Remember Dinneen? We met her a couple of days ago when she shared the story of how she went to France and saw how they ate … and how much healthier they were.
Today I returned the favor and wrote up a recipe on Dinneen’s site. If you’re coming over from Dinneen’s to find the recipe for whipped cream I mentioned, here it is.
Ingredients
1 pint heavy cream
1 tablespoon sugar
Directions
Learn this one simple technique and you’ll improve your desserts for the rest of your life.
Just put one pint of heavy cream (I’m showing double this amount in the pictures) and one tablespoon of sugar in a bowl and mix on high speed until it thickens.
I tried to do this with the stand mixer, but after a couple of minutes all it was doing was splattering everywhere. So I transferred it to another bowl and started over with the hand mixer.
The counter-rotating beaters work better than the orbital whisk on the stand mixer. I’m not exactly sure why, except that the stand mixer was stirring more than it was beating it.
You’ll notice it starting to gain in volume, then suddenly start forming soft peaks. Don’t stop when it’s the consistency you’re used to from the stuff in the blue tub or the red can. Real cream gets much thicker than either of those.
And that’s it. It’s ready to put on top of pie, fruit, pancakes …
… If you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a little of this left in the fridge. I think I’m going to put it on top of a banana smoothie.
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25 Comments
Real whipped cream. Is there anything better? I will suggest that no, there isn’t. This is what I think of when I think of whipped cream. Just like my mom used to make. And like I still do, of course.
Drew – I’m a tiny bit confused! A LONG time ago, when I was but a wee lass, and was taught to whip cream, I was told NOT to add sugar or vanilla until it was all whipped up, or it wouldn’t whip.
It actually whipped when you put the sugar in before whipping? Does it affect the whip-ness to add it before? Just curious…
I always whip it about halfway, till it starts to thicken, and then add the sugar and vanilla as I keep whipping.
Drew, I put 1 tsp of vanilla into mine, and I put a lot more sugar than 1 tbsp…I like it sweet.
Also, it’s pretty damn good if you sub out the vanilla for some Bailey’s.
Bob, I’m not sure there’s anything better, but if there is I’ll bet it has bacon in it.
Charlene, maybe when you’re whipping it by hand it makes a difference. And maybe that’s why it didn’t whip properly in the stand mixer. Something for me to try next time.
Melissa, I’m actually toying with the idea of adding a teaspoon of cocoa powder. Lots of ideas now.
I adore homemade whipped cream. I don’t make a whole lot of desserts anymore, but I have made this in the past to go on pies (usually around the holidays).
I can’t keep my finger out of the bowl to swipe a taste before serving.
It’s a mandatory tasting, lol.
KitchenWench, that’s just quality control, right? *wink, wink*
I’ve never made whipped cream from scratch…what kind of cook am I!? Will put this on the to do list for my next dessert.
Well, Drew, you CAN put other stuff/flavorings in whipped cream… here’s an example…
Spiced Cream
Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse, 2000 – Saved March 28, 2005
Copyright © 2003 Television Food Network, G.P., All Rights Reserved
1 quart heavy cream
¼ cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1. Beat the cream with an electric mixer on high speed in a large mixing bowl for about 2 minutes.
2. Add the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg and beat again until the mixture thickens and forms stiff peaks, another 1 to 2 minutes.
Yield: 4 cups
Oh, as for chocolate… cocoa powder will work fine but look up Chocolate Whipped Cream on the internet and you will find recipes for chocolate melted (like ganache) and then whipped. Yum!
To prevent the splatter when making whip cream (or anything splatter-y) in the Stand Mixer, wrap some saran wrap around the bowl. Works AMAZING. Can’t take credit – saw it on Big Red Kitchen last week and I’ve used it twice since.
I made coffee-flavored whip cream for a homemade ice cream cake last week. Just brewed up some extra strong coffee, cooled it in the fridge and added it about 3/4 of the way through the whipping process. Delicious!
Wench, you washed your hands, right? So no harm, no foul.
April, you’re the kind who’s never made whipped cream. Duh.
Barb, that sounds like it’s already got the pie flavors in it. What would you put it on that it wouldn’t be too much?
Alyssa, I’ve seen the plastic wrap trick. But I’ve got this mental block where my inner voice keeps saying, “You just need to be more careful. Try it again.”
I love making fresh whipped cream. I’ll put a little vanilla in sometimes.
As an experiment, I tried making butter. I used my immersion blender and I did pretty well. I also got to taste real buttermilk. I would hear from my grandfather how he would buttermilk growing up and couldn’t figure out why he would drink it (thinking of the stuff in the stores now). Now I know. Very refreshing.
