Whipped Cream that remains fluffed??

[urmaniac13]

I would like an expert opinion this is another one of our long standing mysteries...
When we whip up some fresh cream, it usually go flat after a while and it doesn't maintain the whipped form very long. However, we have seen those beautiful looking cakes in the shop windows of confectioners with mounds of whipped cream still holding itself up perfectly. They definetely don't look like butter cream, and I am quite sure, in such decent bakeries they wouldn't use something like cool whip (or I surely hope so!!)... is there a trick to keeping the whipped cream fluffed up without going down??
I would appreciate any enlightening!!

 

[marmalady]

Bakery products use stabilizers if they're using real whipped cream; I believe cream tartar is one; there is also a product we can get here called 'Whip-It" that acts as a stabilizer. Even so, whipped cream just doesn't have a long shelf life.

I've seen bakery products use some sort of fake 'whipped cream' on their products (usually the supermarket baked goods, and more inexpensive bakeries), but I don't know what they use. It tastes of chemicals, not the beautiful sweet taste of real whipped cream.

 

[urmaniac13]

Yes I have seen this kind of fake mixes sold(the powdered thing to which you add milk and whip) and tried it once, and like you, I didn't care for its flavour at all. I know the real whipped cream doesn't last that long no matter what, but l always thought it would be nice if I could prepare something like birthday cake a little ahead of time (a couple of hours before the party) if the cake could maintain its look a little longer. You mentioned cream of tartar, that explains I have seen it in many recipes for cakes etc. I never thought of it as a stabilizer, I think we have some in our cupboard I surely will give it a try.

 

[texasgirl]

If I can remember to, I will ask my sister what she uses to make hers stay firm. She may even use the fake stuff, I don't know.

 

[urmaniac13]

If I can remember to, I will ask my sister what she uses to make hers stay firm. She may even use the fake stuff, I don't know.

Thanks!! I appreciate it!! And take care of yourself, too... I am not sure exactly what you are suffering with, but I do hope they will not find anything serious and everything will turn out okay!!

 

[texasgirl]

It may be tomorrow or Monday before she is sane enough to ask )
Her dad and other family members are up here from the evacuation areas and she had a friend killed in a motorcycle accident Tuesday and had the funeral yesterday. So, her household is a little upside down right now )

 

[urmaniac13]

Oh dear!! My whipped cream issue is not THAT urgent, please do not disturb her with such trifles while she has got so much to deal with!! Just don't worry about it for the moment... when everything gets back to normal I will gently remind you about it

But I really appreciate your consideration, it's the thought that counts, and that is very true!! Thanx sweetie!!

 

[texasgirl]

Your very welcome!!

 

[gwkr36a]

When I worked in the catering business the pastry chef we had used a product called
sweetex when he made anything that was fake and was just for looks. It was a sugar based product that came in a five gallon pail and resembled ther texture of Crisco. You could add food coloring to it and looked just like whipped cream frosting when finished
and would last forever.

 

[Konditor]

Winning Whipping Cream

Fat content has a lot to do with how well cream whips. When you whip cream, you incorporate air into it in the form of miniature bubbles. These air pockets are what give the whipped cream its light, fluffy texture. Whipped cream, therefore, is actually an emulsion: The watery nonfat portion of the cream that encloses the bubbles is supported by the fat. Thus, the more fat in your cream (up to a point!), the more effectively the encased bubbles will be supported.

"Heavy" whipping cream (about 40% m.f.) increases more in volume than regular (30-35% m.f.).

Gelatin is the most practical, generally dependable, and least-costly ingredient for domestic cooks to add as a whipped-cream stabilizer. Lucid instructions are povided on this Web page:

http://www.baking911.com/howto/cream_whip.htm

The professional approach is to introduce a stabilizer (such high-grade products as SC3 from Patisfrance or Swissmade Cobasan), into the cream in order to enhance its structure by restricting water loss and to prolong its buoyant shelf-life appearance.

