Colored Whipped Cream
Colored Whipped Cream is super easy to prepare. Today I’m going to show you how to make it and how to frost a cake with it. This adorable design was inspired by my decorated yellow cherry Stand Mixer Cookies.
You probably already know that whipped cream doesn’t keep if you make it in advance. It usually starts to weep and softens considerably within several hours. To amend this problem I will be adding dissolved gelatin to whipping cream, making Stabilized Whipped Cream. Stabilized Whipped Cream holds up much better and can be used to frost a cake up to 2 days in advance.
CAKE LAYERS
I baked 3 – 6 inch chocolate cakes. Tops were slightly domed so I trimmed those off and stick the scraps into the freezer. I will use them later for snacks.
CHERRY PRESERVES
Instead of fresh or canned cherries I used Sour Cherry Preserves to make the filling. Drain the preserves, reserving both, cherries and the liquid.
STABILIZED WHIPPED CREAM
Sprinkle granulated gelatin over cold water and let it sit for 5 minutes. Gelatin is bloomed when spongy to the touch. Microwave bloomed gelatin in the microwave on high in 5 to 8 seconds whisking well until completely dissolved. Let it cool to room temperature, stirring frequently.
Beat chilled heavy cream until soft peaks are form. Beat in powdered sugar and Vanilla Extract. Beating on high speed slowly pour in dissolved and cooled gelatin. Beat until stiff peaks are formed. Don’t overbeat.
It is important that dissolved gelatin is not hot when added to cold whipping cream or it will seize.
Reserve about 1 to 1 1/2 cup of stabilized whipped cream.
To the rest of the stabilized whipped cream gradually fold in cherries from strained cherry preserves.
FILL THE CAKE
Spread cherry preserve liquid onto each cake layer. Then fill the cake with whipped cherry filling.
Smooth the sides and finish by crumb coating the cake with remaining 1 cup of whipped cream.
Chill the cake for 30 minutes to an hour before frosting the cake.
PREPARE COLORED STABILIZED WHIPPED CREAM
Sprinkle gelatin over cold water and let it bloom for 5 minutes. Then microwave it on high for 5-8 seconds, until completely dissolved. Stirring frequently let it cool to room temperature. It is important that dissolved gelatin is not hot when added to chilled whipping cream.
Add yellow gel food coloring into the chilled heavy whipping cream. Beat until soft peaks are formed. Beat it powdered sugar, vanilla. Then on high speed beat in dissolved and cooled gelatin. Don’t overbeat or whipped cream will become grainy.
If you plan on using whipped cream right away you don’t need to use gelatin to stabilize it.
FROST A CAKE
Ice the cake with a yellow colored whipped cream. Smooth the sides and the top with a spatula. Then chill the cake for 30 minutes.
Prepare red and green whipped cream.
- Fit a piping bag with a large round piping tip and fill the bag with red whipped cream.
- Fill the 2nd piping bag fitted with a Round Piping Tip #4 or #3 with 1/2 cup of a green whipped cream.
- Fit 3rd piping bag with a Leaf Tip #352 and fill the bag with a remaining green whipped cream.
- Pipe the cherries first then pipe the green stems. Finish by piping the leaves.
- Decorate the top of the cake with white whipped cream swirls(using piping tip 1M) and sprinkles. Or if you have fresh cherries use them instead. I didn’t have any so I used large heart sprinkles.