Yes…quality control.
Drew, I am a hand-washing freak when it comes to cooking, well, mainly before I cook, after I taste with a finger (just in case I, ahem, have to taste again), or if I get raw eggs and meat on my hands.
Outside the kitchen, though, is another story, lol.
Add a pinch of salt and a splash of vanilla to take it Way Over The Top. Either way, though, this is far superior to anything in a Can or Tub from the grocery store:)
Jenni, what does the salt do for it, taste or texture?
Nothing beats real whipped cream…
I have never tried whipping cream with sugar in it from the start, I always whip about 60% with no sugar, then add the sugar and whip until 95%, then add the vanilla extract. Using this method the cream stays whipped for a good 24 hours covered and refrigerated.
As for the splattering in your stand mixer, try whipping the liquid cream on a lower setting until it firms up. It might take an extra 2 minutes but it won’t be messy.
Drew, if you’re going to make chocolate whipped cream, you need way more than a tsp of cocoa – a tsp is barely a taste. That’s just madness.
My mom’s recipe calls for 1 to 1.5 tbsp (heaping, of course) of cocoa. I’ve never tried the melted chocolate version, simply because it’s so much easier to add cocoa. Also, I find the cocoa gives it a different texture – makes it more dense and substantial, which is all kinds of awesome!
Also, here’s a couple of tricks I learned from my mom:
1) Chill the bowl and the beaters in the freezer to make it whip faster; and
2) Make it in a glass bowl and it will keep longer and not separate as quickly.
Mmmmmmmmm, now I need to think of something to make that calls for whipped cream.
Real whipped cream is the absolute best ever. I usually add either a tsp of vanilla extract or a half tsp of almond extract for that extra sweetness…so good! I started making my own whipped cream a few years ago and I pretty much refuse to eat the packaged stuff anymore…my husband once brought home a tub of Cool Whip (to put on my homemade cherry cheesecake, I don’t think so!) and I about whipped it at him, haha.
I have never had trouble making it in my stand mixer, but I generally don’t do more than a pint at a time–if you do the smaller batch it whips up great in the KitchenAid.
And forget the banana smoothie, just give me a spoon!
Oh yeah and to do it in the stand mixer you want to start it on a lower speed until it starts to firm up a little bit, there’s less splatter that way
When I make smaller batches of whipped cream, I do it by hand. I put the bowl and whisk in the freezer for a few minutes. I also do like Melissa: whip until it starts to thicken, then add sugar, vanilla or other flavorings. I do this if whipping by hand or with a mixer.
Sounds delicious!! Adding heavy cream to next week’s grocery list right now… funny, as we were just talking about wanting whipped cream for the huge strawberries we have.
Thanks — can’t wait to try this!!
Peter, I don’t know if there’s anything special about how I did it, but I made this batch on the second and just used the last of it last night. It hadn’t started to separate at all yet.
Melissa, thanks for the tip on the cocoa. That would have been frustrating working up a half-teaspoon at a time.
Tamara, I didn’t do the banana smoothie. I made shakes with some chocolate ice cream I made that was too chocolaty. Yes, I said it … too chocolaty.
Wosnes, I’m a huge fan of “from scratch” but don’t really care about “by hand”. If there’s a tool for it, I’m there.
Jennifer, fresh strawberries? Me is jealous.
Bob wrote: “Real whipped cream. Is there anything better? I will suggest that no, there isn’t.”
To which Drew replied: “Bob, I’m not sure there’s anything better, but if there is I’ll bet it has bacon in it.”
In other words, “Whipped cream is the best there is” and the old standby, “Everything is better with bacon!” But, hey, am I the only one who saw the logical conclusion of putting these two together?!?
The absolute Uber-Food Of The Gods, the thing that is *better* than best, must perforce be: Whipped Cream With Bacon!
So when will you try this out for us, Drew?
I could pull this off by doing bacon ice cream and topping it with whipped cream. But you probably would ask for a more “pure” example. Hmm, have to think on this.
Heck no, that’s way good enough for me! (especially as I was mostly kidding…) But off to read Strawberries and Cream and Bacon Bacon Bacon I am!
(Thanks go to Google for the help in finding the relevant posts.)
Oo, I made it and had to leave a second comment — it’s delicious!!
It was so fun watching the cream fluff up and I was so giddily proud of myself when it was actual whipped cream. Hehe! And I couldn’t help myself, I bought more of those fresh strawberries for dipping! Mmmmmm…
My husband, who didn’t think he’d like it, was even asking me for some today.
Thanks again, Drew!!