Searching for a dairy free substitute for heavy whipping cream? This Heavy Whipping Cream Substitution is made from 4 simple ingredients and whips up into a light and fluffy vegan whipped cream! You won’t believe it until you’ve tried it!
Light and fluffy vegan whipped cream
Heavy whipping cream is the only ingredient you need to make light, airy, and fluffy whipped cream, but what if you don’t eat dairy? That’s where this vegan Heavy Whipping Cream Substitution comes in! It’s a dairy free substitution that whips up into the best vegan whipped cream you’ve ever had.
I was inspired by similar recipes like this one from Gretchen’s Vegan Bakery, School Night Vegan and Berry Baker. Miyoko Shinner also has a recipe called ‘better than whipping cream and topping’ in her book The Homemade Vegan Pantry that uses the same technique. So I’m not the first one to discover this amazing way to make whipped cream! I tested it with various milks, refined and unrefined coconut oil, and made it a bit sweeter with extra powdered sugar.
Classic whipped cream is made from just one ingredient: heavy cream. Instead of whipping my vegan heavy cream (which is better off in soups and stews), the vegan whipping cream substitute begins with a mix of simple, creamy, and high in fat ingredients:
- Plant milk
- Coconut oil
- Powdered sugar
- Vanilla
As a result, the whipped cream turns out with a sweet taste and a sturdy, thick, and fluffy texture. Plus, it skips the coconut flavor that a lot of coconut whipped cream recipes have. It’s the perfect topping on coconut cream pie, apple crisp, pumpkin pie, and more!
Can’t get enough of vegan whipped cream? Be sure to try my Aquafaba Whipped Cream and Coconut Whipped Cream next! But this is the best, most realistic dairy free whip I’ve ever had.
Ingredients needed (with substitutions)
- Soy milk – Dairy free milk that’s high in fat, like unsweetened soy milk, oat milk, and cashew milk is best at transforming into thick and creamy whipping cream. Coconut cream won’t work here.
- Coconut oil – No substitutions! Use refined coconut oil to avoid the coconut flavor. You can use unrefined if you don’t mind a slight coconut taste.
- Powdered sugar – This will give the whipped cream its delicious sweet flavor and sturdy texture. I don’t recommend replacing it with a liquid sweetener.
- Vanilla extract – For flavor.
How to make vegan heavy whipping cream
Find the complete recipe with measurements below in the recipe card.
Heat the soy milk in the microwave before pouring it into a blender with the melted coconut oil.
Next, blend the mixture until it has emulsified and looks light and bubbly.
Transfer to a bowl. Cover and chill in the fridge overnight.
Whip the cream using a standing mixer with a whisk attachment the next day. To finish, add the powdered sugar and vanilla while continuing to whisk from low speed to high. It should thicken after 5 to 10 minutes.
You’ll know the vegan whipped cream is ready when it’s quite thick, creamy, and light. Try not to overmix it. Serve it right away or store it in the fridge for later!
Storing and freezing
Store the whipped cream in a covered container in the fridge for 2 to 4 days. It can also be frozen but is best when it’s fresh.
What to serve with whipped cream
Use the whipped cream anywhere you would normally use whipped cream. It can be spread and piped onto all kinds of desserts and treats, such as:
- Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Tres Leches Cake
- Mini Pumpkin Pies
- Vegan Chocolate Pie
- Vegan Banana Cream Pie
- Hot Chocolate
- Vegan Waffles
Want more vegan basics?
- Vegan Condensed Milk
- Heavy Cream Substitute – For adding to soups and more, not for whipping.
- Vegan Buttercream Frosting
- Vegan Mascarpone
- Shreddable Vegan Mozzarella
- Vegan Custard (Pastry Cream)
Heavy Whipping Cream Substitution
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsweetened, unflavored plant milk I used soy
- 1 cup refined coconut oil, melted
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Pour the soy milk in a bowl and microwave until warm, about 1 minute. Place in a blender with the melted coconut oil. Blend until emulsified on high. In my Vitamix this only takes 30 seconds to 1 minute.
- Transfer to a bowl, cover and place in the refrigerator overnight or at least 4 hours. Overnight is best.
- Transfer the cream to a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer with whisk attachment. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat the ingredients together, starting on low speed and increasing to high. It will take 5-10 minutes to start to thicken, but it will happen!