Colored Whipped Cream
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake
- 3 – 6 inch chocolate cake layers
Sour Cherry Preserves
- 2 cups sour cherry preserves
Stabilized Whipped Cream Cherry Cake Filling
- 1 cup sour cherries – from the preserves
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 2/3 cup powdered sugar
- 1 pkg granulated gelatin (about 2 1/4tsp)
- 4 tbsp cold water
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
Stabilized Colored Whipped Cream Frosting ( yellow, red, green, white)
Yellow Whipped Cream – Frost the outside of the cake
- Yellow gel food coloring
- 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1/3 to 1/2 cup cup powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp granulated gelatin
- 3 tbsp cold water
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
Red Whipped Cream – Pipe the Cherries
- Red gel food coloring
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 tbsp powdered sugar
- 3/4 tsp granulated gelatin
- 3 tbsp cold water
- 1/4 tsp Vanilla Extract
Green Whipped Cream – Pipe the Stems and Leaves – see Red Whipped Cream for ingredients and instructions(use green gel food coloring in place of red)
White Whipped Cream – Swirls on the top of the cake
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 3 tbsp powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp granulated gelatin
- 2 tbsp cold water
- 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
Instructions
Chocolate Cake Layers
- Bake 3 – 6 inch chocolate cake layers, let them cool completely before filling the cake.
Sour Cherry Preserves
- Strain sour cherry preserve (2cups), reserving both sour cherry syrup liquid (approx. 1 cup) and cherry fruit (1cup).
Stabilized Whipped Cream Cherry Cake Filling
- Sprinkle gelatin (1pkg./ 2 1/4tsp) over cold water (4tbsp) and let sit for 5 minutes. Bloomed gelatin will be spongy to the touch. Microwave on high in 5 second increments. Whisking well. Usually it take about 8 seconds or around there. Whisk well. Rub the mixture between your fingers to see if gelatin is dissolved. There should be no graininess. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
- Beat heavy whipping cream (2cups) until soft peaks are formed. Beat in powdered sugar (2/3cup) then on high speed beat in dissolved gelatin and Vanilla Extract (1tsp).
- Reserve about 1 1/2 cup of whipped cream. To the remaining whipped cream fold in sour cherries from the preserves. Use the filling to fill the cake.
Fill the Cake
- Spread 1/3 cup of sour cherry syrup from the preserves onto each cake layer. Place chocolate cake layer on a cake stand, spoon 1/3 of the filling on the cake and spread it evenly with a spatula. Repeat with remaining cake layers.
- Smooth the sides and crumb coat the cake with remaining/reserved whipped cream. Chill cake for 30 minutes.
Stabilized Colored Whipped Cream Frosting ( yellow, red, green, white)
Yellow Colored Whipped Cream
- Sprinkle gelatin ( 1 and 1/2tsp) over cold water (3tbsp) and let sit for 5 minutes. Bloomed gelatin will be spongy to the touch. Microwave on high in 5 second increments. Whisking well. Usually it take about 8 seconds or around there. Whisk well. Rub the mixture between your fingers to see if gelatin is dissolved. There should be no graininess. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
- Add yellow gel food coloring into heavy whipped cream. Beat until soft peaks are formed. Beat in powdered sugar ( 1/3 to 1/2 cup) then on high speed beat in dissolved gelatin and Vanilla Extract (1tsp)
- Take the cake out from the fridge and frost the cake with yellow colored whipped cream. Use a spatula and a bench scrapper to smooth the sides. Chill for 30 minutes.
Red Whipped Cream
- Sprinkle gelatin ( 3/4tsp) over cold water (3tbsp) and let sit for 5 minutes. Bloomed gelatin will be spongy to the touch. Microwave on high in 5 second increments. Whisking well. Usually it take about 8 seconds or around there. Whisk well. Rub the mixture between your fingers to see if gelatin is dissolved. There should be no graininess. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
- Add red gel food coloring into heavy whipped cream. Beat until soft peaks are formed. Beat in powdered sugar (2tbsp) then on high speed beat in dissolved gelatin and Vanilla Extract (1/4tsp).
- Fit a piping bag with a large round piping and and fill the bag with red whipped cream. Pipe cherries onto the frosted.
Prepare Green Whipped Cream – use instructions from Red Colored Whipped Cream, use green gel food color
- Fill a piping fitted with a small round piping tip #3 or #4 and fill it with about 1/2 cup of the green whipped cream. Fit a piping bag with a large leaf tip and fill the bag with remaining green whipped cream. Pipe the stems and leaves onto cherries. Chill for 10 minutes while you prepare White Whipped Cream.
