Coconut Whipped Cream — A Vegan, Paleo, and Keto Friendly Recipe (2024)

This easy vegan coconut whipped cream recipe is a delicious, lightly sweet topping to serve over fruit, in hot cocoa, on pies, you name it. The coconut fat from a can of coconut is whipped until it’s light and fluffy, making it taste amazing. And it has only 1 gram of carbs per serving.

This is a time-tested recipe for non-dairy whipped cream that’s perfect for adding to your favorite desserts, like this Vegan Banana Cream Pie, Vegan Banoffee Pie, or this Dark Chocolate Pie.

It’s also a great “frosting” for Vegan Pineapple Cake and Vegan Apple Cake. It is an excellent frosting for just about any cake!

I’m not one to keep things to myself, so I’m excited to share with you my secrets for making the best coconut cream recipes for whipped topping. If you’ve never whipped coconut cream before, my tips will make it easy!

How to Make Coconut Whipped Cream

You can find the full printable recipe, including ingredient quantities, below. But first, here are some explanations of ingredients and steps to help you make this recipe perfect every time.

Curious how to make vegan whipped cream? You’ve come to the right place! It’s actually a simple process. Here’s a synopsis of the steps:

1. Scoop the firm coconut fat (not the milky, liquid part) into a chilled mixing bowl.
2. Use your mixer with the whisk attachment and beat until soft peaks form.
3. Serve it as is or add vanilla and/or a sweetener.

Key Ingredients

Here are the ingredients you’ll need for this recipe, including substitution ideas:

• Coconut milk — You’ll need one can of full-fat coconut milk or coconut cream.
• Sweetener — You can use a zero-calorie sweetener like Truvia, stevia, or monk fruit or use or use powdered sugar.
• Vanilla — You can make this whipped cream without added vanilla flavor. But if you’re adding it, you can use scrapings of one vanilla beanor vanilla extract.

Ingredient Spotlight

See Also

Authentic German Christmas Cookies - Facts and traditional recipesHomemade Caramel Corn (Old-Fashioned Recipe) - Sally's Baking AddictionNorth East Family Fun : Easy Classic Christmas Cake Recipe (Inspired by Mary Berry)Easy Vegan Pecan Pie — The BEST Classic Pecan Pie Recipe!

What Coconut Milk is Best for Whipping?

It’s best to use full-fat coconut milk when creating whipped topping because we’ll be using the fat portion from the can. Full-fat coconut milk should have between 12 and 15 (or more) grams of fat. Refrigerate the can up to overnight to help separate the fat from the more watery liquid in the can. If you are using coconut milk with less fat, you may need to scoop out the fat from 2 cans. The fat content should equal about one cup. Save the water liquid to use in green smoothies or this piña colada smoothie.

Step-by-Step Instructions

This sounds pretty straightforward, but there’s more to it than that. Let’s go through these steps one by one.

Step One: Prepare the Coconut Milk

Place your can of coconut milk or cream in the fridge for at least 4 hours to solidify the fat.

Step Two: Freeze Your Mixing Bowl

Next, place your mixing bowl in the freezer for about 10 minutes. Having that bowl good and cold helps, especially if your kitchen is warm. I find in the winter I don’t have to worry about this step as much.

You can even throw your mixer’s whip attachment in the bowl, too.

Step 3: Pour out the Liquid and Scoop out the Fat

1. Remove the can of coconut milk from the fridge and open it with a can opener.
2. Use a butter knife, straw, or chopsticks to create two tunnelsthrough the firm cream. Creating two tunnels, one at the front of the can and one at the back helps it pour. It’s similar to a gas can, where the second hole allows the oxygen to enter the can and equalize the pressure, making an easier pour.
   
3. Pour the watery mixture into a bowl. Reserve that liquid to use in other recipes, such as blueberry overnight oats, or use it in place of milk in other recipes.
4. Scoop out the fat from the can into the chilled mixing bowl.
   

Step 4: Use a Mixer to Whip Cream

1. Whip the cream at medium to medium-high speed, using a spatula to occasionally push down ingredients from the side of the bowl.
2. Continue whipping for 3 to 5 minutes until soft peaks form.
3. If the cream stays firm and frozen to the sides of the bowl, add a teaspoon or two of the runny liquid from the can to help break it up.

Step 5: Optional Add-Ins

• Vanilla — You can add a teaspoon of regular vanilla extract or the scrapings from one vanilla bean.
• Sweetener — I typically use two packets of Truvia or Monk Fruit.
• Powdered Sugar — If you prefer using powdered sugar, add a tablespoon at a time and taste it to get the right level of sweetness for your taste buds.

Best Coconut Milk Brands

Here are my favorite coconut milk brands to make coconut whipped cream:

• Nature’s Charm Coco Whipping Cream — this whips nicely, and you don’t have to drain the can because it’s perfectly formulated for whipped cream.
• Savoy Coconut Cream — another one perfect for making vegan whipped cream.
• Sprouts Coconut Cream — mostly cream in the can, a little grainy, but still very good. I have also had good luck with Sprouts Coconut Milk, too.
• Trader Joe’s Coconut Cream — mostly cream, but it takes a little longer to whip and is not as firm as peaks as the ones above.

Keto Whipped Cream

Make a perfect keto whipped cream dessert when you use a keto-friendly sweetener like Truvia or MonkFruit. A no-sugar whipped topping is delicious when served with hot chai tea, over low-carb desserts, and more.

Here are the estimated nutritional stats per serving:

Vegan Whipped Cream Calories: 84 Carbs: 1 Protein: 0 Fiber: 0

With only 1 gram of carbs per serving, you can add this keto whipped cream to your favorite vegan keto desserts, like fresh berries, Chocolate Chia Pudding (using zero-calorie sweetener instead of dates), Stuffed Strawberries, Peanut Butter Granola, and more!

Vegan Creamy Desserts

I love adding whipped cream to desserts like smooth vegan pudding. But you can try it on a variety of desserts. For example, this coconut whipped topping is perfect with your favorite vegan creamy desserts. Here are some favorites:

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This post was originally published in 2015 and was updated to include new photos, new text, and an updated recipe in 2021.