Coconut Whipped Cream

Cutting down or eliminating dairy, but still want something to top pumpkin pie, crazy pancakes or simply to dip strawberries in? Coconut milk makes just as thick and rich whipped cream as whipping cream, if not more! And the only different in preparation is to remember to put the coconut milk in the fridge long enough to chill.

An additional plus is that whipped coconut cream does not break down the way dairy does. This whipped cream can be covered and stored for up to a few days without separation taking place. That alone makes it a better option in my book!

Ingredients

• 1 Can Coconut Milk (14 ounces)
• 2 Tbs Powdered Sugar
• 1/2 tsp Vanilla

Optional

• 1 tsp Matcha or
• 1 Tbs Cocoa Powder or
• 2 Tbs Pomegranate juice

Directions

1. Set can of coconut milk and mixing bowl in the fridge overnight
2. Set beaters in freezer for a few minutes before you begin
3. Open can and remove all the solid coconut cream (leaving about 1/4 can of coconut water)
4. Mix cream in chilled bowl, with chilled beaters until fluffy (3 minutes or so)
5. Mix in powdered sugar and/or any other flavoring
6. Use right away or cover and keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days

Comments

[tsolignani]

how come everything has to be chilled? what happens if you do it at room temperature? Thank you ;-)

[cassiem13]

WHOA! This sounds awesome, and I've never heard of it! Does anyone have ANY idea how this holds up at room temperature? I'm a pastry chef doing a coconut wedding cake next weekend (short-notice order!) and my bride would like a wedding version of a cake that I normally make with coconut-flake whipped cream (normal whip with coconut flakes added in). Unfortunately, normal whipped cream won't hold up at room temp for hours, as needed from a wedding cake. Would this??? Thanks!

[WColeman]

Can you do it with a non-can container of coconut milk, like the one by SoDelicious? Or can you only do it with the can?

[Amiga500]

Like the stuff in a carton? It's different from the canned stuff, much thinner, so it wouldn't work here.

[WColeman]

Ok, thanks! Gonna have to go pick up some canned milk from the store to try this =) You ever try making ice cream out of coconut milk? It is actually very good.

[Amiga500]

I've made ice pops with raspberry puree and coconut milk, and yeah, they were divine. We also tend to use coconut oil instead of butter. Not fully veg here, but I tend to restrict dairy.

[pear jam]

Sorry for chiming in with a non-controversial comment, but here's a warning to those who possess safety-type can openers (ones that pry the lid off rather than cutting through the top of the lid) and are using the Chaokoh brand coconut milk. This type of can opener does not work with the top-side of the Chaokoh can lid (its kind of curved in at the top lid). I forgot about this and chilled the can right-side up. I ended up turning the can upside down to open it since the bottom lid is conventional and hoped for the best. It didn't seem like there was much mixing between the fatty later and the aqueous layer but my whipped cream did not whip up very stiff. If I were to try this again with the Chaokoh brand I would invert the can upside down for a day before putting it in the refrigerator to allow the fatty layer time to rise to the top, and then I would be able to open the can without flipping it.

But I also think the Chaokoh brand is also thinner. They may be using more water in extraction process now days because I've used it in the past for other things and seem to remember that the fatty layer was much more solid and grease-like (like the picture shown of the Thai Kitchen in the bowl), whereas now days that layer is soft and pillowy. I think I will try the Thai Kitchen next time.

[Llama Nerds]

I'm not a chef, so this may be a stupid question: Is there any reason why this would not work as well with low-fat coconut milk?

[annahowardshaw]

I am guessing that low-fat coconut milk would produce less, and it would still be the same fat content in the end. Since the can is chilled to separate the coconut water from the solids, I think you'd just have less solid to work with.

If you try it, post an update...thanks!

[Llama Nerds]

So, I gave it a try tonight with a can of Trader Joe's Low Fat Coconut Milk, and it was...disappointing. It got kinda frothy, but never really whipped up. For reference (and for whatever it's worth), the low-fat milk only had about 250 calories in a can.

Oh well, my wife said she'd pick me up some full-fat coconut milk next time she's there, so I'll have to give it another try. I really want to try it on waffles, since we just recently got a waffle maker.

