(Make Ahead) Stabilized Whipped Cream
No More Weeping Cream
If I were stuck on a dessert island... uh I mean desert island and had to choose one food to live off of, I think it would be freshly whipped cream.
There is nothing better than rich, fluffy, lightly sweetened whipped cream. It's an easy topping for cobblers, cakes, pies, pretty much anything sweet.
But I love it for icing cakes in particular because it is easier than buttercream or cream cheese icing when I forget to soften butter ahead of time.
This recipe shows you how to use a little bit of unflavored gelatin to stabilize your whipped cream so it doesn't melt on you so easily. Whipped cream should still be kept refrigerated, but when you use this method you can make it a few days ahead of time and keep an iced cake refrigerated for longer.
Stabilized Whipped Cream
Ingredients:
1.5 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
2 tbsp cold water
1.5 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 tsp vanilla (optional)
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp powdered sugar
Method:
It is really important to have all of your ingredients measured, sifted, and ready to go as this goes very quickly. Also have your mixer plugged in and ready to go.
In a small saucepan, combine gelatin and cold water; let stand until thick, it should only take about 30 seconds.
Place over low heat, stirring constantly, just until the gelatin dissolves, again this will take less than a minute.
Remove the saucepan from the heat and temper the gelatin by immediately stirring in 2 tbsp of the heavy cream you've already measured out. (This will cool your gelatin enough so it won't seize up into chunks in your whipped cream.)
In the bowl of a stand mixer, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, whip the cream, powedered sugar, and vanilla to soft peaks. Then, while whipping, slowly drizzle in the gelatin mixture. Whip to stiff peaks.
