This recipe for blueberry shortcake is vanilla ice cream and homemade blueberry sauce sandwiched between lemon shortcake and finished off with whipped cream. This easy and elegant dessert is perfect for any occasion!
Move over strawberry shortcake, there’s a new summery fruit recipe in town! This blueberry shortcake with vanilla ice cream just can’t be beat.
Spring has sprung here in California and I couldn’t be happier about it! The temperature is a constant 70 degrees, the trees are full of blossoms and my twins will be turning 5 (!!) in April. Another thing I’m looking forward to is spring produce – asparagus is already here and berries will be soon to follow. I couldn’t resist the other day and picked up a giant container of blueberries. We ate some of the berries as a snack and the rest I used to make blueberry shortcake – this dessert is the epitome of spring!
How do you make blueberry shortcake?
This blueberry shortcake has a couple of components – a simple lemon shortcake, blueberry sauce, vanilla ice cream and whipped cream. The end result is a dessert that’s the perfect finish for a special occasion. The shortcake dough takes about 5 minutes to make with the help of a food processor, it doesn’t get much easier than that!
How do you make blueberry sauce?
The blueberry sauce is simply blueberries, sugar and lemon juice thickened with a bit of cornstarch. I stir extra blueberries into the sauce after it’s cooked, I love the combination of the cooked and fresh berries. After the blueberry sauce is ladled over the bottom of the shortcakes, I put a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.
Vanilla Ice Cream is the perfect match for the sweet and tangy blueberry sauce and buttery shortcake. Add a dollop of whipped cream on top and you’ve got a dessert that looks fancy but is actually quite easy to make. The shortcakes and blueberry sauce can even be made a day in advance, I love the make-ahead convenience factor.
This blueberry shortcake received rave reviews – one of my friends even went so far as to say that it’s one of the best desserts she’s ever had. Blueberries and lemon are a classic combination for a reason, and when you pair those flavors with ice cream you end up with an amazingly delicious springtime treat.
If you love ice cream as much as I do, head on over to the Blue Bunny® website to get more information about the products and some great recipe ideas. For more cool and refreshing treats, check out my list of 25 Popsicle Recipes.
So tell me, is it spring where you live or are you still in your winter coat? Are you looking forward to anything this spring? I know what I’m looking forward to – making these blueberry shortcakes again soon!
More fruit dessert recipes you’ll enjoy
Blueberry Shortcake
Ingredients
- 3 cups of Blue Bunny® Homemade Vanilla ice cream
For the whipped cream
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
For the shortcakes
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 4 tablespoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter cut into cubes
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- 2 egg divided use
- zest of 1 lemon
- 2 tablespoons coarse sugar (optional)
For the blueberry sauce
- 3 cups fresh blueberries divided use
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- Optional garnish: fresh mint sprigs
Instructions
- For the shortcakes:
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, and butter in a food processor. Pulse for 5 seconds at a time until the mixture resembles coarse sand.
- Transfer the mixture to a large bowl. Add 1 egg, cream and lemon zest; mixing the until a dough is formed.
- Place the dough on a floured surface and form it into a ball. Flatten the dough until you end up with a disc that's approximately 1 inch tall.
- Cut the disc diagonally to form 6 triangles. Beat the second egg in a small bowl and brush the tops of the shortcakes with the egg. Sprinkle the coarse sugar evenly over the tops (this is optional but it looks really pretty!).
- Bake on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper for 15-18 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool for 5 minutes then remove the shortcakes from the baking sheet and cool on a wire rack. While the shortcakes are in the oven, prepare the blueberry sauce and whipped cream.
- For the blueberry sauce:
- Combine 2 cups of the blueberries, sugar and lemon juice in a pot. Place the pot over high heat, boil for 3-4 minutes or until blueberries have just started to break down. Mix together the cornstarch with 1 teaspoon cold water. Add the cornstarch mixture to the blueberries and boil for 1 additional minute until sauce thickens slightly. Remove from heat and stir in the remaining cup of blueberries; set aside to cool.
- For the whipped cream:
- Place 1/2 cup heavy cream in the bowl of a mixer; beat with a whisk attachment until stiff peaks form; add 2 tablespoons of sugar and beat for an additional 30 seconds to combine.
- To assemble:
- Using a serrated knife, slice the shortcakes in half. Place 1/3 cup of blueberry sauce onto the bottom of each shortcake and top with 1/2 cup of ice cream. Add the top piece of the shortcake.
- Place a dollop of whipped cream on top and serve, garnished with mint sprigs and lemon slices if desired.
I use this great shortcake recipe with any of the summer fruits or berries! Always comes out perfect!
OMG! This was awesome! Not too difficult to make but wonderful to eat!
It was so good! Thank you so much for sharing! (we didn’t have vanilla ice cream, but it still turned out lovely!)
This was devine! So easy to make, beautifully presented and is sure to impress. Thank you so much for sharing!
I made this for the family and was so taken with the ease and deliciousness I decided to make it for a luncheon I was helping to cater. We had 45 pretty demanding women and everyone loved it! I used the frozen bags of mixed berries for the compote. It was delicious, beautiful and quite affordable! Officially my new favorite dessert!
I’m so happy to hear that everyone enjoyed it, thanks for reporting back!
Awesome thanks
You have found my weakness… I just Can’t… resist! Love the idea of blueberries instead of strawberries in this shortcake!
This just screams SPRING!!! I love fresh blueberries and look forward to using them just like this each season!
What a stunning dessert! If it tastes half as good as it looks, then I’m with your friend – probably the best!
Wow! Beautiful and yummy! I also like the Blue Bunny ice cream new packaging !
Holy guacamole! This is a beautiful, beautiful recipe! It is so springy! I’m so thrilled by the season (here in AZ so temps are awesome), and this is definitely something to celebrate with! Lovely!
Nothing says springtime more than lemon + blueberry! I’m so excited to try the Blue Bunny flavors in their new packaging! #client
Gorgeous! Love the shine in that blueberry sauce! I still have some leftover in my freezer from last year’s harvest that would be perfect for this dessert!
That’s the kind of dessert that I would order in a restaurant. I can’t wait to make it at home!
our weather has been SO incredible, I wish it lasted longer. I know that before long it will be HOT. but cooing off with shortcake and ice cream is okay by me 🙂