I have never been a fan of vegan whipped cream substitutes. Most of the products available on the market seem weird to me. They have an artificial taste that is just off. Like the aftertaste of most artificial sweeteners. If a vegan bakery uses those products in their cakes I walk right out. It’s not my thing.
Many products also just don’t work. You whip and whip and whip and nothing. Whipped cream is an animal based product that is very hard to imitate. The kind of fat found in cow milk cream is very special. It is responsible for the rich flavour of cream, the texture and the mouthfeel. So I want to emphasize that this is a substitute. It’s not the real thing. And I am not in the team of vegans that love to say “this tastes exactly like …” (insert any kind of animal product here). Because it doesn’t. But in my opinion this recipe is the best alternative I have found so far.
Coconut and aquafaba based whipped cream substitutes
I don’t like coconut whipped cream. It tastes like coconut. Which is nice, but you don’t want that all the time. Especially not in every cake. Plus, I don’t find it stiff enough. It doesn’t work for me. The same is true for aquafaba based vegan whipped creams. The texture of aquafaba is much too light and airy for whipped cream. (I have used it for great marshmallow toppings though.) You want some density and some fat in there! Case in point: Here’s a strawberry shortbread cake I made with aquafaba. As you can see, it’s not holding its shape and cannot support the strawberries very well:
I grew up with amazing multilayered cream cakes. They have a their own name in German. They are not called cake (the German word for that is kuchen), they are called torte. So everybody knows they are not some kind of average cake. They usually have two to three layers of airy sponge cake with lots of flavoured whipped cream in between. Basically, there is cream everywhere. Very often they are made with fruit, we have strawberry torte or raspberry torte, for example. But of course there are many more. My favourite is schwarzwälder kirschtorte which you probably know as black forest cake. Black forest cake is the main reason why I came up with this whipped cream substitute. I used to love this cake. Since going vegan I haven’t had a good slice of black forest cake though. Most of the time it’s the cream substitute that really bothers me. But now that I finally have a whipped cream that works for me, there also will be a black forest cake recipe on this blog soon!
Today I am sharing my recipe for a whipped cream substitute that is coconut milk free (it has some refined coconut fat though) and aquafaba free. To be honest, it’s just an adaption of my tiramisú filling. I have often used it as a filling for other cakes and I just love how it always holds its shape.
This whipped cream sustitute is easy to make and there will be a ton of it! My recipe is similar to a vegan pastry cream (crème pâtissière) recipe, just a bit more dense, with a mousse-like texture. Even though it is called whipped cream substitute, you won’t have to whip it up. Once it’s been refrigerated, it’s ready to use. It will hold its shape perfectly and you can pipe it. If you store it in the fridge and don’t expose it to air, it will keep for a week. Just keep in mind that once it’s exposed to air it will dry out quickly (within a day) and form a skin. Please note that to make this work it is necessary to let the whipped cream cool over night, so that it can set properly.
Also if it’s very hot in your place right now, it’s probably not a good idea to use this recipe just yet. I had 27°C in my kitchen today when I decided to make my first black forest cake test. Coconut oil melts at higher room temperature and so does the cream. I had to work very quickly and transfer the cake to the fridge immediately after piping the cream on a layer of cake.
This whipped cream substitute is quite versatile. You can adjust the flavour to your needs, for example you can add more lemon. Or you can add a tablespoon of liquor to cut the sweetness a bit. Just make sure to reduce the soy milk by the same amount. You can also increase the amount of sugar if this isn’t sweet enough for you. This whipped cream is great in cake fillings or can be used to decorated cakes and cupcakes. Or chocolate rolls:
Hey there! Let me know what you think about this post. I’d really love to hear from you. Also, if you try this recipe, let me know. Also, you are very welcome to share your photos with me on Instagram, tag @seitanismymotor and #seitanismymotor. I love seeing your pictures and comments! Please do not post this recipe anywhere without linking back to this blog post. It takes me up to three days to develop a recipe, take pictures, write a blog post and translate it. Thank you!
Vegan Whipped Cream Substitute
A vegan whipped cream substitute with a mousse-like texture that can be piped for decoration or used for cake fillings
- 170 g raw cashews
- 500 ml soy milk, unsweetened
- 40 g cornstarch
- 1/8 tsp vanilla
- 110 g refined coconut oil
- 1 Tbsp lemon or lime juice
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 100 g powdered sugar, or to taste
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Place the cashews in a large bowl and cover with boiling water. Let sit for one hour, then drain.
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Meanwhile place 450 ml of the soy milk in a small pot. In a small bowl, mix the remaining 50 ml soy milk with cornstarch, until the starch is dissolved.
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Bring the soymilk in the pot to a boil and once it boils, stir in cornstarch slurry. Cook for one minute until thickened. The mixture should resemble thick yoghurt.
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Remove from heat and add coconut oil. The mixture should still be very warm, so it can melt the oil. Stir until combined.
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Place cashews, thickened soy milk, vanilla, and lemon juice in a high speed blender and blend until smooth. Add sugar and blend again.
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Transfer to a container and cover with a lid, so the mixture won’t start forming a skin.
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Let cool for about 30 minutes, then transfer to the fridge and let set over night.
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Now the whipped cream substitute is ready to use. Make sure to store the baked goods with vegan whipped cream substitute in the fridge and take out right before serving.