Growing up I didn’t like whipped cream – wouldn’t touch the stuff. My parents would order desserts with it, so they could “share” part of my meal. My parents are very crafty people.

I held on to my dislike of whipped cream until I was in college when I was introduced to the real thing. The chef at my sorority house would make the most delicious fruit and whipped cream parfaits. It became one of my favorite desserts. If you’ve tasted the real thing, you know there’s no comparison.

Making whipped cream is very easy. The only two pieces of equipment you need are a metal bowl and a mixer with a whisk attachment.  Try this whipped cream recipe out the next time you bring a dessert (homemade or store bought) and people will think you’re a master in the kitchen.

Ingredients:

1 c. heavy whipping cream

Chill a metal bowl in the freezer for several hours. Then, dump your heavy whipping cream into the bowl. It should also be cold.

Using the whisk attachement on your mixer, beginning whipping the cream. Whip until you can see tracks made in your cream. Be careful not to over whip.

At this point, you could just stir in sugar, but I’d recommend these options:

• Add a vanilla bean* and one tbsp. sugar.

• Or, add a tablespoon each of cinnamon and sugar.

*Vanilla beans are easy to use once you know how. Using a small paring knife make a shallow cut along the length of the bean, being sure not to slice it all the way through. Then, using the tip of your knife, scoop out the black paste inside.