Hull the strawberries and cut 2 pints into quarters.
Crush the remaining pint with a potato or avocado masher.
Place all of the strawberries in a bowl and mix in the sugar. Set the mixture aside while you make the rest of the recipe.
MAKE THE STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE BISCUITS:
Move the oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 425° F.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and 3 Tablespoons of sugar.
Use a box grater to shred the butter into the flour mixture. Then, use your hands to toss the butter and flour together until the butter is coated.
Then, use a pastry cutter or two forks to cut the butter into the flour. You know it’s mixed when the butter pieces are the size of split peas.
Whisk together the half-and-half and the egg in a liquid measuring cup. Pour it into the flour mixture and stir with a fork until large dough clumps form.
Then, flour a clean work surface and dump the dough onto the counter. Knead until it comes together and no flour bits remain. DO NOT OVER-MIX!
Gently press the dough into a 9-inch by 6-inch rectangle that is about ¾ of an inch thick. Flour a 2 ¾-inch biscuit cutter and cut the dough into 6 rounds.
Spread the dough rounds out onto a baking sheet, and brush the tops with egg white. Sprinkle with the remaining 2 Tablespoons of sugar.
Bake until the shortcakes are golden brown, about 12-14 minutes. Put the baking sheet on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes.
MAKE THE WHIPPED CREAM:
Pour the heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla into a bowl of a stand mixer or into a large bowl.
Using a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or a handheld mixer, mix the cream on low until small bubbles begin to form, about 30 seconds.
Next, increase the speed to medium and mix until the whisk attachment or beaters leave a trail, about 30 more seconds.
Then, increase the speed to high and mix until the cream whipped smooth, thick, and almost doubled in size, about 30 seconds for soft peaks and 40 seconds for stiff peaks.
TO FINISH:
Split or cut each of the shortcakes in half crosswise.
Spoon ⅙ of the strawberry topping onto the bottom of the shortcake, followed by a healthy dollop of the whipped cream.
Finally, top with the shortcake top and serve right away!
Notes
You can store the cut biscuit dough in the refrigerator up to 4 hours in advance. Just make sure you cover the pan with plastic wrap.
You can use the leftover scraps of dough to make 2 more shortcakes. Just briefly re-knead the dough, pat it out into a 3/4 inch tall circle, and cut with the biscuit cutter.