how to make whipped cream

Homemade Whipped Cream is easy to make at home with simple ingredients! I’ll walk you through everything you need to know to make, stabilize, pipe, and even flavor whipped cream in this in-depth post! It’s the perfect, refreshing topping for cheesecakes, pies, cakes, and more.

this recipe

Why you’ll love Homemade Whipped Cream:

• Easy to Make – This refreshing treat is made in minutes with just 3 basic ingredients.
• Delicious, Fresh Flavor – Homemade whipped cream has a delicious fresh taste that the store-bought stuff just can’t compete with.
• Customizable – Once you’ve mastered whipped cream, you can have fun with piping it, or adding different flavors!

Ingredient Overview:

As always, the full recipe with measurements & directions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post. Use the table of contents (back at the top, below the first image, to navigate).

• Heavy Cream – Use cold heavy whipping cream (the same thing as heavy cream). Note that heavy cream doubles in volume as it’s whipped, so if you start with 1/2 cup of cream, you’ll have about 1 cup of whipped cream. This makes it easy to decide how much you’ll need without necessarily following a recipe every time!
• Vanilla – You can use vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste. I love using vanilla bean paste because it leaves those beautiful little flecks of vanilla in the white whipped cream.
• Powdered Sugar – Powdered sugar is the best option for whipped cream so you don’t end up with a grainy texture.
• Gelatin – You can find plain gelatin in the baking aisle near the jello. This is what I use to stabilize my whipped cream. You can read more about that a few sections below.

Recipe Substitutions & Variations:

• Gluten-free – This recipe is naturally gluten-free!
• Dairy-free – I’ve had good success using dairy-free heavy cream to make whipped cream. Be sure to use a brand you already trust.
• Flavored Whipped Cream – You can sometimes add flavor to your whipped cream through cocoa powder, freeze dried fruit powder, or lemon/orange juice.
• Light Whipping Cream – I do not recommend using light whipping cream, it has a much lower fat content and will not whip up the same way as heavy cream.
• Almond Extract – You can flavor your whipped cream with a little almond extract (1/4 to 1/2 tsp, add from there) in addition to the vanilla!

How to Make the Best Whipped Cream:

Step 1: Prep. Add all your ingredients to a bowl. Your heavy cream must be very cold, straight from the fridge. Warm cream will not whip up.

Step 2: Mix. Mix on medium high to high speed. The mixture will splatter at first, before it begins to thicken, so use a towel over the bowl and mixer to contain the mess.

The mixture will begin to thicken, then reach soft peaks, then reach stiff peaks. Don’t keep mixing once stiff peaks are reached, or you’ll end up with a sort of curdled texture.

Step 3: Finish. You can mix until soft peaks (below left photo) or stiff peaks (below right photo). Soft peaks are good for dolloping onto individual slices of cake or using in individual Strawberry Shortcakes.

Stiff peaks is best if you want the whipped cream to be more stable, for piling on top of a pie (like my Black Forest Pie) or piping on. If piping, you’ll also want to stabilize the cream (see section on Stabilizing Cream, below).

How to Stabilize Whipped Cream:

Stabilizing whipped cream is ideal when you want the whipped cream to stay put on a dessert for a period of time before you serve it. For example, you may want to pipe whipped cream on top of a cheesecake or a pie a few hours before serving.

A mixture of gelatin and water gives structure to the cream, making it sturdy enough to pipe AND stay in place without weeping, while still allowing the cream to stay soft and delicious. And, no, you can’t taste the gelatin one bit!

If you don’t want to go the gelatin route, adding a little cream cheese or mascarpone will also stabilize your whipped cream.

Step 1: Add Gelatin and Water to a Bowl. Add plain powdered gelatin to a small bowl with water. You’ll need 1 part gelatin to 4 parts water. Let stand for 3 minutes – the mixture will look thick and gummy.

Step 2: Microwave. Microwave the gelatin mixture just for a few seconds, to liquify it. Set aside.

Step 3: Stabilize. Start making our whipped cream. Then, slowly stream in the liquid gelatin mixture on low speed, once the cream has just started to thicken. Then, keep beating the cream until stiff peaks form. That’s it! Easy peasy.

How to Pipe Whipped Cream:

Step 1: Stabilize Cream. Make your whipped cream and stablize it as directed above.

Step 2: Pipe. Add your cream to a piping bag fitted with your desired piping tip. Pipe onto your chilled cheesecake or pie just before serving. Or, pipe onto individual slices as you serve them!

