Use an electric mixer or stand mixer to beat the butter and 1/2 cup of powdered sugar together until it’s light and fluffy, about 4 minutes

Beat in 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the flour, cornmeal, and salt together

Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, beating at a low speed until combined.

Roll the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and use your hands to lightly knead it into a ball then divide the dough in half

Flatten each piece of dough slightly into disks, and wrap in beeswax or saran wrap

Refrigerate the dough for at least one hour

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350F

Roll one disk of dough out on a lightly floured work surface until about 1/4″ thick

Prepare the berries by adding them in a small mixing bowl with the sugar

Place this in the refrigerator while you bake the cookies

Use a large 4-inch cutter to cut 4 round cookies out of the dough

Re-roll the dough to get at least one more cookie, I was able to get two more

Cut a star from the centre of each cookie (If you have a cookie cutter, use that. If not, use a sharp knife to cut a star out by hand)

Carefully move the cookies to a baking sheet

Bake for about 12-14 minutes, until they are lightly golden

While those bake, roll out the second piece of dough and cut 4-inch circles again (do NOT cut stars out of these cookies as they will be the bottom of the shortcakes)

Let the cookies cool for about 5 minutes before moving to a wire rack to complete the cooling

Bake the second batch of cookies

While the cookies cool, prepare the filling by mixing the cream cheese, 1/4 cup of powdered sugar, and 1/2 tsp of vanilla in a medium bowl until creamy and smooth

In a separate medium mixing bowl, whisk the heavy cream on medium-high until soft peaks form

Mix 1/4 of the cream into the cream cheese mixture

Gently fold the rest of the whipped cream into the cream cheese filling until combined

Once the cookies are completely cool, assemble them by putting about 1/4 cup of the filling mixture onto each circle cookie WITHOUT a star cutout

Carefully layer some of the fruit on top of the filling and close with a star-cut cookie

Add a few more pieces of fruit to the top if desired

Dust with powdered sugar before serving