Whipped cream is the sweet finishing touch on many of our favorite desserts.
While there are a lot of ready-made whipped cream brands in stores, it is surprisingly super simple to make yourself.
Plus, homemade whipped cream is an excellent recipe for any home cook to have in their back pocket!
Now that the plant-based milk industry is growing, you might wonder, “can I make homemade whipped cream with almond milk?”
With a few changes compared to a classic whipped cream recipe, you can indeed make homemade almond milk whipped cream!
Read on to learn just how quick and easy homemade almond milk whipped cream is to make.
How to Make Homemade Whipped Cream
Traditional whipped cream is very straightforward to make at home. It only requires three ingredients:
Heavy whipping cream
Confectioners’ sugar
Pure vanilla extract
Steps to Make Homemade Whipped Cream:
In a large chilled bowl, pour in chilled heavy whipping cream and beat with a stand or hand mixer until frothy.
Add the confectioners’ sugar and pure vanilla extract to the bowl and beat again, starting on medium speed and increasing to high speed until thickened and stiff peaks form.
It is essential to stop immediately once you see the stiff peaks form. If you overbeat the mixture, it will become curdled and grainy.
Almond Milk Whipped Cream Versus Cow’s Milk Whipped Cream
Almond milk, compared to heavy whipped cream, contains far less fat.
The fat in heavy whipped cream is the key to making fluffy whipped cream.
Due to the lower fat content of almond milk, you will need to add a special ingredient - xanthan gum - to almond milk to get it to whip.
Xanthan gum is a food additive that helps thicken or stabilize certain foods and recipes. It’s created through the fermentation of sucrose, glucose, and lactose.
Xanthan gum is entirely plant-based and used in many gluten-free recipes because it can mimic the properties of gluten.
The best part about xanthan gum is that it requires no heat to begin the thickening process!
Another option to increase the fat content is coconut cream or full-fat coconut milk.
Coconut cream and milk contain a good amount of fat, so they’re a perfect addition to help whip almond milk.
Plus, coconut cream or milk requires no heating, which helps cut out a step!
For this recipe, we will only need the top fatty layer of the coconut cream. This will give your whipped cream that perfectly rich and cream whipped cream texture.
How to Make Almond Milk Whipped Cream with Xanthan Gum
Making almond milk whipped cream using xanthan gum produces a “cool whip-like” texture.
Use this recipe if you want to add a dollop of almond milk whipped cream to the top of your favorite treat or as a dip for berries!
Ingredients:
1 cup milk, cold
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
Steps:
Add all ingredients to a large mixing bowl. Then, whip them together for 2 minutes on medium speed using a hand or stand mixer.
Then, on high-speed, whip for another 5-8 minutes or until you reach your desired consistency.
How to Make Almond Milk Whipped Cream with Coconut Milk
This recipe produces a super light and fluffy whipped cream. Use this recipe if you are using this whipped cream to spread on cakes and cupcakes or fold it into puddings.
Ingredients:
2 - 13.5 oz cans of full-fat coconut milk or coconut cream
½ cup almond milk
1 tablespoon maple syrup or confectioners’ sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Steps:
Chill the cans of coconut milk or cream in the refrigerator overnight.
When ready to make the whipped cream, first chill a large mixing bowl in the freezer for 10-15 minutes.
Scoop the top fatty layer from both cans of coconut milk into the mixing bowl. You can save the liquid in the can for smoothies!
Using a hand or stand mixer, whip the coconut milk for 1 minute until light and fluffy. Start on low speed and work up to the highest speed once it starts to get smooth.
Add the almond milk, maple syrup or confectioners’ sugar, and vanilla extract to the bowl and whip again for another 30 seconds until everything is incorporated.
Serve immediately or chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve. It will harden in the fridge, so allow it to thaw slightly and re-whip before serving.
Expert Tips for Whipping Almond Milk
Don’t overbeat the mixture! If you over-mix, the whipped cream will begin to separate and turn back into a liquid, not light and fluffy whipped cream.
If you are going the coconut milk route, select a high-quality brand and chill it overnight so you can easily remove the top fatty layer.
Also, if using the coconut milk recipe, the cold is your best friend when making whipped cream. Chill your mixing bowl in the freezer before whipping, so everything is as cold as possible.
What Can I Use Almond Milk Whipped Cream On
The options are truly ENDLESS here! If you have enough willpower to get the almond milk whipped cream to last past the bowl, then you can use it in a bunch of different recipes. Here are just a few ideas:
On sweet breakfast recipes like pancakes, waffles, crepes, or even fresh fruit.
Dolloped on desserts like pies, puddings, and ice cream.
As a filling for cakes, trifles, or cream puffs.
In your favorite drink like a milkshake, coffee, chai latte, or hot chocolate.
Related: Can You Whip Oat Milk?
Can You Freeze Almond Milk Whipped Cream?
You can absolutely freeze almond milk whipped cream! This is an excellent option if you are prepping for a special occasion and want to check some things off your list beforehand.