North Americans (at least according to the opinion of many European tourists) tend to overwhip cream. Yet, whipped cream is more luscious, and blends better with whatever it accompanies, when beaten to a moderately soft stage.

 

[Ardge]

Hey urmaniac13, how long do you want to hold the peaks? A day or so? If so, the tips I can lend you will more than suffice. Use Heavy Cream. If your supermarket has a product called "Whipping Cream," it most likely is not the best to whip. Heavy Cream is what you want. In fact, compare fat contents on brands. 40% butterfat will serve you the best. The higher the better for keeping whipped peaks. (I use two different brands at the restaurant I work at. The 40% is a dream to work with. The 30-36% butterfat brand loosens up and droops often.) To sweeten, I use a cup (by volume) of granulated sugar per quart of cream. If I have the luxury of having powdered sugar, I use 8 oz (by weight) of powdered sugar per quart. I dump it all in at the beginning too and whip very slowly till sugar is dissolved. (Sometimes I add a tablespoon of vanilla in as well. It depends on my mood.) I then whip till my desired thickness.

When you use the good Heavy Cream (40% butterfat), your end product will pipe out and stay that way like a dream. My favorite part of the day is piping out heavy creme chantilly rosettes. If kept chilled, the peaks will last longer than the Energizer Bunny. I guarantee it. I see it all the time in my restaurant.

RJ

 

[urmaniac13]

Hey urmaniac13, how long do you want to hold the peaks? A day or so? If so, the tips I can lend you will more than suffice. Use Heavy Cream. If your supermarket has a product called "Whipping Cream," it most likely is not the best to whip. Heavy Cream is what you want. In fact, compare fat contents on brands. 40% butterfat will serve you the best. The higher the better for keeping whipped peaks. (I use two different brands at the restaurant I work at. The 40% is a dream to work with. The 30-36% butterfat brand loosens up and droops often.) To sweeten, I use a cup (by volume) of granulated sugar per quart of cream. If I have the luxury of having powdered sugar, I use 8 oz (by weight) of powdered sugar per quart. I dump it all in at the beginning too and whip very slowly till sugar is dissolved. (Sometimes I add a tablespoon of vanilla in as well. It depends on my mood.) I then whip till my desired thickness.

When you use the good Heavy Cream (40% butterfat), your end product will pipe out and stay that way like a dream. My favorite part of the day is piping out heavy creme chantilly rosettes. If kept chilled, the peaks will last longer than the Energizer Bunny. I guarantee it. I see it all the time in my restaurant.

RJ

Thanks Ardge for the wonderful input... only problem is that in Italy most of the cream for whipping on the market only contain 35%fat, but we sometimes go to this big supermarket which caters to professionals (they often carry specialised items which one can't find elsewhere), chances are we can find it there. If we do, that will solve our problems, we don't intend to keep a whipped cream for days..(it is not THAT hard to whip it as needed!!) it is just on occasions when we are making a birthday cake, it would be much more convenient if we can have it ready some time before (as in such occasions we have loads of other things to prepare!) to avoid the last minute scramble. This is well worth an experiment, thanks again!!

 

[urmaniac13]

Fat content has a lot to do with how well cream whips. When you whip cream, you incorporate air into it in the form of miniature bubbles. These air pockets are what give the whipped cream its light, fluffy texture. Whipped cream, therefore, is actually an emulsion: The watery nonfat portion of the cream that encloses the bubbles is supported by the fat. Thus, the more fat in your cream (up to a point!), the more effectively the encased bubbles will be supported.

"Heavy" whipping cream (about 40% m.f.) increases more in volume than regular (30-35% m.f.).

Gelatin is the most practical, generally dependable, and least-costly ingredient for domestic cooks to add as a whipped-cream stabilizer. Lucid instructions are povided on this Web page:

http://www.baking911.com/howto/cream_whip.htm

The professional approach is to introduce a stabilizer (such high-grade products as SC3 from Patisfrance or Swissmade Cobasan), into the cream in order to enhance its structure by restricting water loss and to prolong its buoyant shelf-life appearance.

