Is Whipped Cream Actually The Same As Chantilly Cream?

Whether swirled over a mug of hot chocolate or dolloped over a slice of pie, whipped cream is the finishing touch that makes a dish extra special. You can buy it in a can (Cool Whip is different), but making it from scratch allows you to control the texture, flavor, and sweetness. At its most basic, whipped cream only requires heavy cream and some elbow grease with a whisk to create fluffy, creamy mounds. Even though you don't need to add anything else, there are so many ways to flavor whipped cream that give it a unique identity and sometimes another name.

If you have ever had a dessert with Chantilly cream and felt confused because it looked and tasted just like whipped cream, it's an understandable reaction. Chantilly cream is a type of whipped cream but not all whipped creams can be called Chantilly cream. So, while they live in the same world, whipped cream and Chantilly cream are not the same thing.

Whipped cream is nothing more than heavy cream that has been aerated until the texture changes from a thick liquid to a solid. There are multiple ways to whip cream, but ultimately it is not defined by whether it's beaten with a whisk or an electric mixer, but the end result. It can be plain and unsweetened or doctored up with everything from honey to sour cream to chocolate. It is an incredibly broad recipe with few parameters. The texture can range from soft and droopy to thick and stiff but it is still whipped cream. It is possible to overbeat whipped cream and when that happens, the liquid and fat will separate, and if you keep going you will have started making butter.

You can use heavy cream or heavy whipping cream to make whipped cream. There is a slight difference in butterfat content, with heavy cream edging ahead, but either will whip well. Light cream, however, should not be used as the lack of fat will prevent it from thickening. Once whipped, fresh whipped cream will last in the refrigerator for a day or two (or it can be frozen).

Chantilly cream is a type of whipped cream that has been sweetened and flavored with vanilla. It is these specific two additions — sugar and vanilla — that define it as Chantilly cream. The history of Chantilly cream is a little difficult to nail down. Though credit goes to a feast created by Chef François Vatel at Château de Chantilly in the 17^th century, some claim it originated in Italy many years before. Regardless of where it was invented, its identity has since become universally accepted.

While plain whipped cream can be used as part of a recipe, like chocolate mousse, the sweet vanilla taste of Chantilly is intended as a topping where it's flavor will not be masked. For the vanilla flavor, you can use pure vanilla extract, vanilla bean paste, or the scraped seeds from a vanilla bean pod. To sweeten the cream, you can use any sugar, but confectioners' sugar, granulated sugar, or superfine sugar are the best options because they will sweeten the cream without adding flavor that could overwhelm the vanilla. There are no set ratios of sugar to vanilla to cream, so you can adjust it to your taste and to the recipe it is being served with.