Here's everything you need to know about making these apple shortcakes.
Step 1: Let's start with our shortcakes by stirring together all-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder and salt (photo 1). We add frozen grated butter (photo 2) and stir until the mixture resembles coarse crumbles (photo 3).
Step 2: We're ready to pour in our cold buttermilk (photo 4) and stir again just until combined (photo 5). Don't worry if the mixture is a bit crumbly. It will come together in the next step.
Step 3: Now we turn out the dough onto a floured surface and use our hands to pat it into a rectangle (photo 6). I prefer not to use a rolling pin to avoid overworking the dough.
Step 4: For an ultra flaky shortcake, we fold the dough like a letter several times. We begin by folding one side of the dough into the center (photo 7), and then fold the other side on top of our initial fold (photo 8). Now we gently flatten into a rectangle again (photo 9), rotate the dough (photo 10) and repeat the folding process three more times.
Step 5: And just like that, we're ready to cut out our shortcakes with a cookie cutter (photo 11). We want six shortcakes. If you don't quite have six, combine the scraps, flatten and cut again.
Step 6: After cutting our biscuits, we carefully place them in a baking dish and brush them with additional buttermilk (photo 12). Now we pop them in the oven.
Step 7: Now let's move on to our apple topping. For this process, we add chopped apples to a large skillet with butter, cinnamon, maple syrup and brown sugar (photo 13) and cook until the apples are nice and soft, about 10-15 minutes (photo 14).
Step 8: For our final step, we make our maple whipped cream. This process is super easy -- we whip together heavy cream, maple syrup and a hint of vanilla extract until the mixture forms stiff peaks like so (photo 14).
And that's it! Now we assemble and devour the most delicious apple shortcakes.
Related: For more apple desserts, try my apple spice cupcakes or apple cinnamon rolls. This apple cobbler from Miss in the Kitchen is also great.
Recipe FAQs
First, we use a serrated knife to split the shortcakes in half horizontally and then place the bottoms on the serving plate. We scoop some apple filling on top and then add a dollop of the maple whipped cream. Now we put on the top and repeat. Assembling these apple shortcakes is as easy as can be.
Keep the shortcakes in an airtight container for about three days. When you're ready to serve, place in the cast-iron skillet, cover with foil, and place in a 350-degree oven until warm, about five to 10 minutes.
The apples will stay good for about three days while the whipped cream will keep for a day in the refrigerator. Before serving the maple whipped cream, quickly fluff it up with a whisk or fork.
I recommend using Honeycrisp apples for these shortcakes. These apples perfectly balance sweet and tart notes, which make them great for dessert because they're not too cloying and not too sour. Basically, the Honeycrisp is the perfect apple!
Expert Tips
- For best results, we want to keep the shortcake dough as cold as possible. I like to place the butter and flour in the freezer for at least 30 minutes before preparing to help with this.
- Check the expiration date on your baking powder. If it's expired, you absolutely need to replace it, or you won't get the proper rise.
- Never grated butter? It's just like cheese! Simply run it on a box grater on the side with the large holes.
- To prevent tough biscuits, we want to stir the dough just until combined and use a gentle touch as we shape each circle.
- Do not twist the cookie cutter. Just press down and lift up. Twisting can cause the shortcakes to not rise properly.
- While this step is optional, I like to place the shortcakes in the refrigerator for 20 minutes before baking to ensure the dough is nice and chilled before baking. This also gives you a chance to prepare the filling and whipped cream.
- I recommend baking these apple shortcakes in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet. The cast iron gets blazing hot for perfectly crisp bottoms.
- Place the cut-out dough close together before putting in the oven. This also helps with the rising.
Perfect Pairing
With the maple and brown sugar in our apple filling, I especially love a barley wine with these fall shortcakes. Thanks to the high alcohol content, barley wines have a residual sweetness that make them great dessert beers, and they show off toffee, caramel and dried fruit notes to complement our apples. A Belgian quad is another lovely option.
Looking for a wine? A Madeira is wonderful with apple desserts. This dessert wine is full of rich, nutty flavors that match beautifully with our decadent apple filling. You also can't go wrong with a nice tawny port.