White Whipped Cream
- Sprinkle gelatin (1/2tsp) over cold water (2tbsp) and let sit for 5 minutes. Bloomed gelatin will be spongy to the touch. Microwave on high in 5 second increments. Whisking well. Usually it take about 8 seconds or around there. Whisk well. Rub the mixture between your fingers to see if all if the gelatin is dissolved.There should be no graininess. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
- Beat heavy whipped cream (1cup) until soft peaks are formed. Beat in powdered sugar (3tbsp) then on high beat in dissolved gelatin and Vanilla Extract (1/2tsp).
- Fit the piping bag with a Star Piping Tip 1M and fill the bag with strabilized whipped cream. Pipe the swirls on the cake.
- Decorate swirls with fresh cherries or use sprinkles.
- Refrigerate till ready to serve. Can be made up to 2 days ahead. Store in the fridge.
Notes
TO MAKE THE CHERRY CAKE YOU NEED
- RECIPES
- Stabilized Colored Whipped Cream – JUMP TO RECIPE
- Chocolate Cake – 3 – 6 inch chocolate cakes
- Sour Cherry Preserves – I get mine locally at a European Store you can also use Stone Wall Sour Cherry Jam (don’t strain it, use as is)
- TOOLS
- 6 inch cake pans
- Hand Held Mixer
- Food Colors : yellow, red, green
- Piping Bags
- Piping Tips : Star Tip 1M, Large Round Tip, Round Piping Tip #3 or #4, Leaf Tip # 352
- Spatula
- Cake Smoother
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I am so grateful for this recipe and wonderful instructions. I am making a chocolate cake with strawberry filling and whipped cream frosting (a request for a friend’s granddaughter’s first birthday). I wonder if I can mix my homemade strawberry filling into the whipped cream as you did with the cherries? Also, Can I use this whipped cream recipe to pipe flowers and, if so, can I make them in advance and freeze them until I’m ready to add to the cake? I love to bake, I’m a novice at decorating and I’m so glad to have found your website.
Hi Maria,
yes you can fold it into the whipped cream. To pipe flowers I’d suggest using stabilized heavy whipping cream to pipe the flowers. Yes you can freeze them, freeze them on a parchment square on a tray and then once firm you can carefully layer them but I wouldn’t do too many layers so petals don’t break. Happy Baking, Hani
Good morning I was wondering if I want to do a deep color like navy blue would you suggest adding like cocoa powder and the navy blue color and a a drop of black to make it dark to make it darker or the color I want?
Hi Sandra, you can definitely add cocoa powder and navy blue and black, however avoid adding excessive amounts of food colorings.
Hi there, I have used colored whipped cream to ice my cake before and the color bleed into each other. What would you recommend to prevent that from happening? And have you ever experience that with your whipped cream covered cake?
Thank you!
Hi Nittida,
I think it depends on the food coloring. One thing I’d try is adding few drops of white food coloring.
Hi there i have ready gelatin in liquid form how much should i use?
I honestly haven’t worked or seen gelatin in a liquid form. What is it called?
Can I add color after it whipped? Would you recommend this for Russian piping?
Hi Donna,
Yes you can add color once it’s whipped, however be careful now to over whip. Whipped cream becomes grainy when it’s over beaten. It may work with Russian Ball Piping Tip. I’ve tried with the rose Russian tip, thought it works design wasn’t very sharp. Hope that makes sense.
Hi! Thank you for sharing your recipe and providing a step by step video. Does the cake need to be refrigerated after it’s iced? If it does not need to be, how long can it stay out before the icing goes bad?
Hi Amber, I’d say keep it refrigerated and keep it a room temperature or in air conditioned room for up to 2 hours. If you must have it in the heat, be sure chill it well before and keep it out for max 30 minutes. Hope that helps. Icing wouldn’t necessary go bad but exposed to heat it will eventually get softer and softer.
This is such a pretty cake! The matching cookies would make a lovely theme for a tea!