[halloweengirl80]

h3idi, coconut does contain significant saturated fat, but it's not at ALL the same as the sat fat found in animal products. That's one of the problems with the nutritional messages we get in this country, that "all fats/all sat fats" are bad/raise your cholesterol/will kill you. JUST NOW are they starting to see that this just isn't the case, e.g., now you finally hear about peanut butter and avocado fats being super foods.

There is significant anecdotal and emerging scientific evidence that coconut fat may in fact be beneficial, although you wouldn't want to drink a crapload of it every day, ha ha :) It still has calories, and too much of anything fatty is probably hard on the system, no matter where it comes from.

Think of the far-lower heart disease (and other cardiac complications) rates they have in South Asia and India (aside from those areas adopting a western diet); I mean, they eat TONS of coconut/coconut oil in India and pretty much all of SE Asia, and they are mostly much better off, heart-wise, than Americans, right?

Just my $.02. I'm not a doctor or nutritionist, just a health-minded recovering fattie who knows a lot of what we're told is complete crapola :)

[h3idi]

Thanks!

[Sparge]

There's nothing wrong with animal fat. And if you limit carbs, you can eat as much saturated fat as you want without gaining weight, getting diabetes, heart disease, atherosclerosis, etc.

[moorea7]

I don't think my cardiologist would agree with you on the eating as much saturated fat as you want and not having heart trouble. Atkins diet works because you essentially malnourish yourself

[Sparge]

Can you cite a scientific study on the negative effects of saturated fat? Should be easy, right?

[ofeliciano]

Coconut does in fact have a very high amount of saturated fat. Coconut cream is about 30% saturated fat.

[suayres]

I've read some of the info re coconut oil maybe being less dangerous than, oh, say, hydrogenated vegetable oils, and am willing to be open-minded to some extent. Would you happen to know the TRANS-fat content of coconut oil? I also recall reading that lard isn't as bad for you as previously thought, BUT, considering that my hub had a heart attack a couple years ago, I don't think we'll be overindulging any time soon!

[ofeliciano]

Coconut oil generally has no trans fats at all unless it's hydrogenated, just like any oil.

[lauralee077]

Sparge- http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8038241

It is easy, there are a ton of studies about how heart disease is directly attributed to animal fat intake. Harvard has a page that extensively describes why you should limit animal fat intake, referencing a whole bunch of those studies.

http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/fats-full-story/

Or how about try reading the China Study, you might have a different perspective on health after. And if you're actually open to a new perspective I highly recommend taking the time to watch this-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=es6U00LMmC4

[Sparge]

The NIH link is a paper entitled "Distribution and metabolism of 2,4,5,2', 5'-pentachlorobiphenyl". It doesn't seem to be relevant to the topic of the consumption of saturated fat.

The Harvard link makes the standard assertion that saturated fats are bad but doesn't link to any studies that demonstrate that.

The China Study was observational/correlational and unable to make any determination about the causes of any observed effects. Were disease rates higher because of saturated fat consumption, animal protein consumption, refined carbohydrate consumption, lifestyle differences? It can't say.

The YouTube video--at least for the 10 minutes I watched--was pure animal rights, zero dietary science. If there's any reference to studies implicating saturated fats, give me a timestamp and I'll check it out.

"Forks Over Knives" is more vegetarian propaganda like T. Colin Campbell's book about the China Study and has been effectively debunked by Denise Minger.

[annahowardshaw]

(removed by author or community request)

[Sparge]

Yes, you were right about the link. Thanks. The results presented in that paper indicate a possible small elevated risk of prostate cancer from animal fat consumption. It's not dramatic, and it's definitive.

I looked at all of the references in the Harvard paper and found none that refer to saturated fats. Did I miss something?