- Beat until it's quite thick, creamy and light, but be careful not to over mix or it can get too thick. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Serve anywhere you would whipped cream. It also pipes beautifully. Enjoy!
Notes
- Storage – Leftover whipped cream will keep in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. It can also be frozen if needed.
- Milk – Soy works best here, but you can use cashew, almond or oat milk. Choose a higher fat variety for richer whipped cream.
- Oil – There is NO substitution for coconut oil in this recipe, it’s what makes it whip!
Hi, I loved the recipe for the coconut cream pie but when I tried to get the whipped cream to thicken it just would not work. I followed instructions exactly and could not get the consistency past the very “runny” stage. I used plain unsweetened soy milk without any additives; only soybeans and water.
I’ve noticed here in the comments that it works for some people and not others. I wonder why?
Sorry to hear it didn’t work for you. Yes, it does seems like it just doesn’t work for some people. I can’t figure out why! I’ve tested it with various brands myself and it always works the same for me. Quite a mystery, but I’ll keep testing it out.
Thinking whether it whips or not is dependent on altitude. Spent the first half of my life living at sea level. The second half, has been above 7000ft, which changes just about everything when cooking. Maybe take into consideration barometric pressure as sometimes I’m able whip cream, it’s the best idea I can come up with. Because other time’s, it won’t even thicken slightly. Sometimes I’ve successfully whipped cream without an ice cold bowl and whisk; it’s a mystery. This is the best idea I could come up with; and it’s taken me twenty years to barely be able to cook/bake, make edible anything.
I made this and it turned out beautifully! Nora’s recipes never let me down so I was looking forward to this one. I’ll shared what I used/did in case it helps anyone!
I used Silk unsweetened soy (refrigerated, not shelf-stable version – not sure if this would make a difference) and Suraj brand coconut oil (cheap, unrefined).
I heated the coconut oil until it was just melted, and heated the milk as well. I measured the temperature of both to make sure they were close – both around 35 C. I then added them together in my Ninja single serve blender and blended for about 1 minute. It seemed emulsified so I promptly wrapped it and kept it in the fridge overnight.
Next morning the mixture was liquid but definitely thickened! I mixed up with a spoon first before transferring to the stainless bowl of my stand mixer (which I had put in the freezer for 20 minutes along with the whisk). I did NOT add the powdered sugar and vanilla right away – I started whisking the mixture on low and increased the speed every minute or so until it had ribbons. I then mixed in the sugar and vanilla, slowly mixed it in and brought it back to high until it got to the consistency I wanted. It took less than 10 minutes to get it to this consistency!
I had no issues – no separating while mixing, no oil forming on top of my mixture in the fridge – it was all seamless! And it is absolutely stable, no melting in 5 seconds like store-bought cocowhip. For the record, I made 1.3x this recipe and got about 4 cups out of it.
Will be adding this to my repertoire for sure – thank you Nora!
You are welcome! I appreciate you sharing your recipe experience! I’m glad the whipping cream turned out well! Thanks also for your stellar review!
I unfortunately had the same issue of the mixture becoming mostly solidified in the fridge and then separating during mixing. Taste was great and it did get a little lighter after a long spin in the kitchenaid, but it turned out like a very stodgy/barely fluffed cream + unincorporated liquid swirling around in the bowl with it
I used silk unsweetened organic soy milk and shop rite wholesome pantry refined coconut oil, warmed/melted, let emulsify in a ninja blender for 60 seconds, got the cream-like appearance mentioned in the recipe & then put it in the fridge overnight. I wonder if some of us are heating the milk and oil to the wrong temperature or the fridge is too cold, or some other random thing like that is affecting how it turns out?
I’ll definitely give this another go because I’d love to avoid using boxed plant creams, but I’m stumped as to what I can do differently & wish there was more of a consensus on why it’s not working for a decent number of people. I’d recommend trying this out in advance of when you actually need it to see if it works for you
Thanks for the feedback. I wonder if it has to do with certain other ingredients present in certain soy milks. I usually use soy milk without all the extra chemicals (pretty much just soybeans and water). I’ve never had it NOT work for me, and I can’t quite figure out why some people are having trouble. It’s my absolute favorite vegan whipped cream, so I do wish it would work out for everyone!
Was very excited about this recipe but it sadly didn’t whip up for me. It stayed liquid the whole time, not sure what I did wrong. I’ll try again next time I need a vegan whipped cream alternative.
