For your dessert, your ice cream, or your hot chocolate, I think the best way to describe whipping cream is how a car salesman was describing a fire extinguisher to me: he called it a mandatory option. I did not buy from him.
But I surely do agree that whipped cream is an option that almost cannot be denied when it comes to consuming those end of meal goodies, or that mug of hot chocolate on a cold morning.
Now, the basic way people whip cream is to put it in the bowl, turn on the mixer and then, just at the end, add some sugar and vanilla. I think that’s going to account for 90% of the total.
Oh, whipped cream in a can? Please. Really? Once it is manufactured, a substance is no longer food. It can’t be.
Now that my snobbishness is revealed, let’s go back to basics. I know that using a mixer is very easy, and it yields a good whipped cream. I don’t do it often, but a whisk and copper bowl do create a different substance. A better one. Fluffier and yet firmer. It has an elegance that comes from not using electricity.
Okay, you are going to use the mixer. So, do. And then stop. Just stop. No vanilla. No sugar. Have you ever done this? It can be wonderful. For this to work, you need fresh, fresh cream. If it’s packaged and won’t expire for a month and you wait three weeks, it isn’t fresh and this approach will disappoint you. But truly fresh whipped cream has real flavor with a creaminess that will fill your mouth without just coating it. It truly will surprise you.
Now, back to vanilla and sugar? Not so fast. Let’s cover the sugar. If you use granulated sugar, you’ll obtain sweetness but often a grainy texture as well. It’s not gritty actually, assuming you do beat in the sugar for long enough to achieve some absorption into the cream. But, your mouth and tongue will simply sense that there is “something” there.
In contrast, if you use powdered or confectioners’ sugar, you’ll get a very different effect. The whipped cream is now sweet and quite smooth. It’s not “slick” in any sense, so “smooth” is the closest word I can imagine. If you taste test using granulated and powdered sugar side by side, you know’ll the difference in an instant. Is one better than another? I think it depends on your use. I like granulated for hot chocolate and powdered for topping a cake, such as gingerbread.
Now, finally, the vanilla. Yes, you can add away, remembering that you get what you pay for. Great vanilla provides an authentic flavor.
However, consider going beyond vanilla. For a cup of whipping cream, a teaspoon or two of cocoa powder will give you a very different flavor and color.
I love to replace the vanilla with liquors. Here you have a realm of flavors and intensities to pursue. For example, on hot gingerbread I had whipped cream made with two teaspoons of port. There was a subtle exotic flavor to the combination. I find flavors like port and Kahlua more interesting, and less intrusive, than pure hard liquor: say rum or whiskey. Flavor intensity here depends on you: one teaspoon, two, a tablespoon, more…?
There will be frost on your sidewalks or lawns soon. Time for the morning cup of hot chocolate. Time for no ordinary whipped cream.
Source: Brian O’Rourke