How To Make Stabilized Whipped Cream
Stabilized whipped cream holds its shape and stays light and fluffy much longer than regular whipped cream! Use it to decorate cakes, cupcakes, pies, and more.
What Is Stabilized Whipped Cream?
If you’ve been following along for a while, you may recognize this stabilized whipped cream. Originally published in 2018, it quickly became a reader favorite because of how easy it is to whip up. Since it’s been a few years, I decided to give this post a much needed update with more tips and tricks for success!
In essence, this stabilized whipped cream is just whipped cream that’s been stiffened with unflavored gelatin. Regular whipped cream can deflate and become watery after just a few hours. However, whipped cream that’s been stabilized holds its shape and remains fluffy for up to two days.
I highly recommend using this stabilized whipped cream recipe any time you’re decorating a dessert in advance or if you know it will be sitting out at room temperature for a couple of hours!
Ingredients in This Recipe
Making whipped cream with gelatin might sound strange, but I assure you it tastes the exact same as regular whipped cream! Let’s quickly review the ingredients needed:
- Gelatin: This acts as the whipped cream stabilizer. Any brand of gelatin will work fine, just make sure that it’s unflavored. I typically use Knox unflavored gelatin and can usually find it in the baking aisle close to the Jello.
- Water: The gelatin must be sprinkled over a few teaspoons of cold water to hydrate it.
- Heavy whipping cream: Keep the heavy cream in the fridge until you’re ready to use it. Cold heavy cream will whip up faster and fluffier!
- Powdered sugar: Sweetens the whipped cream without making it grainy.
- Vanilla extract: Use pure vanilla extract for the best flavor.
How to Stabilize Whipped Cream
If you’ve made regular whipped cream before, you can easily make this recipe! There’s just one extra step to stabilizing whipped cream with gelatin. Here’s an overview on how to make it:
- Chill your bowl and beaters: This will ensure that your whipped cream thickens properly.
- Dissolve the gelatin in water: Add cold water to a microwave-safe bowl and sprinkle the unflavored gelatin powder over the top. Let the gelatin sit for 3 to 4 minutes. It should start to dissolve and look wrinkly, like the picture above.
- Heat the gelatin mixture: Place the gelatin mixture in the microwave and heat it for a few seconds. Remove it from the microwave and give it a good stir. If all of the gelatin has not fully dissolved, microwave it for just a few more seconds.
- Cool slightly: Once all of gelatin has fully dissolved, set it aside to cool slightly while you mix together the whipped cream.
- Make the whipped cream: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, combine the heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla. Whip the mixture just until it begins to thicken and soft peaks form.
- Add the cooled gelatin mixture: With the mixer running, slowly pour the dissolved gelatin mixture into the whipped cream. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat until stiff peaks form. This won’t take long, so be careful not to over mix it!
- Use as desired: The stabilized whipped cream can be used as frosting for cakes and cupcakes or to decorate other desserts.
Different Ways To Use It
You can use this stable whipped cream for just about anything you’d like! Pipe it onto cakes as a finishing touch or use it to fill cream puffs. Here are a few recipes where you can use it:
- Banana Cream Pie
- Tres Leches Cake
- Key Lime Pie
- Chocolate Cream Pie
- Strawberry Shortcakes
- Cream Puffs
How Long Can the Whipped Cream Sit Out?
Since this recipe contains fresh dairy, the whipped cream shouldn’t sit out for more than 2 hours. It will stay fluffy and hold its shape the whole time, but after 2 hours it must be refrigerated for food safety reasons.
How Much Does This Recipe Make?
This recipe yields 2 cups of stable whipped cream, which is enough to frost 12 cupcakes, a 9×13-inch cake, or lightly frost a two-layer cake.
Baking Tips
- It’s best to chill your bowl and beaters before getting started. This will help your whipped cream thicken up quicker and increase the volume too!
- Let the gelatin sit on the cold water for 3 to 4 minutes. This will allow the gelatin to hydrate and ensure that it completely melts when you heat it in the microwave.
- Once you microwave the water and gelatin, the gelatin should be fully dissolved. If it’s not, microwave it for another 3 to 4 seconds.
- Make sure to let your gelatin cool just slightly before mixing it in, you don’t want it to be too hot when you add it to the bowl.
- Once you make the whipped cream, you can pipe it on your dessert, then refrigerate until you’re ready to serve it. This whipped cream will hold up just fine at room temperature for a couple of hours, but it’s best to keep your dessert refrigerated and avoid leaving it anywhere too warm for too long.
More Frosting Recipes to Try!
- Cream Cheese Frosting
- Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
- Peanut Butter Frosting
- Chocolate Buttercream
- Strawberry Frosting
Stabilized Whipped Cream
Ingredients
- 4 teaspoons cold water
- 1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
- 1 cup cold heavy whipping cream (240 ml)
- ¼ cup powdered sugar (30 grams)
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Add the water to a microwave safe bowl and sprinkle the unflavored gelatin on top. Allow to sit for 3 to 4 minutes.
