Learn how to make fresh sweetening homemade whipped cream with only 3 simple ingredients. With its light and fluffy texture, whipped cream is the perfect complement to cakes, biscuits, cupcakes, crepes, cheesecaketrifles and much more!
I originally published this recipe in 2018. and since then we’ve added some new photos, a video tutorial, and more tips for success.
One reader, Michelle, commented: “I was really surprised at how much better this tastes than store-bought whipped cream. This is easy to make and delicious. The vanilla really elevates the flavor. There is no reason to buy whipped cream again. ★★★★★“
After years of buying frozen whipped topping and cans of store-bought whipped cream filled with who the hell knows what, I can confidently say that homemade whipped cream tastes 100% better in both the texture and flavor department. Fresh Whipped Cream is made with just 3 simple ingredients and takes just a few minutes to prepare. It’s so creamy, so light and so delicious.
Whipped cream video tutorial
What you need
- Electric mixer: portable either stand mixer with whisk attachment
- mixing bowl
- Cold heavy cream or heavy whipping cream
- Sugar to sweeten
- Pure vanilla extract (or homemade vanilla extract)
A note on sugar: Some bakers swear by granulated sugar in whipped cream; others swear by powdered sugar. If you only work with a couple of tablespoons, it doesn’t really make any difference. But if you work in larger batches, you may start to taste the granulated sugar granules.
You can also use brown sugar, and I love doing that for certain desserts, like pecan pie cheesecake.
Did you know? Because we sweeten the whipped cream and flavor it with vanilla extract, this is called whipped cream in French. 🙂
How to make homemade whipped cream
- Start with cold heavy cream. The colder the cream, the easier and more successful it will be to whip. Cold cream also creates the lightest whipped cream! Slightly warm or room temperature cream is not equivalent to whipped cream. If you’re ambitious, you can even chill the bowl and whisk attachment in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or the freezer for 15 minutes.
- Beat heavy cream, sugar and vanilla on medium-high speed. This speed is perfect for whipped cream, which will incorporate air into the cream at a medium rate. I find that the high speed whips the cream easily and the low speed whips the cream easily.
- Don’t walk away! Whipped cream only takes a couple of minutes, but it’s just a few seconds between smooth whipped cream and overmixed whipped cream. Overmixed whipped cream is curdled and grainy. Soft whipped cream, the ideal sweet spot, has a smooth, wavy texture. Stay next to your mixer to know when it’s ready.
- Look for medium peaks. What are medium whipped cream peaks? When you lift the beaters or remove them from the bowl, a semi-stiff peak should form. The beak will droop slightly, but will not completely lose its shape. It will not be too soft or runny, nor heavy or curdled. Don’t be afraid to stop the mixer and check the consistency of the whipped cream as you go.
Looking for flavored whipped cream? Try adding tequila and lime like we do for these. mini margarita cheesecakesstrawberry filling how we do it strawberry shortcake cupcakesalmond extract as we do it for berry ice cream cakeor espresso powder and cocoa powder as detailed in these flourless chocolate cake and Chocolate Mocha Pudding Cake recipes. For more ideas, see all these flavors!
How to fix over-whipped cream
If you accidentally overmix the cream and it looks curdled and thick, pour in a little more heavy cream and gently fold it in by hand with a spatula until smooth.
Can whipped cream replace cold whipped cream?
Yes. This homemade whipped cream can replace Cool Whip (store-bought frozen whipped topping) in recipes. Use the same amount.
The amount of heavy cream you use doubles in volume as you whip it. So if you need 2 cups of whipped cream, use 1 cup of heavy cream. (Plus sugar to sweeten and vanilla extract).
What is the difference between heavy cream and whipping cream?
This can definitely be confusing! Their difference is in the percentage of milk fat. heavy cream and thick whipped cream Contains 36% milk fat and whipping cream (no “heavy” in the title) is a little lighter, at 30% dairy fat.