[lauralee077]

Hey Sparge,
My response was more directed at your 'there's nothing wrong with animal fat' comment. I do agree that not all saturated fats are bad fats, thus me looking up a coconut whipped cream recipe. Ingesting the fat found in animals on the other hand has been linked to increase cancer and disease rates in humans. I'm not arguing about saturated fats here- in fact it's the polyunsaturated fats that these studies claim are detrimental-

http://carcin.oxfordjournals.org/content/29/5/890.abstract

http://www.ajcn.org/content/63/5/741.short

And here's another site that references studies that disprove your 'animal fat is good fat' perspective- http://www.cancerproject.org/survival/cancer_facts/meat.php (as with the Harvard site, you scroll down to where the studies are referenced)

As for the video, I never said it had specific references to studies, which seems to be the only information you'll deign to look at. I said if you're actually open to a new perspective and maybe someone else's opinion it's an interesting speech. You turned it off after a few minutes, but I threw it out there in hopes of a more open mind receiving it.

And if you're so enthralled with your need for strict scientific and factual evidence over this (rather than common sense about consuming high processed, hormone filled slaughtered corpses), then why is your chief reference in your response to a girl with a health blog and a bachelors degree not even in nutrition? Oh wait, she's writing a book, I forgot you have to be a highly credited individual to do that. But she doesn't eat meat, so I guess you can't reference her for everything.

[Sparge]

Thanks for the references, lauralee077. As you said, the first two are really implicating omega-6 polyunsaturated fats, which are abundant in seed oils like canola, corn, soy, etc. The Cancer Project page is interesting, and I'll have to study it more, but a lot of the negative effects they're attributing to meat eating come from from other things than animal fat such as heterocyclic amines (HCAs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PCAs) which are produced during cooking.

My point is that saturated fats, both animal and vegetable in origin, have been unfairly and unscientifically labeled as unhealthy. And none of the studies referenced on any of these pages directly demonstrate that. There *may* be other issues with meat consumption that cause higher rates of certain diseases in meat eaters than in vegetarians, but that has not been proven to be caused by saturated fat.

Regarding vegetarianism and the video, I'm open minded, but I've already considered all of the issues mentioned in the first 10 minutes of the video and didn't find them convincing. What I do find convincing is that homo sapiens evolved over millions of years on a diet consisting of both meat and plants. I also happen to really enjoy eating meat--to the point that I'm highly disinclined to stop doing so.

I don't know about "high processed, hormone filled slaughtered corpses". My freezer is full right now with a cow that my neighbor raised on his land without hormones or antibiotics. Yes, it's a slaughtered corpse, but it lived a decent life, protected from predators, and was well fed and well treated. If it weren't for it's meat, it wouldn't have lived at all.

Regarding Denise Minger, if you can find flaws with her arguments, I'd like to hear them. The fact that's she's merely a "girl with a health blog" or "writing a book" doesn't mean that her points are automatically invalid.

Yes, I'm "enthralled with [my] need for strict scientific and factual evidence". I'm a rational being and proudly so.

[annahowardshaw]

(removed by author or community request)

[Sparge]

_Forks Over Knives_ is supposed to be a documentary. It's not original research. It's not peer-reviewed. Why would you think one needs a peer-reviewed paper to point out problems with a documentary?

I raised the issue of peer-reviewed research because there are so many people and organizations beating the "artery-clogging saturated fat" drum, but there's no research to back up those claims. Do you really think it's unreasonable for me to require actual scientific evidence that X is bad for me before I start eliminating it from my diet?

Your own coconut whipped cream recipe has plenty of saturated fat. Are you not curious whether there's evidence that it's unhealthy?

[lauralee077]