- Transfer the gelatin mixture to the microwave and microwave until the gelatin is fully dissolved, this will just take a few seconds. Stir the mixture, then set aside to cool slightly.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, or in a large mixing bowl using an electric mixer, combine the heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract. Whip the mixture until it starts to thicken and soft peaks form, then turn the mixer to low speed.
- Slowly pour in the gelatin mixture until well combined. Increase the mixer to medium speed and continue mixing until stiff peaks form.
- Pipe the whipped cream on your favorite dessert (or use it to frost it) and refrigerate your dessert until ready to serve.
Love it ? good
I give this 5 stars! It holds up and tastes great. I use it anytime whip cream is needed. When entertaining, I just don’t have the time to pipe on the whip cream just before serving, I want to set out the dessert and get back to family and friends. Thanks for sharing.
Hi.
I loved this recipe. I have seen so many of them that have cream cheese and I hate cream cheese. Do you have a recipe for frosting I can use on Carrot Cake and Red Velvet Cake without cream cheese?
Hi, Donna! You could try my Swiss meringue buttercream here or regular buttercream recipe here instead.
Not sure what I’m doing wrong. Made this twice and both times it’s not perfectly smooth. Can’t really tell anything while eating but it doesn’t look smooth.
Can you see/taste small lumps of the gelatin in the whipped cream? If so, then you may need to add the gelatin slower with the mixer on a higher speed. If not, then you may just be over mixing the whipped cream. If you mix it too long it can start to turn grainy.
Hi Danielle! I need to make around 20 cupcakes for a baby shower, do you know how many cupcakes this whipped cream will frost?
This recipe will make about 2 cups, which is usually enough to frost 10 to 12 (depending on how much you use). I’d recommend doubling it, just so that you have enough for 20.
Hi. I made this today for the first time l. First time I made it the gelatin hardened before I even got it to pour into the cream. Second try went better but any opinions on how to pipe it without losing some at the end where your hand is? It got too warm and runny towards my hand.
If it’s getting too warm, you can put it back in the refrigerator for 15 to 20 minutes and that should help.
Hi! Can I use this recipe in between layers of a 2 tiered fondant cake? My customer wants raspberries and whipped cream inside but wants the outside to be covered in fondant. Is this possible?
Hi, Kaitlyn! It kind of depends, this is still soft like regular whipped cream. You could possibly fold some raspberries into the whipped cream and use that in between the cake layers.
If I can taste small chunks of gelatin the whipped cream frosting, does that mean I didn’t add the gelatin quickly enough?
Yes, you want to make sure to mix quickly and pour the gelatin in very slowly.
Can i freeze a cake that has been topped with this stabilzed whipped cream?
I haven’t tried freezing it, so I’m not quite sure. You could bake the cake layers and freeze them, then just thaw them, make the whipped cream, and decorate the cake.
At what stage would you recommend adding food coloring? Also, I don’t have a microwave. If I heat it on the stovetop, I’m just looking for the gelatin to dissolve, correct? Thanks!
You can add the food coloring at any point, but it may be easier to add it with the powdered sugar and vanilla. That’s correct, you’re just looking for the gelatin to dissolve.
I’ve made this twice and love it! I’m planning to make it for cupcakes for my son’s 2nd birthday. If I make the cupcakes the day before, can I add the whip cream and Will they keep until tomorrow night? Wasn’t sure if cupcakes would get soggy if I do them too early in advance.
The cupcakes shouldn’t get soggy if you do it the day before you plan to serve them. I do recommend refrigerating them though after you add the whipped cream.
Thank you for this! Could I add sour cream next time? If so, should I add more gelatin too?
I haven’t personally tried adding sour cream, so I’m not sure. Sorry!
Thanks for this! I live in Jamaica i.e. a warmer climate, and whipped cream icing recipes have failed me miserably. Though it’s the best thing for my black forest cakes.
Question: How can I adjust the recipe to accommodate 1-2 two teaspoons of white rum and 1 teaspoon of vanilla? It makes it taste divine, but it also makes it too soft.
I haven’t tried adjusting it to add some rum, so I’m not quite sure. I feel like if it’s just 1 teaspoon, it shouldn’t affect this recipe too much.
Does stabilising the whipped cream change the texture of it?
No, the texture is still the same as regular whipped cream.
For how many hours this stabilized whipped cream toppings will last without dropping on sides on cakes?
It really depends on how warm it is. I’ve let it at room temperature (65-70°F) for several hours without any issues, but I do prefer to keep my dessert topped with it refrigerated so it holds up longer.
I’ve made stabilized whipped cream before, but sadly all this one did was curdle. I’m not sure what went wrong!
Did you make sure to follow each step of the recipe (letting it sit on the water for a few minutes, letting it cool, mixing it in quickly, etc.)? If you happened to skip one then it could cause that to happen.
Hi. If I use this to icing a cake. Will it also hold between a two layer cake? Thank you for sharing this!
It’s soft like whipped cream, so if the cake layers are heavy it may not hold up well between them.