How to Beautifully Dollop Whipped Cream:

Step 1: Make your whipped cream. Use the back of a spoon to gently make waves across the top of the cream. Then, use your spoon as a shovel and push it vertically through the horizontal waves.

This makes a beautiful dollop of whipped cream which you can gently nudge off the spoon onto a slice of cake, cheesecake, or pie.

Alternate Mixing Methods for Whipped Cream:

• Stand Mixer – Use a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Mix on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form. You can stabilize with this method (see section below for all about stabilizing!).
• Whisk & Elbow Grease – Use a bowl, a whisk, and your arm! This takes a bit longer but produces beautiful results. Try trading the bowl off between multiple people in the kitchen to give your arm a break – trust me on that, haha! You can stabilize with this method.
• Blender – I’ve only tried this a few times, but it worked beautifully on my Peanut Butter Pie and didn’t need to be stabilized. Add ingredients to a blender and pulse on medium or medium high for 1-2 minutes, giving it a stir about halfway through to check the consistency, until thickened and stiff.
• Food Processor – I’ve had mixed results with this one, but I think the times it failed was due to me over mixing and the cream deflating. If you want to try it, be warned that it may not be the most reliable method but it does self-stabilize, like in the blender. Add ingredients and pulse about 8-10 times, then run on low until whipped cream is thickened and stiff.
• Immersion Blender – I tried this once out of desperation when my food processor was dirty and I didn’t want to get out a giant blender. It produced delicious whipped cream that was a bit runnier – I couldn’t get to stiff peaks. So, beware that this method may not be the best, but still tastes delicious!
• Mason Jar – Add your ingredients to a mason jar and shake, shake, shake! This method isn’t the best if you want to stabilize, but is great if you want a light workout, hehe.

How to Flavor Whipped Cream:

Classic whipped cream can be flavored in a variety of fun ways!

• Lemon/Lime/Orange – Add 1-2 tablespoons per cup of heavy cream used. Add at the beginning of mixing with all the ingredients.
• Freeze-Dried Fruit – Add 1/4 cup of freeze dried fruit, pulsed to a powder in the food processor, per 1 cup of heavy cream to make a fruity whipped cream.
• Nutella Whipped Cream – Follow the step 7 of my Nutella Cheesecake to make this one. This one was hard to get to a true firm peaks stage, so it’s probably not the best for piping, I would dollop it onto individual servings instead.
• Mascarpone Whipped Cream – Make the mascarpone cream from my Tiramisu Cheesecake (with or without the cocoa powder) for a deliciously creamy, thick, and stable whipped cream!
• Chocolate Whipped Cream – Add 2 tbsp cocoa powder per 1 cup of heavy cream, with the rest of the ingredients at the beginning of mixing.

Serving + Storing:

Once your whipped cream is made, whether stabilized or not, it’s best to use it right away! If it’s not stabilized, it can begin to lose structure or “weep” as it sits. If it is stabilized, it may firm up too much after sitting, for you to nicely add it to a dessert.

The good news is that once stabilized whipped cream is piped on or added to a dessert, it will stay in place for a few days in the fridge! So never fear, you won’t open the fridge the next day to find a a puddle of weeping whipped cream on your dessert.

Expert Baking Tips:

• Cold, Cold, Cold – If your cream didn’t whip up, it may be because it wasn’t cold enough. Make sure you’re taking it from the fridge right when you’re about to use it and begin whipping. If you struggle with whipped cream, pop your bowl and beaters into the fridge for 20 minutes (or longer!) before you start, to add extra coldness.
• Make and Serve Immediately – I wasn’t kidding when I said this should be made right when you intend to use it. It is one thing that is not make-ahead friendly.
• Taste & Adjust – I like my whipped cream a tad sweeter, but you might like it less sweet. Taste yours when it’s at soft peaks, and add more powdered sugar at this point, if desired. Adding it now vs. at firm peaks helps avoid overmixing.

FAQs:

Special Tools:

• Mixing Tool of Choice – As listed above, you’ll need either a stand or hand mixer, a bowl and whisk, or even a food processor, blender, or mason jar to make this.

Recipes to Pair Whipped Cream with:

• Black Forest Cheesecake
• Peach Cobbler Cheesecake
• Key Lime Cheesecake
• Pineapple Upside Down Cheesecake
• Homemade Strawberry Shortcake
• Pumpkin Pie Cookies
• No-Bake Nutella Tart
• Berries & Cream Cake

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