Sparge- I appreciate that you get your meat from your neighbor, and if you claim that the animal lived a good life before it died for your dinner then good on you for caring. Most people don't know and don't even like to think of what they're eating as having once been a living, breathing, feeling animal, and that's where my anger comes from- the disconnect so people can have happy tastebuds. I understand how the human race evolved and that animal products may have been necessary, I just do not agree with the methods of the food industry today and I feel that everyone should become educated about what they're consuming by either watching speeches like the one I sent or from other sources they deem more reliable, rather than just remaining blind to the whole process because it's easy. But if you already know everything about all of this, which you seem to think you do, and still choose that lifestyle then good for you for being an educated consumer. And the whole "i've already considered the points mentioned in the first 10 minutes and didn't find them convincing"- I'm not sure which 'points' your referring to, he only makes one point in the speech about how human beings are biologically designed to be herbivores, which you said you don't believe (although there is viable information out there that agrees with this), but the majority of what he's discussing is the cruelty of the meat and dairy industry with actual footage of what happens to these animals at the hands of humans, as well as the amount of growth hormones that are fed to these animals and subsequently being fed into us. Or his argument about how no other living animal lives off the mother's milk of another animal except humans (that milk being a liquid which contains vital nutrients meant for baby cows to support rapid growth during infancy). How do you 'not find those points convincing'? Is it because you source all of these products from your kind neighbor and you won't be bothered by what happens in the rest of the country? I guess I just don't understand how someone who seems so passionate about getting the truth out there about saturated fats can be so flippant about other issues.
The reason I criticized you about Denise was that it seemed like you were badgering people for 'studies, studies, studies', but then directly reference someone who's just spouting opinion (not that I don't agree with a lot of what she says, but no matter how rational her arguments she's not a scientist with peer reviewed journals). My issue was that when it comes to something that you don't believe in, you need scientific fact to even consider the possibility of changing your mindset, but when it comes to what you already believe you only need reference a girl with her bachelors degree and a blog, which is what she is.
As for the saturated fats deal, I'm really not saying that saturated fats are bad, I guess I didn't make that clear before, sorry about that. I was responding to your comment that animal fats are not bad, and those studies I sent do discuss fat in animals and how it has been shown to be detrimental to human health. Yes and the other ones discuss the cooking process, since humans cannot eat raw meat like other predators, those studies I thought were also relevant in a discussion about how eating meat can be bad for you. I really do appreciate that there are others with different opinions then me, believe me I used to love eating meat (I was practically raised on McDonalds), and like I said before I'm all for people having free choice as long as they are truly educated and don't hide from the truth behind what they're consuming. But the truth is, everytime you go out to eat, unless you know specifically where a place is sourcing it's animals, there is a strong likelihood you are consuming what was a sick and abused animal. But if you get all of your meat from your neighbor and have seen what happens to these animals and are still comfortable with noshing down that steak at night then great for you, your better than most.

[Sparge]

Wow. I'll try to be brief.

Humans are omnivores, the science is clear on this. Even vegetarians accept it. See:

http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/omni.htm

Which was written by "... a vegetarian and currently Scientific Advisor to The American Anti-Vivisection Society. He is an anatomist and a primatologist."

I eat a primal/paleo diet and dairy isn't a large part of it. But dairy animals are generally well-treated because malnourished/diseased/abused animals don't produce a lot of milk.

Denise Minger isn't conducting research, so dismissing her because her blog isn't peer-reviewed doesn't make sense. She's not "just spouting opinion", she's citing facts that are backed by research or not even in dispute.

The assertion that "humans cannot eat raw meat" is just silly. Of course we can. It's delicious and nutritious. Sushi and tartare are the usual examples, but a rare steak is essentially raw except for the surface.

The assertion that "there is a strong likelihood you are consuming what was a sick and abused animal" is also wrong. Anyone who has ever raised livestock knows that sick animals are prohibited from being sold/slaughtered for human consumption. I won't argue the abuse issue since the definition of abuse is too broad to be useful--e.g., PETA thinks captivity constitutes abuse.

I'm all for people knowing their food better and thinking about things like humane treatment and avoiding antibiotics and hormones.

[lauralee077]

