I will continue to look at mock recipes that come to the rescue when we want to make something but don’t have the key ingredients. This was a real issue 50 or more years ago when the nearest store was ten to twenty kilometers away and roads may have been impassable and available transportation may have been by horse or on foot. The mock cherry pie recipe of last week begs for whipped cream – here are some recipes that give homage to resourcefulness!
I experimented with several Mock Whipped Cream recipes with varying results.
left to right: recipe from Davis Gelatin, Banana and Egg White Whip, Dry Milk Whip.
Working with whipped cream is always tricky and none of these three recipes made a satisfactory mock whipped cream. The recipe from Davis Gelatin (1945) did whip and set. It is recommended as a filling in sponges and puffs and for these uses it may be acceptable. It tastes like butter cream so could be used as a butter cream filling or icing replacement.
Mock Whipped Cream
1 teaspoon gelatin 3 tablespoons hot water
¼ lb butter ½ salt spoon cream of tartar
2 ½ tablespoons sugar vanilla or lemon essence
pinch of salt
Dissolve gelatin in hot water. Place butter, sugar, flavouring in a basin, cream slightly, add cream of tartar, then dissolved gelatin. Whip well (about 10 minutes) until the mixture is like whipped cream. Use as a filling for sponges and puffs.
Several Mock Whipped Cream recipes used beaten egg whites. These are high risk because of the frequency with which raw egg whites these days contain salmonella bacteria. So these recipes are definitely not recommended. However I did want to try and taste one recipe found in the Josephburg United Church Cook Book (1980) because I was curious about whether one could really get rid of the dark flecks that bananas give to any food you use them in. As seen in the photo, dark flecks were obvious in the mixture and left even briefly in the refrigerator the mixture soon began to separate as egg whites do into a top fluffy layer and a bottom layer of liquid. Other recipes use one grated apple, icing sugar and egg white beaten together. This recipe may have a better result but because of the raw egg whites, I would not recommend it.
The third try at Mock Whipped Cream came from a cook book by the Enderby & District Museum Society.
Mock Whipped Cream by June Griswold (Stacel)
¼ cup cold water ¼ tsp. vanilla
¼ cup non fat dry milk 1 ½ tsp. lemon juice
½ tsp. sugar
Place water in bowl and sprinkle the dry milk on the surface. Beat at high speed until thick. Beat in sugar. Add lemon juice and vanilla. Continue beating until mixture is stiff enough to hold soft peaks. Makes 1 cup.
As seen in the photo this one did not result in a satisfactory whipped cream but I knew from past experiences that similar recipes do work so I searched further, turning to my old “tried and true cook book” called Family Meal Planning. This book yielded two possibilities.
Mock Whipped Cream
1 cup undiluted evaporated milk 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
Pour the evaporated milk into a small bowl and place in freezer until very cold and crystals begin to form around the edges. Whip until stiff. Add the lemon juice and continue whipping until very stiff. Makes 3 cups.
Whipped Topping
½ cup ice cold water 2 tablespoons sugar
1-2 tablespoons lemon juice ½ teaspoon vanilla
¾ cup skim milk powder
Sprinkle skim milk powder on water and juice. Beat well. Add sugar and vanilla and continue beating until stiff peaks form. Makes 3 cups.
These two recipes can offer health benefits over whipping cream because milk has a lower fat content.
References
Davis Gelatin Organization (1945). Davis dainty dishes. Toronto: Author, p. 61.
Enderby & District Museum Society (1999). Memories and meals from the families of Enderby & District. Enderby BC: Author, p. 232.
Family Service Association of Edmonton (1972). Family meal planning. Edmonton: Author.
Ladies of Josephburg United Church (1980). Cookbook. Josephburg AB: Author, p. 142.
