Peach shortcake cake – with two layers of shortcake and a whole lot of fresh whipped cream & fresh peaches.
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peaches and cream shortcake cake
Hello hello! Today we’re changing around strawberry shortcakes a little by making them into this peach shortcake cake! The base is the same shortcake you know and love, it’s easy, delicious, requires less than 10 ingredients, and is flaky yet tender. Amanda were topping it off with a ton of fresh whipped cream and lots of peaches. It’s the perfect easy & refreshing summer cake.
The only ‘warning’ I have for you for this cake is that it is a little on the dry side because it’s a shortcake (think scone dough), but the whipped cream & peaches help balance it all out. So let’s get into it!
expert baking tips
Weigh your ingredients:
My recipes are all written in grams because it is the most accurate way to bake. When you use a kitchen scale, you ensure that your baked goods turn out as close to the written recipe as possible. Plus, the cleanup is way easier when using a scale! I will provide standard cup measurements but please note that I have not tested the recipe using cup measurements and therefore can not guarantee your recipe will come out how mine did. Here is my favorite kitchen scale.
keep the dough and ingredients cold
I know, I know – I’m always saying you need room-temperature ingredients. But with shortcake, it’s the opposite! The trick to getting those flaky layers and butter pockets is to keep the dough cold. If you notice the butter getting too warm at any point while making the dough, just pop the dough into the freezer for 5-10 minutes to harden it up again. You will want to keep your butter, egg and kefir in the fridge up until the last second that you need to use them!
how to cut butter into dough
There are multiple different ways that you can incorporate butter into your dough. I find it’s easiest to cube up the butter and then smush it into the flour with my fingers until the pieces are fairly tiny. You can also use a pastry blender, or two forks to kind of cut the butter up into the flour. If you wanted to prep the night before, you could use a cheese grater to grate the stick of butter and then freeze it until you’re ready to make the shortcake.
A note on oven temperature:
Ovens vary and fluctuate in temperature and might not always actually be at the temperature they claim to be at. If you love to bake like I do, I highly recommend getting an oven thermometer. They are super helpful for letting you know when your oven might be lying to you! I use this one.
ingredients for peach shortcake cake –
peach shortcake:
- All purpose flour: for structure.
- Baking powder: for helping the shortcake rise.
- Salt: for bringing out flavor in the dough and balancing the sweetness.
- Light brown sugar: we’ll use a little bit of sugar for some sweetness – and brown sugar helps add a little bit of flavor to the dough. In a pinch, feel free to use granulated or dark brown sugar here as well!
- Unsalted butter: for tenderness and making those delicious flaky layers. You can substitute in salted butter, just be sure to remove the excess salt from the dough.
- Egg: to bind the dough together.
- Kefir: I used peach kefir here to compliment the peaches on top. You can use any kefir here – just make sure it is their whole milk one and not their lowfat (1%) one. You can also substitute in buttermilk.
- Vanilla: extract or vanilla bean paste, for flavor.
homemade whipped cream & topping:
- Heavy whipping cream: the base of the whipped cream.
- Light brown sugar: for sweetness. In a pinch you can use granulated sugar here.
- Vanilla: for flavor.
- Salt: for flavor and balancing the sweetness.
- Fresh peaches: It wouldn’t be peach shortcake cake without peaches! You’ll need 2-3 large fresh peaches for topping. I used a mix of white and yellow peaches but feel free to pick your favorite!
how to make peaches and cream shortcake
- Cut the butter into the dry ingredients.
- Whisk the egg in a small bowl, then add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.
- Fold the ingredients together, then gently knead the dough into a ball.
- Split the dough between two 7″ springform pans, brush with more kefir, and bake.
- Whip up the whip cream and slice the peaches.
- Assemble, serve, and enjoy!
peach shortcake recipe q&a
can I make this ahead of time?
Yes, you can! There are two ways you could go about this.
Prepping the night before: After making the dough, shape it into two 7″ circles. Wrap them tightly in plastic wrap and leave in the fridge or freezer overnight. In the morning you can bake it off in a two 7″ pans. If baking from frozen I would recommend letting the dough sit out for 10 minutes before baking it.
Prepping further in advance: After making the dough and shaping it, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap. Freeze the dough for up to 1 month before baking.
what size pan do i need?
I use 7″ springform pans for almost all of my cakes, including this one. You could bake these off in two 8″ cake pans, just note that your layers will be shorter and will likely take less time to bake.
can I make this peach shortcake cake into mini peach shortcakes?
Yes, definitely! Just roll the dough out until it’s 1″ thick, and cut out 2.5″ – 3″ biscuits. Re-roll out the dough and cut out more biscuits. You’ll want to freeze the biscuits for 30 minutes before baking them to make sure they bake up nice and tall. Once they’re baked, slice them open and fill them with the fresh peaches and cream, then enjoy!
how to store peaches and cream shortcake
You’ll want to plan on serving this cake the day of or at the latest, the day after you bake it. Once it’s been topped with the whipped cream and peaches you’ll want to serve it within 2 hours. Otherwise, the cake will need to be stored in the fridge for the best food safety practices.
tools and ingredients:
You can find all my favorite tools and ingredients that I use on my Amazon Storefront page, here!
other recipes you might enjoy:
did you make this recipe?
I’d love to see and know your thoughts! please leave a comment and review below, and tag me on instagram @freshbeanbakery. #freshbeanbakery
Peach Shortcake Cake
Ingredients
Shortcake Cake
- 240 g all purpose flour (2 c.)
- 1 tbsp. baking powder
- ½ tsp. salt
- 100 g light brown sugar (½ c.)
- 113 g unsalted butter cold, cubed (8 tbsp.)
- 1 egg cold
- 130 g peach kefir* cold (4 ⅔ oz.)
- 1 tsp. vanilla
Fresh Whipped Cream
- 340 g heavy whipping cream (1 ½ c.)
- 2 tbsp. light brown sugar
- ⅛ tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. vanilla
- 2-3 large peaches
Instructions
Shortcake Cake
- Preheat the oven to 375°F / 190°C. Butter two 7" springform pans.
- Add the flour, baking powder, salt, and brown sugar to a medium sized mixing bowl.
- Take the butter out of the fridge and slice it into cubes.
- Add the butter to the dry ingredients. Using a pastry cutter or your fingers, cut the butter into the flour mixture until the butter pieces are quite small.
- In a separate small bowl, beat the egg.
- Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, then pour in the kefir, egg, and vanilla. Lightly mix the ingredients together, then pour the dough out onto a clean work surface.
- Use your hands to lightly knead the dough just until it comes together.
- Divide the dough into two pieces, and press them down into an even layer in both springform pans. Brush the top of the cake with extra kefir.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the top of the cake starts to turn golden brown.
- Allow the cake to fully come to room temperature before topping it with the whipped cream.
Fresh Whipped Cream
- Add the heavy whipping cream, sugar, salt, and vanilla to a medium sized mixing bowl, or to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.
- Beat the ingredients together until it reaches soft peaks.
- Rinse and slice the peaches. Layer the shortcake with the whipped cream and sliced peaches. Slice, serve, and enjoy!
Really wonderful dessert that also works so well for brunch! I didn’t find peach kefir at the store but regular kefir worked perfectly. Thank you for the recipe!