Can this be colored? I’m making a first birthday cake for my grandaughter and didn’t want to be all buttercream. Thanks!!!
Yes, you can add a few drops of liquid food coloring. For a darker color, I’d recommend using gel food coloring.
Can this be folded into beaten and softened cream cheese to make a whipped cream/cream cheese frosting?
I haven’t tried it, but I think that would be fine.
I had made some cream cheese whip cream icing in a recipe for an Angel Cake Log…and then tried using the same icing on cupcakes. It held up but it was not pipped! As I searched Pinterest I came across yours and made it. I doubled the recipe (except for the sugar – we’re not into super sweet icing) and added one 8 ounce block of cream cheese. It holds up well and it is closer in sweetness to what we like that any of the other . . . Wish I had found it sooner. Thank you
I’m a baker. I bake all the time, and I’ve never had problems with recipes at all. But for some reason this whipped cream did not work for me. It wasn’t it. The frosting just dropped down and the rosettes I did on the top fell over to the side.
Can I use this to frost a wedding cake?
Yes you could, but something like my buttercream frosting may be a better option.
I used 4 cups of heavy cream does it mean I need to use 4 teaspoons of unflavored gelatin or can I use less of the unflavored gelatin? I found lots of lumps on my whipped cream, I use your suggestion to microwave the unflavored gelatin with the water and pour slowly the gelatin after a soft peak and I still have lumps. I was thinking whether I should sift it once before pouring it into the whipped cream,
Yes, if you’re using more whipped cream you would want to increase everything else accordingly. Did you let the gelatin sit on the water for a few minutes?
Do you recommend using the recipe for if I wanted to frost a cake with whipped cream, or just using plain whipped cream? Thank you in advance.
I would recommend using this one, since it’s stabilized and will hold up better.
Thank you for the five tips. I learned to cook – taught by my mother when I was about seven – 80 years ago. I appreciated your tip about measuring the flour, I have never done that before and might be the answer to how things turn out well or not so well. However, in England, we always used scales to measure whatever and I have never got used measuring things by cups. I am glad that you include weight as I have scales here.
One question: when you write about the sugar in the whipped cream, is that icing sugar? I am never quite sure what it means and sometimes (not for cream) I have put sugar into my mixer and ground it down to a finer consistency – more like fine sugar in the U.K.
AGAIN, thanks. I don’t know how I came to receive your tips, but appreciated them. Christina
Hi, Christina! Yes, powdered sugar is the same as icing sugar 🙂
Can you do this without adding the sugar (and vanilla)? I find plain unsweetened whipped cream tastier.
You can leave out the sugar and vanilla if you prefer.
After I whipped the cream with gelatin, it looked smooth and fine, but after I put it in the fridge, I found some small lumps when I use it to frost the cake. What went wrong?
Hi, Dorothy! Did you refrigerate it, then try to use it later? If so, I recommend using it on your dessert right after you make it then refrigerating the dessert.
Will I get the same results if I use dairy free heavy whipping cream?
I haven’t tested it, so I’m not quite sure.
Would this work on a cake overnight
Yes, I would recommend refrigerating the cake though.
I use one tablespoon of Hershey’s white chocolate instant pudding. It works and there isn’t too much that it affects the flavor of the whipped cream.
Hi Susan. How did you incorporate the vanilla pudding mix into this recipe? Was it instead of the plain gelatin, or in addition to, and did you do anything else differently?
Hi Susan. Could you please give me the recipe using white chocolate instant pudding for the stabilizer. AlsoHow long does it hold up? Thank you ?
Is there another way to make stabilised whipped cream without gelatine? I’ve seen ‘cream of tartar’ floating around in the midst of my google searches. However, I’ve used a few of your recipes with great success and have now built up a bit of trust in your baking knowledge!!
I’ve really only ever used gelatin to stabilize it. I’ve heard you can use cream of tartar and cornstarch too though.
Will stabilized whip cream work with Russian Piping Tips?
I honestly haven’t tried it, so I’m not quite sure how well it would work.
Yes. This does work with russian piping tips. Infact, when i tried it ,it turned out very well!
There is a packet (actually, a two pack) of Whipped cream stabilizer.
It does not contain gelatin.
I think it’s xanthum gum, tapioca and cornstarch.
It’s .99¢-$1.09 ( USD) at any Grocery store in the baking isle.
It comes in a blue packet (like the color of DreamWhip) – or try DreamWhip!
Hope this helps!
Can I use this with the following (part of a ) recipe instead of the Cool Whip?
Lemon Layer:
1 small (3 oz.) pkg lemon jello
¾ cup boiling water
Stir to dissolve gelatin. Cool.
Cream together:
1 8 oz. pkg cream cheese
¾ cup sugar
Mix this with the cooled lemon jello mixture. Fold in:
1 8 oz Cool Whip.
I would probably just use my regular whipped cream recipe for that.
How can i make this a chocolate whip cream? Thank you.
I imagine you could add 1 to 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder. If you do though, you may need to add a little extra powdered sugar.