Whipped Cream

Always have the cream and all the utensils cold, especially if you are going to try to whip cream in a warm room. Sometimes I pour the cream into the bowl I plan to use, and then place the bowl in the freezer for 10 minutes before whipping. Always underwhip cream if you are preparing it in advance to fold into a mousse or to cover a cake. Then right before you use it, rewhip the cream for a few seconds by hand to get it to the desired consistency. Always use granulated sugar, not confectioners’ sugar, which contains cornstarch, to sweeten whipped cream, and add it at the beginning of whipping. When whipping by machine, use medium speed, which makes it easier to control the process and avoid over-whipping the cream. Whip cream to be folded into a mousse until it is still very soft and holds just the softest peak. Whip cream for covering a cake just a little more firm. All the problems associated with whipped cream, from having sheets of whipped cream fall off the side of a cake to having cream that weeps whey, originate from overwhipping cream.