Strawberry Shortcake Cups with Lemony Pound Cake

Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease a loaf pan with baking spray and line the bottom with parchment paper, leaving a slight overhang on the sides.

Then, whisk the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and Kosher salt in a small bowl. Set aside.

Pour the sugar and lemon zest into a large mixing bowl. Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, beat the sugar and lemon zest until it's very fragrant and the lemon zest has released its oils, about 30-60 seconds. Then, add the unsalted butter and beat for 3-4 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl every once in a while, until the butter is very light and fluffy.

Add the eggs one at a time. The mixture may look a little curdled, but it'll smooth out! Once the eggs are thoroughly combined, mix in the vanilla extract and sour cream. Then, add the dry ingredients and stir just until there are no more streaks of flour. Don't over-mix! The batter will be thick.

Evenly spread the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Bake the cake, starting to check for doneness at 1 hour. Depending on the size of your loaf pan, it can take up to 1 hour and 20 minutes to bake. If it starts to brown too much, tent the top of the pan with foil. The cake is ready when an inserted toothpick has just a few moist crumbs on it.

Let the cake cool completely on a wire rack. Then, use the parchment paper overhang to carefully remove the pound cake from the pan. Using a bread knife, cut the pound cake into small cubes, about 1/2-inch.

While the cake is baking, whisk the plain gelatin and water in a small bowl until smooth. Let the mixture sit for 3-4 minutes, until it's solid. Then, microwave the mixture until it's liquid-y, 8-10 seconds. Let it cool slightly.

Meanwhile, add the heavy whipping cream, sugar, and vanilla extract to a large mixing bowl. Using a stand mixer or hand mixer with a whip attachment, beat the cream into soft peaks.

Then, while the mixer is running, slowly drizzle the melted gelatin mixture into the whipped cream. Turn the mixer to medium-high and beat the cream into medium-stiff peaks.

Cut the stems off of the strawberries and thinly slice into bite-size pieces. Add the strawberries to a medium bowl.

Add the sugar and Triple Sec or orange juice. Stir well. Then, let the strawberries macerate for 5-10 minutes, until the sugar is dissolved and the strawberries have released some of their juices.

Add a layer of pound cake cubes to each cup followed by a spoonful of strawberries. Leave any extra strawberry juices behind so it doesn't make the cake soggy!

Using a piping bag with a large round tip, pipe a thin layer of whipped cream over the strawberries. Repeat with one more layer of cake, strawberries, and whipped cream. Enjoy!