I’m sorry to hear that it didn’t whip up for you. Did you use the exact ingredients? What kind of milk did you use? I haven’t tested every single brand of milk; I wonder if there are some that cause it not to work. I almost always use plain, unsweetened soy milk. And it’s never failed for me. It also needs to be chilled long enough to work. How long did you let it chill? Try overnight next time. Hope I can help! It’s truly the best vegan whipped cream I’ve ever had.
how long with this whipping cream hold up.
Up to 5 days in a covered container in the fridge, or freeze it for longer.
Explain refined coconut oil? I have Luana coconut oil but not sure if it’s the right kind
It just needs to say refined coconut oil, as that will not have any coconut flavor. If yours smells like coconut, your whipped cream will taste like coconut. If you don’t mind that, it’s fine and will work.
Hi I accidentally added powdered sugar to the vitamix before chilling, will my mixture be fine or do I need to fix it?
I haven’t tried that but I think there’s a good chance it will still work out fine.
I followed the recipe but I couldn’t get it working. After emulsifying for about a minute and a half, the mixture went into the fridge. Next day it became solid hard. I re-melted it, repeated the whole process of emulsifying and cooling. When I blended it in the mixer, it actually separated the mixture into liquid and solid refined coconut oil. It didn’t whip up at all. What am I doing wrong here? Any feedback is appreciated. Thanks!
Let’s see if I can help! Did you blend the plant milk and coconut oil only, or the powdered sugar/vanilla as well? What kind of milk did you use, and was there anything different about your coconut oil, or was it simply refined coconut oil? I’ve noticed some different coconut oils products at my store but you just want plain refined coconut oil. The oil/milk should be thin and white after blending, and only thicken a little bit in the refrigerator, not become solid hard. It looks a lot like heavy whipping cream, and then when you use a mixer it whips up pretty quickly. I think something happened with the ingredients here, but I’m not sure.
Perfections!
Thank you for your awesome review!
I have a couple questions… I made this but I didn’t get enough refined coconut oil, blindly. It tasted good but looks like mashed potatoes lol…
I don’t have a blender. Would a hand mixer do ok for emulsifying? Blenders are really out of a disability check price range.
Second, refined coconut oil versus unrefined. Would unrefined affect it differently? I ran out of refined and so used unrefined to make up the difference.
Third, unsweetened almond milk ok? I tend to stay away from products with soy due to my thyroid being low.
Would any of this have affected this recipe to come out looking like mashed potatoes? Did I simply over beat it? I’m really wanting to bring this with the pumpkin pie (your recipe with your easy crust recipe) to my family’s dinner for the holiday but I need to know if I simply absolutely need a blender and should just not try because I can’t afford one or if I just messed up with the ingredients. It tastes great but visually not so great lol.
Thank you so much in advance!
Hi there! A hand mixer should work for emulsifying, yes. Refined vx. unrefined will not affect the texture, just the flavor. Unsweetened almond milk should be fine. It sounds like you just over beat it though, I’ve done that accidentally and it gets really thick and can even start to separate if you over beat it. I hope that helps!
This is sooooooo good!!! Way better than any of the store-bought alternatives available around here and so easy to make. Will make all the time now….
Absolutely delicious and held up in the fridge. I followed your directions to the letter (even using soy milk instead of the almond milk I prefer for most things) with the exception of doubling it so old have enough for a crowd. It was a hit even with the dairy eaters. This stuff is dangerous. I could eat the entire bowl myself. Just want to say I have never posted before but consistently find your recipes appealing and delicious. Thank you!
Hi Angie. You are welcome! Thank you for taking time to leave a review and comments! I feel honored! I’m thrilled that you love the recipe! I appreciate you using my recipes!
Can’t wait to try this! If my coconut oil and milk are both cold do you think I could skip the overnight wait and whip it up same day? I often need whipped cream on the fly so waiting a day is sometimes a challenge.
You could try it, but I always have the best results when the milk and oil mixture are properly emulsified and left to chill overnight. Alternatively, make a regular batch and just keep it in the freezer for when you need it!
I used organic refined coconut oil and unsweetened oat milk. It turned solid in the fridge overnight and when I tried to do the second step it just looked clumpy and grainy and tastes awful too. I kept double checking the recipe that I followed it correctly. I hate the oily film it leaves in your mouth… are we sure the oil to milk is a 1 to 1 ratio?
