Chocolate Strawberry Shortcake With Strawberry Sauce

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450 F.
2. In a food processor, combine the flour, baking pwdr, cocoa pwdr, sugar, baking soda, and salt. Add in the butter and chocolate chips and process till crumbly. While processing, add in the lowfat milk and process till the mix is crumbly again, but will hold together when pinched with fingers.
3. Turn out the moistened dough onto a lightly floured surface and form into a ball. Flatten the dough into a circle to a 1-inch thickness. With a 2-inch round cutter, cut out 12 to 16 shortcakes and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or possibly wax paper. Bake for 13 min. Let cold slightly.
4. Ladle 2 Tbsp. of the Strawberry Sauce in the well of each dessert plate. Place the bottom half of 2 shortcakes on the sauce in each plate.
5. Cover with 4 Tbsp. sauce, 2 Tbsp. of the chilled Whipped Cream, and the top half of each shortcake. Ladle 4 more Tbsp. sauce over the shortcakes and top with 2 Tbsp. whipped cream. Garnish with the mint leaves and serve immediately.
6. YIELD: 6 TO 8 SERVINGS
7. Strawberry Sauce:In a food processor, puree the whole strawberries. Pour the puree into a large bowl and stir in the sugar and orange juice. Mix in the sliced strawberries.
8. Whipped Cream:In a medium-sized bowl, whip the cream with an electric mixer on high speed. When the cream begins to thicken, beat in the sugar and vanilla.
9. Chill.
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