Or maybe you'd like a festive fall cocktail with your apple shortcakes. Try my sparkling apple cider margarita, apple cider old fashioned or apple Bellini.
When you need a dessert full of autumn flavors, I hope you try these apple shortcakes with maple whipped cream. You'll love every decadent bite.
Cheers!
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📖 Recipe
Apple Shortcakes With Maple Whipped Cream
Equipment
- Mixing bowl
- Box grater
- 3-inch cookie cutter
- 12-inch cast-iron skillet (preferably) or baking pan
- Pastry brush
- Large skillet
- Hand or stand mixer
Ingredients
Shortcakes
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour chilled and then spooned and leveled to measure
- ¼ cup white sugar
- 2 tablespoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup salted butter frozen and then grated (see notes)
- 1 ¼ cups cold buttermilk, plus additional tablespoon for brushing shaken before measuring
Apple Filling
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 cups peeled and diced Honeycrisp apples cut into 1-inch cubes, about 3 apples
- ½ cup real maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Maple Whipped Cream
- 1 cup cold heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons real maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or paste
Instructions
Shortcakes
- Heat oven to 450 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt until combined. Add the grated butter and stir just until the butter is incorporated and coarse crumbs appear throughout the dough.
- Pour buttermilk on top of flour mixture. Stir just until combined -- you don't want to overwork the dough. The dough will look crumbly, but it will come together in the next steps.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, like a countertop or pastry board. Gently using your hands, combine the dough so that it comes together and then pat the dough into a 1-inch-thick rectangle. If necessary, you can flour your hands to work with the dough if it's a bit sticky.
- Fold one side of the dough toward the center, and then fold the other side on top of the first fold like a letter. Flatten into a 1-inch-thick rectangle again and then give it a quarter turn. Repeat three more times and flatten into the final 1-inch-thick rectangle. (Please see the blog for photos if that's helpful.)
- Using a 3-inch cookie cutter, cut the dough into shortcakes. Do not twist the cookie cutter. Simply press down, lift straight up and gently remove the dough. Reshape the scraps and cut more shortcakes. This recipe should yield about six shortcakes.
- Place the shortcake dough close together in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet. Alternatively, you can use a baking pan, but the cast-iron skillet will give you a nice crust. Brush with additional buttermilk and bake until the tops start to brown, about 15 minutes.
Apple Filling
- In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the apples, maple syrup, dark brown sugar and cinnamon and stir to combine. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples soften, about 10-15 minutes. Turn off heat and set aside. You can serve right away or store up to three days and reheat before serving.
Maple Whipped Cream
- In a large mixing bowl, add heavy cream, maple syrup and vanilla. Beat until stiff peaks form.
- Set aside. This can also be made up to a day ahead of serving. Whisk or fluff up with a fork before serving.
- Slice shortcakes in half. Spoon the apple filling on the bottom half and top with maple whipped cream. Place the other half of the shortcake on the whipped cream, and then repeat the fruit layer and whipped cream on top. Enjoy!
Notes
- If you want to make the shortcakes ahead of time, they will keep for three days in an airtight container. Before serving, place back in the cast-iron skillet or baking sheet, cover with foil and heat in a 350-degree oven until warm, about five to 10 minutes.
- For best results, we want to keep the shortcake dough as cold as possible. I like to place the butter and flour in the freezer for at least 30 minutes before preparing to help with this.
- Check the expiration date on your baking powder. If it's expired, you absolutely need to replace it, or we want get the proper rise.
- To prevent tough biscuits, we want to stir the dough just until combined and use a gentle touch as we shape each circle.
- While this step is optional, I like to place the biscuits in the refrigerator for 20 minutes before baking to ensure the dough is nice and chilled before baking. This also gives you a chance to prepare the filling and whipped cream.
- I recommend baking in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet. The cast iron gets blazing hot for perfectly crisp bottoms.
- Place the cut-out dough close together before putting in the oven. This also helps with the rising.
- Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Elaine says
Now this is one amazing recipe to make this season. Fantastic results!
Amanda McGrory-Dixon says
Glad to hear it, Elaine! Thanks so much for giving it a try.