Strawberry and Guava Compote

• Slice off the caps and thinly slice the strawberries lengthwise.
• Heat up a stainless steel or cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Once heated, add the strawberries.
• Add a pinch of salt and a tablespoon of sugar. Cook for about 2 minutes. The water released by the strawberries and the sugar will start to form a syrup.
• Add the Cointreau and the guava marmalade. Cook until the syrup gets thick, another 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and let it cool. If you want, you can place in the refrigerator to speed up the cooling. 

Whipped Cream

• Place the bowl and the whip attachment in the freezer for a few minutes. This will make it easier to make the whipped cream.
• Once it’s very cold, remove from the freezer and add the whipping cream. Start to beat on high and while it’s beating, add two tablespoons of granulated sugar and two teaspoons of vanilla paste. Beat until stiff peaks form, about 2 1/2 to 3 minutes. 
• You need the whipping cream to be stiff to hold the layers in place. If the cream is too soft, the layers will slide and the shortcake stack will be slanted. 

Shortcake Stack:

• Take the cellophane cake collar affiliate link and roll it into a tube to the same circumference as the Maria Cracker. Tape the ends to form a cylinder. 
• Place a Maria Cracker on the bottom of the cylinder, add two tablespoons of whipped cream. Place another Maria Cracker on top and use the wineglass or other narrow tool to gently and evenly press down on the cracker until there’s no air between the cracker layers and the whipped cream is evenly distributed.
• If you don’t have the cake collar, you can gently press the layers evenly and run your finger around the edge to redistribute the whipped cream evenly. Fill in any gaps with a little extra whipped cream. 
• Repeat twice if you want 3 layers of whipped cream. End with a Maria Cracker as the top layer. You can also add a fourth layer of whipped cream. In that case, the yield will be five cakes, instead of six. 
• If you’re using the sleeve, you’ll remove the sleeve by  gently pressing down on the cracker stack (to keep the layers together, pull the plastic cake liner sleeve up and off). But be careful, if you press too hard, you’ll mess up the stack once the collar is off.
• Place the stacks in a covered container in an even layer. Refrigerator 4 hours or overnight. 
• Reserved the remaining whipped cream for serving. 

Just Before Serving

• Add a tablespoon or two of whipped cream on top and add with the compote over the cream. Use a dessert spoon to make a slight indent in the whipping cream, so the compote remains mostly in place. It’s OK to have a little bit drizzling down the side. Actually, it’s even better that way.