Lemongrass Strawberry Shortcakes
A quick and easy dessert: summer-sweet strawberries, pound cake and a lemongrass infused whipped cream make an interesting and addictive variation on a summer dessert classic.
Servings Prep Time
6 5-10minutes
Cook Time Passive Time
5-7minutes 12-24hours
Servings Prep Time
6 5-10minutes
Cook Time Passive Time
5-7minutes 12-24hours
Ingredients
For the Lemongrass Syrup
Instructions
  1. Split the lemongrass stalks in half lengthwise and either crush them with the flat of a knife or grab each end with either hand and wiggle around to break the fibers up a little (kind of like cracking a glow-stick)
  2. Put the lemongrass, sugar and water in a small-ish sauce pan and stir to combine. Place over medium heat and bring to a boil, swirling it gently now and again to make sure it dissolves.
  3. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and simmer about 5 minutes. Shut the heat off and leave the lemongrass stalks to steep in the syrup until it is completely cooled before straining the lemongrass from the syrup and dispensing it into a storage container.
  4. Take the lemongrass stalks and plunk them into a bowl full of the cream, cover and refrigerate for 12 hours minimum, but up to 24 (although, in all reality, a little less than 12 wouldn’t be the end of the world).
  5. Anywhere from 20 minutes to 3 hours before you’re planning on serving these, finely chop the strawberries and put them into a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle over some sugar and stir to combine before setting aside at room temperature, but covered, until you’re ready. The exact amount of sugar needed is hard to say because it depends on how sweet the strawberries already are and/or how sweet you like them. Needless to say, if they’re already perfectly sweet use less sugar, and, alternately, if they’re very tart then use more.
  6. Cube the pound cake and distribute evenly among 6 glasses and, after the strawberries have had their time macerating, spoon them and their sauce in each glass as well. Lightly press down on them to encourage the pound cake to drink up some of the sweet sauce.
  7. Strain the cream through a fine mesh sieve, to catch the lemongrass, and into a large mixing bowl. Whip the cream until it thickens slightly before adding in some of the lemongrass syrup. Again, depending on your tastes, you may want to add more or less syrup, so start small and work your way up. I think its perfect with maybe 4 – 5 tablespoons worth of the syrup. Anyway, continue to beat the cream until soft, glossy peaks form.
  8. Decant the cream over the strawberries in their glasses and serve.
Recipe Notes

-The lemongrass syrup can be made up to a week in advance.

-The pound cake and macerated strawberries can be assembled up to an hour in advance.

-Don’t whip the cream in advance! It can deflate, especially once the lemongrass syrup is added, and once that happens there’s no bringing it back!

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