Strawberry Shortcakes with Pomegranate Molasses and Black Pepper

We are soooo close to some actual spring weather here in Brooklyn. The chilly mornings are breaking way to the occasional sunny day and before long we’ll be up to our ears in summer abundance. Today’s recipe is perfect for that first batch of strawberries you get a hold of this summer, an exciting twist on a classic.

This recipe comes from Marie Havnoe Frank ‘s cookbook, More Than Sweet which comes out tomorrow! I fell really hard for this book and I think if you’ve been following me for a minute here, you’ll see why. Marie’s recipes swing the doors wide open on the pantry ingredients you may not be used to seeing in desserts but should absolutely be utilizing. She provides the guidance and confidence you need to play with spices, teas, and herbs to liven up your next cake, cookie, or batch of ice cream.

The fine folks at Hardie Grant were kind enough to allow me to ask Marie a few questions about her book and to give away two copies here in my newsletter! To enter the drawing, just make sure you’re subscribed to me and Marie and leave a comment below! Winners will be randomly selected and notified by April 24th. Limited to the US only.

Many of the recipes in your book blur the line between traditionally savory ingredients and more common baking flavors. Is there a moment you can recall where your eyes were first opened to this way of baking?

I talk quite a bit about my mother, who was a language teacher for immigrants, and her students in the book. Growing up whenever there were celebrations at the school, a lot of the students would cook and bring sweet and savory dishes to the parties. The savoury dishes blended so many flavors. Sweet, salty, acidic, spiced. And then the dessert table would feature Middle Eastern desserts that were typically very sweet and fragrant next to Asian desserts that were milder, saltier, less sweet. Somehow that stuck with me for years after, that there are no “rules” of what a dessert actually is and what is is made of.

You share several recipes for ice cream, after making so many different flavors, how do you decide if an experimental flavor is a success? Is there a flavor that just doesn’t work well as an ice cream?

I always test my recipes on friends, family and even my kids. They all know that I want brutal honesty, and especially my kids have taken the brutality to heart. Except from a spectacularly disastrous ramson / wild garlic ice cream I have rarely found something that just doesn’t work. Typically I separate them into “scoop ice cream flavors” I could eat all on their own and “component ice cream flavors” that work better as a part of a dessert. I don’t know, I am quite an adventurous ice cream eater, I like everything from durian to vanilla. Oh, I personally really don’t like beetroot in ice cream/sorbet, but I think that is one of the few.

You’ve been very consistent and successful here on Substack. As you were working on the book, was it difficult to decide which recipes you would save for the book and hold back from posting on your newsletter?

It was awful! Every single time I finally got to a point where I loved a recipe, I wanted to take it straight to the Substack. I had a support pastry friend who consistently reminded me I had to save them for the book.

If you gifted your book to someone very new to baking but with ample enthusiasm, is there a single recipe or section of the book that you would encourage them to tackle first?

Good question! The cookies would be a good place to start. Single recipe, yes the coconut rice pudding with basil caramel is so easy to make and is one of my personal favourites in the whole book. It is a great gateway to understand all the little ways I try to show how you can infuse more flavor into your desserts throughout the book. The rice pudding has lemon zest, vanilla and all spice added to the coconut milk and the basil in the caramel adds this lovely herbal spiciness that cuts through the sweetness.

Today’s recipe from Marie Frank

Strawberry, or any berry, shortcakes are the perfect dessert to make for those in your life who are not cake people. I am married to a “not cake” person, so I would know. For me, the contrast between the salty, slightly warm shortcake (which is more like a biscuit), whipped cream, and macerated fresh fruit is perfection, hitting just enough of the sweet spots to still feel like a dessert without actually being cakey. In this version, the strawberries are macerated with tart-sweet pomegranate molasses and aromatic black peppercorns to balance the rich sweetness of the sweetened whipped cream and buttery biscuits.

Makes 8 shortcakes

Shortcakes:

280g all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

40g granulated sugar

2½ teaspoons baking powder

¾ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon ground cardamom

115g cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes

½ cup plus 3 tablespoons cold heavy cream

Demerara sugar, for sprinkling

Macerated Strawberries with Pomegranate Molasses & Black Pepper:

300g (2 cups) fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

2 tablespoons pomegranate molasses

¼ teaspoon salt, plus more as needed

Freshly cracked black pepper

Whipped Cream:

2 cups heavy cream

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Make the shortcakes:

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F / 220°C. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

2. Sift the flour into a large bowl and whisk together with the granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, and cardamom. Add the butter and rub it into the flour mixture until the texture is similar to coarse breadcrumbs (you can use a pastry cutter or food processor for this step). Add the 1/2 cup cold cream and quickly stir to form a soft dough.

3. Turn out the dough onto a floured surface and briefly knead for 20 to 30 seconds until the dough just comes together. Roll out the dough until it is about 1 inch and use a 2 1/2 inch cookie cutter to cut out eight biscuits.

4. Place the biscuits 3 inches apart on the prepared pan. Brush the tops of the biscuits with the 3 tablespoons cream and sprinkle with demerara sugar. Bake the biscuits for 18 to 20 minutes, until golden brown and well risen.

5. Remove the pan from the oven and leave the biscuits to cool on the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool until just slightly warm.

Macerate the strawberries:

1. Gently crush one-quarter of the strawberries with the sugar and pomegranate molasses in a medium bowl, then fold in the remaining strawberries. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Leave to macerate for 30 minutes.

Make the whipped cream:

1. Combine the cream, sugar, and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment, and whisk on low speed until the cream just begins to thicken. Increase the speed to medium and whisk until it reaches the soft-peak stage.

2. Slice each shortcake in half and place the bottom halves on serving plates. Place a spoonful of macerated strawberries and a dollop of whipped cream on each, then place the top half of the shortcakes on top. Serve immediately.

Excerpted with permission from More Than Sweet: Desserts with Flavor by Marie Frank, published by ‎Hardie Grant Publishing, April 2026