Dish of the Week: Whipped cream

Most people have already ramped up their holiday baking with cookies, pies, cakes, and other sweet treats. But there’s one thing that can make all those things better… whipped cream. For the longest time I had an aversion to the stuff, because most of the time I was given Cool Whip. But real whipped cream is fantastic, and beyond easy to make — though if only using a whisk, you’ll develop forearms of steel. It’s also not hard to make it interesting. From chocolate malt to bourbon to plain old vanilla or coffee, there is a huge range of flavoring options. Or maybe melt one of your favorite candy bars and incorporate it into your whipped cream (Crunch bars work really well).

Basic recipe for whipped cream:
1/2 pint of whipping cream
1/4 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Combine the ingredients. The easy way is to use a hand mixer and beat until stiff peaks form. Alternatively, whisk the cream, trying as hard as possible to incorporate air into the whipped cream. And if you have some money to spend and are looking for something super easy, you can buy an iSi whipped cream maker. Do be careful not to overbeat the cream, or you will end up making butter. For the chocolate malt variation: 1/2 cup of Ovaltine chocolate malt mix in place of the sugar and vanilla. For boozy flavors, swap out the vanilla to taste.

Photo by spiggycat