I have always been a cheater…a cheater that is when it comes from taking help from the grocery store. I am a cool whip buyer *hides face in hands* I am one of those persons that will spend the extra money for the already made stuff. Isn’t that horrible?
Last week at the grocery store, they were having a great sale on berries. Everything was like 2 for $4.00. I had warned Josh in advance that when all the berries go on sale like that, I will be buying them. So I did…and to my luck…the Organic Strawberries were on sale as well! Now I am on the fence about organic stuff. I have done a bit of research that seems to contradict what others say…but that’s another post for another time. I will say this for the Organic Strawberries, they taste sweeter than the other kinds. But what is the perfect easy delicious treat that goes perfectly with Strawberries? Why Shortcake and whipped cream of course.
I have had a craving for the real stuff lately ( no, I am not pregnant…non pregnant people get cravings too) and I wanted to learn how to make it. But I was confused as to what to do and which cream to buy; whipping cream or heavy whipping cream. Again my mom came to the rescue and just told me pour the cream into a bowl and start mixing or blending it, till stiff peaks form. Then add sugar and when your nearly done, then you add vanilla. I thought that sounded simple enough…but I looked online for any other helpful hints. Here is what I found:
Hint #1 Use a chilled metal bowl
Hint #2 If your going to use an electric blender, use your arm to mix, not your shoulder
Hint #3 Do Not Over Mix
And that was it. Everything other site I looked at pretty much said the same thing. It was kinda nice to know that this process seemed to be pretty simple.
Last night we had Josh’s brother and sister down for dinner and to watch the first Lord of the Rings. Jewelissa had never seen it. For dinner they wanted Spaghetti…simple enough. But when you sit down for a long movie like LOTR, your going to want a tasty treat half way through it which is why Strawberry Shortcake is perfect.
So while the kids were still awake, I got busy on whipping the whipping cream, NOT heavy whipping cream. Seriously…how do you mix something without using your shoulder…it is connected to your arm, lol. Yeah…my arm got sore fast. But soon enough…I saw the cream begin to thicken up and make some peaks. So I started dumping in the powdered sugar…well…dumping is an exaggeration. I was using Tablespoons and since I decided half way through the mixing of the cream to dump the rest of the container into the bowl…I would say I used maybe 5-6 tablespoons of sugar. Plus I added…2 teaspoons of vanilla…I’m a vanilla freak so yeah…I added maybe an extra 1/2 teaspoon than I should of. I like stuff sweet. Josh is always teasing me that I’m going to become a diabetic because of how much Sugar I use. My brother says, I like a little coffee with my sugar, lol. But…I’ve cut wayy back…honest :)
Once I got to a consistency I thought looked good ( I was worried I would over mix) I called Josh in to do a taste test and he concurred that it was perfect. PERFECT- did you read that, he said it was perfect!! The strawberry shortcake ended up being delicious. Someday I am going to learn how to make my own shortcake :) But for now, I’ll buy the stuff at the store. And now that I know how to make whipped cream, I’ll do it a lot more often. I think I will still stick with Cool Whip for some of the pies and desserts I make…just for the simplicity of it…or maybe I won’t. :)
Calories
Fat
Carbs
Protein
Catz in the Kitchen
5 minPrep Time
5 minCook Time
10 minTotal Time
Save RecipeIngredients
- 1 cup whipping cream
- splash of vanilla extract
- 2-3 tbsp sugar
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients into a metal mixing bowl.
- Beat on high for 3-5 minutes until stiff peaks have formed.
HI! We're Chels & Josh, lovers of (almost) all culinary combos, mommy and daddy to three wonderful kiddos (and two actual cats), and residents of the beautiful Pacific NW. Welcome! 
Take it from me - it takes a lot more to overmix than one would think. As long as you're paying attention, the peaks can get pretty darn stiff before it becomes a problem. I think it takes about 7-10 minutes of whipping in a kitchen aid before it starts to go, so you're generally pretty safe.
For craft clubs, we'll pour whipping cream (or heavy whipping cream - either works) into a bowl with a whisk and pass it around until it's finally done. It's the hard way, but it's also kinda rewarding.
You can use regular granulated sugar to sweeten it. I like to use organic cane sugars and brown sugars sometimes to mix up the flavor a bit. Once you start using the real stuff, that cool whip doesn't fly anymore imo. :)
Mommy
This was recommended to me by a test kitchen.
1. What is it with people and this post? Chels has well over 700 posts on this site, and this is the only one with rude people...
2. This is homemade whipped cream. Not sure what you have in mind, but unless you only consider it homemade if you're personally milking the cow, this is homemade. Please bear in mind that many, many families use Cool Whip and Redi Whip (including ours when we're busy!) - this is a big step up from that.
3. Somehow you're confusing excitement with pride. Almost five years ago, when Chels wrote this post, we were just beginning to explore cooking better food at home, and discovering how easy it was to "whip" this up was very exciting!
4. You may want to look into that exclamation mark key. It appears to be stuck. :)