Blueberry cardamom shortcakes

Shortcakes are Benjamina Ebuehi's go-to for a quick and easy afternoon treat that never fail to go down well with a crowd, especially this version with citrus notes of cardamom and juicy, syrupy blueberries

Ingreadient

• 250g blueberries
• 50g caster sugar
• 1 unwaxed lemon, zest, plus juice of ½
• 400g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
• 80g caster sugar
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 6 cardamom pods, husks discarded, seeds ground to make ½ tsp powder
• 140g unsalted butter, cold and diced
• 300ml double cream
• 3 tbsp milk, if needed
• 2 tbsp demerara sugar
• 1 tsp icing sugar, plus extra to dust
• ¼ tsp vanilla extract

Step by step

1. Preheat the oven to 200ºC, gas mark 6. Line a baking tray with baking parchment. Put the blueberries, sugar, lemon zest and juice in a small saucepan. Heat gently, stirring occasionally until the blueberries are soft and syrupy. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.
2. For the shortcakes, put the flour, sugar, baking powder, cardamom and ¼ tsp salt into a large bowl. Add the butter and, using your fingertips, rub it into the flour until you have a coarse mixture with a few visible lumps of butter.
3. Make a well in the centre and pour in 200ml cream. Use a table knife to stir it together, until the mix begins to clump together. If it still looks quite dry, add the milk.
4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and pat into a rough rectangle, about 2cm thick. Fold both ends into the centre, turn it 90 degrees and, using a rolling pin, roll it gently into a rectangle, approximately 20 x 12cm. Cut the dough into 6 equal squares and place them on the baking tray, leaving a bit of space between them.
5. Brush the tops sparingly with cream and sprinkle over the demerara sugar. Bake for 15-18 minutes, until well risen and golden. Let them cool on a wire rack.
6. In a separate bowl, whip the remaining cream, icing sugar and vanilla until you form soft peaks. Break the shortcakes in ½, then top with a dollop of cream and a spoonful of the warmed blueberries. Dust with a little icing sugar to serve, if liked.