Want to show you love your Valentine AND your planet? Take three minutes and whip your own cream at home instead of reaching for the spray can. The Cook for Good Whipped Cream Trials show that in most cases, do-it-yourself whipped cream wins on cost, taste, and environmental impact. Simply put, spray whipped cream has a lot less cream, more air, and more other ingredients such as sorbitan monostearate and carrageenan.
See price and ingredients comparisons plus taste tests below the fold for the surprising truth: you can afford to go organic if you'll just cook at home.
What's the difference?
Real whipped cream. There's nothing like it. Smooth, creamy, with a melty mouth feel. One of my testers said "Goes better with food ... blends in more." The shape is more natural. You can make 16 servings all at once, starting with a pint of whipping cream, or make it in batches over a week or so. Refrigerated whipped cream holds its shape for about three days. You can make your own at home in less than three minutes (see How to Make Whipped Cream.)
Spray whipped cream is lighter because it's mostly air. In some brands, the air bubbles are downright distracting, popping in your mouth. If this reminds you of champagne, it could be good. I found it distracting. It has a faint chemical smell and tends to be very sweet. On the other hand, sprayed whipped cream has nice ridges, making it easy to make rosettes and patterns. If you are cooking for one and have enough will power, you could make one can last for months. OTOH, on Valentine's Day two people could probably go through a whole can for, um, recreational purposes. If that's your mission, you'll be pleased to know that the thrifty whipped cream tastes more like the real thing than the more expensive, mostly organic version does.
Comparing costs
A pint of whipping cream, two tablespoons of sugar, and a teaspoon of vanilla costs less than a spray can of whipped cream for both the green and the thrifty options: thrifty homemade, $1.79; thrifty spray, $1.99; green homemade, $2.40; green spray, $3.99.
After that, it depends on what you measure. An ounce of organic homemade whipped cream costs exactly the same as an ounce from the thrifty spray can: 28 cents. Homemade is a better buy per ounce, but spray whipped cream was cheaper per serving. It's mostly air, after all.
Get more details, including cost charts and comparisons of other features on the Whipped Cream Trials page.
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