Strawberry Shortcake of Love

All you need is love, all you need is love,

All you need is love, love, love is all you need.

What better way to show your love than with something from the heart.

Full of thoughtfulness and surprise - like beautifully scrapbooked photo albums, sweet notes hidden in books, and deliciously home cooked meals.

After our First Valentine's Day together and five years later, much has happened. It's been quite the nostalgic journey, navigating through 300+ blog posts of what we've done, where we've been and what we've eaten since our first date (which also happens to be my very first blog post).

There was the first time meeting the in-laws...

Our First New Year's celebration together...

Our international trip to Espana...

A milestone birthday...

Getting married and adding a little one to the family.

Love is definitely an adventure and I'm so lucky MS is my partner for the ride!

A recipe taken from the Bride & Groom First and Forever Cookbook.

Shortcakes
3 cups cake flour + a bit more
1/4 cup + 1 Tbsp; 2 Tbsp sugar
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp kosher salt
6 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 egg lightly beaten w/1 Tbsp water

Strawberries
2 cups hulled and quartered strawberries
1 Tbsp raspberry preserves
2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp fresh lemon juice

Whipped Cream
1/3 cup cold heavy cream
1 Tbsp sour cream
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Powdered sugar for dusting

1. Position oven rack in center; preheat to 400 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. For shortcakes: sift flour, 1/4 cup + 1 Tbsp of sugar, baking powder, salt in med bowl. Transfer to food processor with steel blade. Add butter and pulse 3 or 4 times at 2-sec intervals. Dough should resemble coarse meal. Add cream, process a few seconds more until dough comes together - crumbly.
3. Transfer dough to well-floured work surface. Sprinkle with more flour if sticky. Use a lightly floured rolling pin to roll out into a rectangle about 12 inches long. Fold left end to middle; right end up over the left to form 3 layers. Roll dough out to about 3/4-inch thickness. Use wide heart-shaped cutter, cut into three cakes. Gather scraps and continue to cut three more hearts.
4. Place shortcakes at least 2 inches apart on baking sheet. Brush tops lightly with the beaten egg mixture. Sprinkle with 2 tsp sugar. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until light golden brown.
5. Meanwhile, stir together the strawberries, preserves, sugar and lemon juice in a medium bowl. Mash 1 cup of mix in a small bowl with fork. Add back to strawberry mixture and set aside.
6. For the whipped cream, combine heavy cream, sour cream, sugar and vanilla in bowl of a stand mixer with whisk attachment. Beat on high until soft peaks form, about 1-2 minutes.
7. Serve by cutting two shortcakes in half horizontally. Place the bottom halves on plates, top with strawberries, and add a dollop of whipped cream. Top with remaining shortcake halves and dust with powdered sugar.