A generous dollop of whipped cream makes any dessert beautiful. But how do you keep it looking pretty all night on the buffet table?
It’s the best way to top most desserts and the easy way to disguise a mess. And if you are in Grandma Joyce’s kitchen, Don’t Skimp! (But if no one is looking, you can spray it into your nephew’s mouth as he dashes by. Its a game no one else knows about–messing around when we are supposed to be serving food…)
Have you ever wondered how to make your whipped cream stay creamy and fluffy for hours? Many years of practice with whipped cream-topped confections have led to these dependable results: Start with HEAVY whipping cream. Pick your cream based on the highest FAT content. (Of course! No wonder it tastes so good!) We love to use Darigold brand because the fat content is higher and it makes the cream so delightful. Costco carries this in giant two quart containers if you are ambitious and need lots of cream.
Whip the cream up into soft peaks and then quickly add powdered sugar, instant pudding and vanilla. Whip all the ingredients together until you have stiff peaks.
Another trick we use is a “whipped cream sausage.” Taking a moment to prepare this before the party starts will save you headaches when it’s time to do the last-minute garnishments. This method keeps the cream from slopping out the open end of the pastry bag when you squeeze the bag. It’s easy to store, so you can make a volume supply of whipped cream well before the party starts and have it on hand and ready to use. It will stay firm and hold its shape for several hours, is easy to store and transport, and refilling the pastry bag is quick and simple. Best of all, the clean up is almost as easy at taking out the trash.
How do you make whipped cream outlast the party guests. Here are Grandma Joyce’s pro hints:
Once your heavy cream is mixed (see recipe below for proportions of pudding and vanilla to add), spoon enough to fill your pastry bag onto a sheet of clear plastic wrap.
roll the wrap around the whipped cream and tie both ends of the plastic into a tight knot.
When ready to serve, snip of only ONE end of the plastic wrap.
Drop the “sausage” of whipped cream (with snipped side down) into a pastry bag. Now your pastry bag is loaded with whipped cream that will hold its shape all night. Once your pastry bag is empty, simply pull out the plastic wrap and discard.
If you have left over cream, (is that even possible???) simply take the “sausage” out of the bag and re-tie it for easy storage.
- One Pint Heavy Whipping Cream
- 1 tablespoon of instant vanilla pudding (white chocolate keeps the cream white)
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla (clear vanilla will keep your cream whitest in color)
- Whip cream until soft peaks form.
- Add 1 tablespoon of instant vanilla pudding, and ¼ cup powdered sugar or sweeten to taste. Continue whipping until stiff peaks form.
- Stabilized whipped cream will not lose its loft or "melt" as quickly as regular whipped cream, so this trick is a great way to make sure your pastries look great on your party buffet table.
- We always pipe whipped cream onto the top of pastries using a large star-shaped pastry tip.