Yes, the ratio is correct but I’m not sure what happened in your case. I’ve never had it turn solid in the fridge, and I’ve made it many times. It just thickens and looks like heavy cream after being refrigerated, no grittiness or clumps. I have a feeling it’s the coconut oil you used, I have gotten brands before that are gritty and oddly chunky. The final whipped cream does not taste oily at all, it literally should taste almost exactly like dairy whipped cream. Sorry it’s not working for you! If you do try again, try with a different brand of refined coconut oil and perhaps unsweetened soy milk with no added ingredients for the best result.
Hey Nora,
After making this a couple times I’ve started to wonder if it might make a really good ice cream base? Have you tried that? ?
Hi! I haven’t tried it, but now you’ve got me thinking about it. I need to try it asap!
Would adding cream of tartar & cream cheese help stabilize this enough to use as a frosting/icing for cake? Looking to make a Chantilly cake.
I haven’t tried it so I’m honestly not sure, but it might work.
Nora, you made my day! I’m so happy to have a whipped cream option that is easy and doesn’t taste like coconut. I was able to use this on fresh fruit and it was delightful! Whipped cream is one of the things that I used to make often and have really missed. Thank you so much!
You are welcome! Isn’t this whipped cream so good!? I’m glad you are loving it! Thank you for you great feedback, and have with all the summer desserts and fruit topped with whipped cream!
This recipe is fantastic, it’s similar in taste to cool whip but better! I love that I have an option now with no coconut taste! I got about 2 1/2 – 3 cups with this recipe, I used it in a vegan Oreo dirt cake and worked great! Thanks for another great recipe!
You are welcome! Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback and review! I’m so glad you love the whipping cream!
Wow this works really well. Can’t believe how tasty! Also works well as a half recipe if you don’t need quite so much.
Thank you for sharing your fantastic feedback! I’m glad you love the whipping cream!
This recipe didn’t work for me ?. I was so happy that your recipe didn’t have loads of sugar in it ??and it tasted EXACTLY like whipped cream. I’m not sure why it didn’t work as I didn’t make any substitutions. It seemed to sort of get thick but then looked like it was separating. I stuck it in the freezer for a few minutes thinking it was just getting to warm but that didn’t work. I took it out started whipping again and it just was liquid again. SO I made ice cream instead! I added some cooked down fresh strawberry puree and stuck it in freezer ?. Still taste great even though I failed lol.
I had the same issue. The cream was fine when I took it out of the fridge overnight and I started blending on low before increasing to high, scraping the sides, but it turned into a mix of hard cream with a puddle of liquid on the bottom
I tried it a second time and it worked! I’m thinking maybe the soy milk and coconut oil didn’t emulsify enough before you put it in the fridge.
Thank you so much for this awsome recipe. I’ve been looking for a vegan cake icing, and your recipe is rhe best. Thanks so much.
You are welcome! I’m so glad it’s what you’ve been looking for! Enjoy!
This looks amazing! Could I pipe it onto cupcakes in place of buttercream? Or would it not hold up well enough?
It won’t hold up as well as buttercream frosting, but compared to all other vegan whipped creams, it holds up pretty well! I piped it onto a coconut cream pie recently, and was shocked that it held the piped shape in the refrigerator for days!
Hi! I tried this, and after the mixture sat in the fridge overnight, it ended up being a layer of solidified coconut oil on top of oat milk. Do you think I didn’t blend it long enough? It went for about 45 seconds on high in my vitamin. That’s the only thing I can think of? I’m assuming it normally doesn’t separate in the fridge like that, as it was impossible to blend. Thanks!
Hmmm that didn’t happen to me when I tested the recipe, but try giving it a shake or stir before you whip it and it should be fine. It could also have to do with the oat milk you used. I find that plain soy milk works best, though other milks have worked fine for me as well.
This looks great! I was using a sort of swiss meringue until now, and I will be able to use this on strawberry shortcake! Thank you!
You are welcome! This will be so good on strawberry shortcake! Thank you for sharing!
Does this require a high speed blender?
A regular blender will work too!
I’ve been looking for a great plant based whipped cream. This looks like it. Do you think coconut milk would work? Thanks
Yes, I think coconut milk (the kind in the carton, not the full fat canned variety) would work well! Hope you enjoy the whipped cream as much as I do!
Is the sugar critical? I usually make unsweetened whipped cream.
You could try omitting the sugar, but the whipped cream won’t be very flavorful or sturdy without it.