North Americans (at least according to the opinion of many European tourists) tend to overwhip cream. Yet, whipped cream is more luscious, and blends better with whatever it accompanies, when beaten to a moderately soft stage.

Thanx Konditor for a very informative input. The link "Baking 911" seems to carry loads of useful tips, I bookmarked it for further reference. I would like to first try to see if we can find the cream with 40% fat (here in rome, most of the cream for whipping on the market has 35%). If not I would like to try the gelatine. I looked around the net for some stabilizers, but the problem is they don't usually say what it is made of (I would like to avoid any chemical, or vegetable oil), and/or only available in bulk packages. So gelatine maybe a practical solution.... just one question though, it would not give the cream some "jello" like texture, would it?

 

[Ardge]

urmaniac13, when looking for your cream, just stay away from the word "Whipping." It makes no sense at all, but Whipping Cream is not the best product to use when you want to whip your cream. Heavy Cream is the answer.

Why does food taste so good in restaurants and bakeries? The answer is Butter and Heavy Cream. Lots of it too.



RJ

 

[urmaniac13]

urmaniac13, when looking for your cream, just stay away from the word "Whipping." It makes no sense at all, but Whipping Cream is not the best product to use when you want to whip your cream. Heavy Cream is the answer.

Why does food taste so good in restaurants and bakeries? The answer is Butter and Heavy Cream. Lots of it too.



RJ

Hi RJ, I just specified "cream for whipping", because I directly translated the Italian classification. They usually have 2 types of cream in Italy, "for cooking", to make sauces etc. which contains about 25% of milkfat, and "for whipping", which is to make whipped cream with about 35% milkfat. So here, to use "cream for whipping" (panna da montare) is perfectly normal... well, as long as if it is to be used quickly... as I said, I shall look for the Heavy cream with 40% fat asap... I am sure, as folks here make so many wonderful sweets with lovely cream, I should be able to find it somewhere!!

 

[Ardge]

I want to go to Italy so badly. I want to taste the food from there. I want to drink beautiful wine as I watch the sunset.

I'll get there someday.

RJ

 

[kitchenelf]

{{{{{{{{{{Ardge}}}}}}}}}}

 

[Ardge]

{{{{{{{{{{Ardge}}}}}}}}}}

Did I just get hugged? If so, can I have another?

Me

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

Unfortunatley, the very high-fat cream you are looking for is very hard to find. Fortunately, there is an alternative that adds no additional flavor to whipped cream. It is often used by good pastry shops to top cakes, fill eclairs and pastries, and won't melt in the sun. This wonder product is stabilized whipped cream. Here is one recipe for it.

Stabilized Whipped Cream Frosting
2 tsp. unflavored gelatin
8 tsp. cold water
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Chill a glass or stainless steel bowl large enough to hold 4 cups of whipped cream. Chill the beaters.

Combine the gelatin and water. Let sit for 5 minutes. Place over low heat and stir until the gelatine is completely dissolved (about 1 minute). Remove from heat and let cool.

Whip the heavy cream in the chilled bowl until it begins to thicken. Continue beating while slowly adding the sugar. Add the vanilla extract. While still beating, slowly add the gelatin. Whip until soft peaks form.

Imediately use to frost a cake, put into molds, or fill pastries. Place in the refrigerator to completely cool. The gelatin will set, stabilizing the whipped cream. When brought back to room temperature, it will not lose its volume or shape.

A word of caution, whipped cream is made from cream and needs to be kept relatively cool to avoid spoiling, just as do all dairy products.

I have used this topping succesfully and highly recomend it for cakes and pastries. It's good stuff.

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North

 

[urmaniac13]

Thanx goodweed!! Konditor also suggested the use of gelatine... now at least all the mystery surrounding those prolonged life creams in the confectioners shop window is dissolving!!

Whipped cream is a regular companion for ice cream in Roman tradition, we use it quite regularly, so we shall do some experiments with that in the next opportunity!!

Thanks again you guys so rock always!!