They can all be used interchangeably in most recipes, but when it comes to whipped cream, heavy cream or heavy whipping cream will hold their shape longer. They are ideal for homemade whipped cream.
Can I pipe this whipped cream with nozzles?
Yes, you can put this whipped cream on your desserts. I recommend using large star tips and my favorites include Wilton 8B (as shown in this lemon cake), Wilton 1M (as shown in this ice cream cake and blueberry cream pie), and Ateco 849 (as shown in this cookies and cream cake). You can also spread whipped cream on your candy using a knife, large spoon, or icing spatula.
For a sturdier whipped cream that you can use as a stable frosting for layer cakes, try my whipped frosting. It’s exactly what we use for this. cookies and cream cakewith the addition of Oreos!
What to serve with homemade whipped cream
There are so many options!
- Pavlovaof course!
- Berry and Lemon Trifle
- Angel Food Cupcakes
- strawberry cake
- Banana Cream Pie
- Ice Cream Cake with Homemade Hot Chocolate Fudge
- Dark Chocolate Bread Pudding
- Cheesecake, Cheesecake with lemoneither Cheesecake
- Choux pastry & eclairs
- Lemon Cake
- pumpkin pie, Pumpkin Cheesecakeeither sweet potato pie (or really any of your thanksgiving pies!)
- Pumpkin Pie Bars either Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake
- crepes or in Tiramisu Crepe Cake
- Slow Cooker Hot Chocolate
- Walnut pie either Walnut and dark chocolate cake
- Flourless chocolate cake
- Chocolate Lava Cakes either Peanut Butter Lava Cakes
- Cream cheese and strawberry cake
- Cheesecake with pecan pie
- Banana and Peanut Butter Cream Pie
- Turtle and Caramel Brownie Cake
- key lime pie either Key lime pie bars
- Peanut Butter Ice Cream Pie
- Apple cake
- millefeuille (alone or mixed with pastry cream!)
- Dutch Baby Pancake
- Pan Brownie
- As a filling for your favorite cupcake recipe (see my How to fill cupcakes tutorial to know exactly how to do this, very easy!)
And in ice creams, smoothies, waffles, pancakes, berries and many more wonderful ones. dessert recipes!
Homemade Whipped Cream
Preparation time:
5 minutes
Cooking time:
0 minutes
Total time:
5 minutes
Produce:
2 cups
Category:
Cold
Method:
Baking
Kitchen:
American
Description
Learn how to make fresh, sweetened homemade whipped cream with just 3 simple ingredients. With its light, wavy texture, it’s the perfect topping for pies, cakes, cupcakes, cheesecakes, trifles and more!
Instructions
- Using a portable either stand mixer Using a whisk attachment, beat heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla extract on medium-high speed until medium peaks form, about 3 to 4 minutes. Medium peaks fall between soft/loose peaks and stiff peaks, and are the perfect consistency for topping and decorating desserts. If you accidentally over-beat the cream and it looks curdled and thick, pour in a little more cold heavy cream and gently fold it in by hand with a spatula until smooth.
- Use immediately or cover tightly and chill in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. Freezing prepared whipped cream sometimes causes it to lose its creamy texture, but it definitely works.
Grades
- Make instructions in advance: Use immediately or cover tightly and chill in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. Freezing prepared whipped cream sometimes causes it to lose its creamy texture, but it definitely works.
- Special tools (affiliate links): Electric mixer (Portable either Stop)
- Double batch: This recipe can easily be doubled or tripled. The amount of heavy cream you use doubles in volume as you whip it. So if you need 2 cups of whipped cream, use 1 cup of heavy cream.
- Sugar: Some bakers swear by granulated sugar in whipped cream; Others rely on icing (powdered or icing) sugar. You can also use brown sugar. If you’re working with just a couple tablespoons of sugar as called for in the recipe above, it really doesn’t make any difference. But if you work in larger batches, you may start to taste granulated sugar granules, so powdered sugar is the way to go.
