Learn how to make whipped cream with this easy 3- Ingredient Homemade Whipped Cream recipe! Skip the store-bought stuff – this stabilized sweet whipped cream is delicious and perfect for frosting cakes, cupcakes, cheesecakes, trifles and more!
Looking for more whipped cream recipes? Try these recipes for Baileys Chocolate Whipped Cream, Strawberry Whipped Cream and Mascarpone Whipped Cream!
*Post updated 3/21/19
Easy Homemade Whipped Cream
Growing up, we only knew of store-bought whipped cream. Making it homemade was just not a thing, so Cool Whip it was! When I made homemade whipped cream for the first time, I totally expected it to be difficult but it was SO easy! How had I not done this all along?! Once I realized my error, I never looked back!
How to Make Homemade Whipped Cream
You need three very simple things to make whipped cream. Just heavy whipping cream (or heavy cream), powdered sugar and vanilla extract. That’s it!
Start with cold cream. The colder the cream, the easier and more quickly it will whip. You could even freeze your bowl and whisk for 10-15 minutes before making it, but it isn’t really necessary.
I like to whip the cream on high speed and get a nice, stiff whipped cream. I’m usually using it to frost cakes, cupcakes or any other dessert and I want to make sure it stays put, so I whip it until stiff peaks form. What that means is that when you lift the whisk out of the cream after whipping it, it stays in place. You could whip it a little less, but that’s my preference in most cases.
Do be careful not to over-whip it though. You don’t want to walk away, because whipped cream happens quickly and if you leave it too long, you end up with butter. Cool, right?! But not what you want.
How to Stabilize Homemade Whipped Cream
Not only do I whip my cream until it’s stiff, I also use powdered sugar to ensure it doesn’t wilt. Because I use this whipped cream with desserts, it needs to stay in place for days at a time. I can easily pipe this whipped cream onto a cake or cheesecake and set it in the fridge and it’ll stay exactly as I left it. I’ve let things sit for a week or more and it stays as is.
My general rule for the ratio of heavy whipping cream to powdered sugar is 2:1. So for every cup of cream, I use about half a cup of powdered sugar. You can certainly reduce the powdered sugar a bit (and I often do) and it’ll stay fine, but that math is easy to work with if you’re making larger batches. I wouldn’t reduce it by more than a couple tablespoons though.
Can I Use Whipped Cream Instead of Cool Whip?
Because this whipped cream is so stable, it makes a great replacement for Cool Whip and other store-bought frozen toppings in recipes. And because I’ve been asked about that replacement so often, the recipe below makes the perfect amount for replacing 8 oz of Cool Whip.
Is Whipping Cream the Same as Heavy Cream?
They are very similar, but not the same. The difference is in the amount of milk fat. Heavy cream and heavy whipping cream contain 36% milk fat, while whipping cream (without “heavy” in the name) is lighter with 30% milk fat. Both will whip into whipped cream, but the “heavy” ones will hold their shape better and longer, making them the better option for this whipped cream.
More Whipped Cream Recipes:
Stabilized Mascarpone Whipped Cream
Strawberry Whipped Cream Two Ways
Baileys Chocolate Whipped Cream
Recipes to Use Homemade Whipped Cream With:
Black Forest Cake
Strawberry Shortcake Trifle
Tiramisu Cheesecake
Oreo Ice Cream Cake
Funfetti Cheesecake with Cake Bottom
Homemade Whipped Cream
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: about 2 1/2 cups 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: No Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
If you’ve ever wondered how to make whipped cream you’ll love this easy recipe with only three ingredients!
Ingredients
1 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream or heavy cream, cold
1/2 cup powdered sugar
3/4 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
1. Add the heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract to a large mixer bowl fitted with a whisk attachment.
2. Whip on high speed until stiff peaks form.
3. Use the whipped cream on any number of desserts including ice cream, cake, cupcakes, cheesecakes, trifles and more. Whipped cream will stay stable when stored in the fridge for at least 5-7 days after piping onto a dessert. I suggest piping it onto your dessert shortly after making it.
Keywords: homemade whipped cream, stabilized whipped cream, whipped cream, how to make whipped cream, whipped cream recipe, heavy whipping cream,
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Don’t freeze the bowl or beaters for more than 10 minutes. Otherwise, tiny ice crystals form. Your leftover whipped cream will form a small puddle of water on the bottom of the bowl and the whipped cream will thin out. Never had leftover cake, so can’t comment on that cream loosening.
Hello,
Can I keep this whipped Cream in a piping bag for several days and use as needed?
I wouldn’t recommend that. Whipped cream does great once piped – it’ll hold it shape well. But letting it sit like that before piping has a tendency to ruin it in my opinion.
It taste so fluffy I will never buy whipped cream again thank you
★★★★★
Very thick and not overly sweet
★★★★★
Hi. I was wondering if you can add sweet condensed milk instead of sugar to this recipe?
I wouldn’t recommend it.
This recipe is awesome. I followed it to the T and got great results. I used it for a number 5 chocolate cake that I made for my neice’s 5th birthday where we did a virtual cake cutting ceremony due to lockdown. The whipped cream dollops were amazing and kept their shape for at least 8 hours. I wish I could share a picture….
Thank you for such a wonderful recipe. I will surely use it again!!!
★★★★★
I’m so glad you were happy with it!
I used this recipe to make a less sweet frosting for my husband. I was super proud of how it turned out. I did add some extra powdered sugar to help thicken it. It also worked great with crushed Oreos.
★★★★★
Tastes sooo much better than store bought!
★★★★★
If I use this on ice cream cake, how does it taste frozen? Is it still smooth or does it get a little icy/crunchy if you eat it straight from the freezer? I make my dh an imitation dq ice cream cake for his birthday every year and still haven’t found that perfect icing recipe that still tastes smooth when frozen! (And of course I never think to experiment throughout the year. I just wait until it’s his birthday time and then am stuck!) Thanks!
This is the whipped cream I use on all of my ice cream cakes, including my copycat DQ ice cream cake. It freezes as you would expect whipped cream to freeze. It’s going to be firm out of the freezer, but as it softens it’s the same as always. You’re going to have a hard time finding something similar to the DQ cake whipped cream that you can make at home because that whipped cream is commercially made with products that aren’t available to someone making something at home.
That makes sense! His birthday was the 8th and my daughter went ahead and whipped this up to put on top! By far the best one we’ve tried! It did stay smooth from the freezer and had a good flavor. Definitely saving and using this one from now on, thanks!!
★★★★★
Glad to hear you enjoyed it!
I have never made homemade whipped cream before, I have always been intimidated by it. But then I read this post and I knew I had to try it – you made it sound so easy! It really was – it mixed up so fast and it is sooooo delicious – thank you so much!!
★★★★★
1. When i make sponge cake at the time of maringue preparation it doesn’t get stiff i don’t know why. Can u just tell me the possibilities and for 5 white eggs how much sugar is nedded?
2 Is cream shanti and cream of tartar same?
Thanks
I just made this and I can’t believe how good this is. My brother said it’s better than regular whipped cream and I agree. Definitely will make this again
★★★★★
THIS WAS P E R F E C T!! Thank you so much for the easy delicious recipe 🤍
★★★★★
I’m just wondering, can I use half and half? I don’t have any whipping cream and half and half is all I have
★★★★★
I’m sorry, but half and half won’t whip properly. You’ll need heavy cream or heavy whipping cream.
Ok thank you