To freeze the whipped cream, drop dollops onto a large parchment-lined baking sheet.
Freeze the baking sheet for a few hours or overnight. Once the whipped cream is frozen, transfer the dollops to a freezer storage bag or freezer-safe container.
The almond milk whipped cream can be kept in the freezer for up to 3 months. Then, when ready to use, thaw at room temperature for 20-30 minutes!
Store-Bought Plant-Based Whipped Cream Options
If you are in a bind and need whipped cream fast, fortunately, there are many plant-based options to choose from nowadays!
Whip it Real Good!
At the end of the day, there is nothing better than some homemade whipped cream.
Now that you’ve learned how to whip almond milk, you can add this delicious dairy-free option to all of your favorite treats!
Whipped Almond Milk: FAQs
Can You Whip Almond Milk?
Almond milk does have a bit of a thinner consistency compared to traditional milk, which makes it a bit of a challenge to whip quite the same way you would regular milk or cream.
At the same time, though, many of the steps necessary to actually produce “almond whip” are identical to the ones you’d used to whip milk or cream.
And a lot of the preparation necessary is identical, too.
Best of all, the brand of almond milk you choose to use doesn’t really matter.
Want to use store-bought almond milk that you are particularly fond of?
That’s fine! Regardless of the brand you’re going to be pretty happy with the results.
Maybe you want to use your own homemade almond milk, whipping it up to add to your favorite desserts or maybe to dunk in a little bit of coffee.
That’s cool too!
Sweetened or unsweetened makes no difference either.
Can You Whip Almond Milk for Coffee?
Yes, you can use your whipped almond milk concoction as a coffee creamer to turn dark, jet black coffee into something a little silkier, something a little smoother, and something with a little less bitter bite.
Fans of dairy-based coffee drinks (cappuccinos and the like) are going to be over the moon to learn that almond milk is pretty solid as a 1:1 replacement for those dairy creamers.
The taste is going to be a little different – the almond milk brings a nutty flavor to the mix that you’re not going to get with dairy.
But there’s no real surprise there since were dealing with almonds in the first place.
The consistency is going to be a little bit lighter as well.
Getting almond milk to hit that same thick, almost viscous kind of cream you can get with dairy is a tall task.
All that said, it’s not going to be a battle to get whipped almond milk ready to rock ‘n’ roll for all your favorite coffee beverages.
Set aside the following ingredients:
- A tablespoon or so of honey
- A little bit of coconut sugar
- Some monk fruit
- Two tablespoons of boiling hot water
… And then combine all of them together, mixing vigorously until every bit of solid as dissolved.
Once that has been taken care of you can pour that cooked up concoction into the almond milk that you are thickening and whipping, hitting it with a stand mixer or an immersion blender (or even just whisking things up by hand) until you get close to the consistency that you are shooting for.
And there you go – that’s it, that’s the whole ballgame.
Now you have a batch of almond “whipped cream” ready to be added directly to your favorite coffee.
What is Almond Whip?
Almond whip is the exact same thing as aerosolized whipped cream – except it's made with almond milk instead of dairy.
Before you buy almond whip from the store though, it’s not a bad idea to do a little bit of research about the different brands before you jump in with both feet.
Some brands are pretty strict about weeding out any “bad” ingredients that could detract from the health benefits of almond whip cream.
Others are just looking to produce the sweetest, most flavorful almond whip cream possible and really go all in on sugar and the like.
Of course, every brand has their own ingredient list and their own process and produce different tasting almond whip creams, too.
You might have to get your hands on a couple and give them a try yourself to find the ones that make the most sense for you.
Almond whip, though, is really nothing different than any of the commercially available aerosolized whipped creams you probably see all the time on holiday desserts!
Can You Use Almond Milk Instead of Whipped Cream?
Almond milk can certainly be used in place of whipped cream and a whole host of different applications as long as you are willing to have the dish come out a little differently than it would have otherwise.
Whipped almond milk is close to a traditional whipped cream – but it’s not an exact clone by any stretch of the imagination.
Whipped almond milk always has a slightly thinner consistency, a different mouth feel altogether, and requires you to add a couple of different ingredients into the mix to get the whipped consistency (some of which can change the flavor entirely).
That being said, for those that can’t use dairy products like traditional whipped cream but want something close – even if they have to make some small sacrifices – it’s tough to beat all that whipped almond milk brings to the table.
Can You Whisk Almond Milk?
Whisking almond milk (with other ingredients like monk fruit, xanthan gum, powdered almonds, etc.) is certainly one way to produce a thicker, heavier consistency almond cream.
It also is a lot of work!
If you want to lighten the load a little bit it’s not a bad idea to stick this slurry of different ingredients into a stand mixer and let it handle things for you.
You can also blitz this concoction up in a traditional blender or with an immersion blender to get pretty decent results, too.
If push comes to shove, though, and you have to whip your almond milk ingredients up together manually you’ll be able to get the results you’re after.
It just might take a little time (and certainly a little extra elbow grease).