Sorry I meant the meat that the meat industry puts out in America, such as if you've ever been to Costco and over all the chopped meat there's signs saying no human should consume this meat without cooking because of risk of sickness. I know you're just going to come up with some point about how thats just to be safe and whatnot and that's fine, the majority agrees with you so feel good about that. I didn't at all dismiss Denise, I was saying it was a little hypocritical for you to demand science when it comes to what you don't agree with and then reference a blog when it's something you think is true. But that's fine, you can do what you want you obviously have a very set mindset and I don't have the energy to get you to try a different perspective. I guess you have talked to everyone who has raised livestock to, so good for you on that. I guess all the corporate farms that I have heard about, seen or had acquaintances who worked at don't really count, because you must know everything about it. I don't agree about the captivity thing, I have a puppy, but I do think dairy cows getting repeatedly beaten for no reason is cruel (if you'd watched the whole speech you'd see REAL footage of this)..I guess you might not feel that way so you don't want to spend the time even thinking about it. But if cow utters didn't get infected from constantly being tugged at by machines all day then why is there a 1% pus/cup of milk ratio that are actual USDA guidelines. Or try watching Earthlings, or is that propaganda too? PETA probably created a bunch of slaughter house scenes and puppy mills just to make people think the law-abiding and overly kind meat industry is really not all that great. I would like to think that despite whatever your opinion of what cruelty means is, most good, civilized, rational human beings could know when something was wrong. And when it's a fact that more people in the world could be fed if we used our land for crop production over animal raising for slaughter, it's just frustrating that we as a society cannot reach that place because of greed and 'rational' people who are just 'highly disinclined' to change their ways. But I realize that you're going to read this without actually looking at what I'm saying or considering opening your mind, and instead just pick apart what I wrote for places where I'm scientifically inaccurate so you can feel good about your lifestyle. Oh well, you can't win them all.

[Sparge]

Ground meat has to be cooked thoroughly to kill bacteria that were on the surface of the meat before it was ground.

I'm sure there have been instances of abuse in the meat industry, I just don't think they're widespread or conducive to profitability.

I'm not a vegetarian because I believe that meat is natural, nutritious, and delicious. I might be able to survive on a vegetarian diet, but I prefer to thrive on an omnivorous diet.

[annahowardshaw]

Thanks! There is also a good documentary called 'Forks over Knives' that is streaming on Netflix which includes info from the China study.

[annahowardshaw]

It appears that Sparge joined Instructables on November 4 because he was just so mad about coconut whipped cream...he has contributed a total of 8 comments about it. No other comments. No Instructables.

lauralee077 joined November 6, presumably because she was so mad at Sparge. Again, only a few comments, only on this topic and no Instructables.

While I'm sure you are both well intentioned (and maybe a little cranky) now that you are both here, I hope you create and share some projects with the community rather than just jumping in to use this forum to argue. Seriously. It's a way more productive way to share your point of view.

[lauralee077]

Hey Anna, sorry if this debate bothered you, definitely didn't mean for that to be the case, I actually have never started an online debate before but Sparges comments toward everyone just got to me. But again, didn't mean to upset you, and thanks for the recipe!

[annahowardshaw]

It's cool. I couldn't help but comment on the negative crazy-talk either : )

I really don't get why some people get so mad that other people want to eat more fruits and vegetables. Seems like a poor use of energy. I don't go post all over bacon recipes...there are a million better ways to spend my time.

But now that you joined the site, you should add something too!

[Sparge]

Since I think you're referring to me, I'll respond. If I'm wrong, no big deal.

I didn't come here because I was angry about coconut whipped cream...I came here because I love coconut and because my paleo/primal diet limits dairy. My first posting here was in defense of the saturated fat in this recipe. My second posting was in defense of saturated animal fat because someone else claimed that it was bad.

I couldn't care less what anyone else eats, or what anyone else thinks I should eat. I'm not posting here to attack vegetarians, but to respond to what I perceive as unwarranted attack on omnivores, primarily via repetition of the "animal fat is bad" myth. If someone states something as fact that isn't supported by science, don't be surprised when people call them on it.

Also, just because you're a vegetarian doesn't mean that anyone who eats meat is out to get you.

[ssheldon1]

I have had a hard time finding full fat coconut milk that isn't full of preservatives. Any suggestions on brand/store?

[annahowardshaw]

The Thai Kitchen brand only lists Coconut Milk, Water and Guar Gum. The organic brand, Native Forest, lists the same. That's all I've got! What brand(s) are you finding?

[davidsona]

Love this! Is there a way to put this in a .pdf or .doc? I have a friend with a 15 mos. old that is underweight and can't have dairy. Nondairy and gluetin free food is hard to find and when you do it is expensive! I would love to forward it to her.

[annahowardshaw]

Thanks, hope everyone enjoys it!

Looks like you have a Pro membership, so you can hit 'Print PDF' in the top right area of the screen and you'll get the doc to download/save/print.

[davidsona]

Oh! There it is! I was looking for it on top of the picture. Thanks!