Homemade Cool Whip that is stable like the store bought kind but made at home and SO delicious. Perfect for your favorite family recipes!
The first recipe in the Pantry Series was for Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup with many more canned soups on the short list for future posts. If you have any requests please leave comments below and I’d be happy to look into it!
This recipe is a favorite of mine (I’ve been making it for about a year since finding it on Serious Eats) and I’ve used in successfully in dozens of cool whip recipes. 
PS, just want to note, I’ve had this recipe saved on my computer and as I am linking now I see we both shot it with a strawberry like on the cover of the Cool Whip container. I guess I’m less original (even with copycats) than I give myself credit for.
Some things to consider about this Homemade Cool Whip Recipe:
- The consistency is both room temperature stable AND freezer safe. The gelatin keeps its stability under 98 degrees and it protects the water content safe in the freezer (thanks to Serious Eats for this data).
- The recipe is a version of marshmallow fluff and is NOT Whipped Cream with Cream of Tartar added in. They’re two completely different recipes.
- Whipped Cream with Cream of Tartar will not freeze well and defrost well. It also can’t hold up to higher temperatures or extended times outside the fridge.
- This recipe is exactly what you’re looking for, Cool Whip, not whipped cream.
- Don’t make the recipe without a thermometer. It isn’t difficult to make, but you do need to reach a specific temperature that you can’t guess.
Tools Used in the making of this Homemade Cool Whip:
Powdered Milk: Good to keep in your pantry if you only use milk sparingly for recipes or use powdered milk for other recipes.
Candy Thermometer: Inexpensive and indispensable in this recipe.
Gelatin: Same kind you’d use in jellies, you can also use store brand.
Homemade Cool Whip
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 teaspoons powdered gelatin
- 2 tablespoons ice water
- 1/4 cup whole milk cold
- 3 tablespoons powdered milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup light corn syrup *
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 3/4 cups heavy cream cold
Instructions
Add the gelatin to the 2 tablespoons of ice water and whisk.
In a second bowl whisk together the milk, powdered milk and vanilla.
- In a small saucepan with a candy thermometer clipped onto the side, add the 1/4 cup of water, corn syrup, sugar and salt.
Whisk together and cook over medium heat until combined and in a rolling boil for about 3 minutes.
- Raise the temperature to medium high and cook until it reaches 250 degrees exactly.
- Turn off the heat and add to a large metal mixing bowl.
When it cools to 212 degrees (about 2-3 minutes) add the gelatin and using a hand mixer, whisk for 5-7 minutes until the mixture is cooled and three times the size and almost pure white.
- Add the vanilla milk mixture in a couple of tablespoons at a time and keep beating it in until smooth until it is all incorporated.
Cover with saran wrap and let sit for 2-3 hours (the structure of the cool whip needs this to be stable, don't put it in the fridge).
- Add the heavy cream into the bowl 1/4 cup at a time, pouring slowly while using the hand mixer on low speed.
- Keep beating with the hand mixer on medium speed until you get soft peaks.
- You can keep it covered in the fridge for a couple of weeks (this is still dairy, so it will go bad at some point) or freeze it for 3 months. You can defrost and use the same way you do prepared cool whip.
Recipe Notes
*Want to make your own corn syrup at home??I use a homemade thick simple syrup for this instead by mixing 8 tablespoons of sugar with 2 tablespoons of hot water. This makes a half a cup of homemade corn syrup.
Thank you so much for this recipe every other site is trying to direct me to make a cool whip substitute like just stabilised whipped cream but my traditional family recipes NEED cool whip the flavour and texture cannot be compared to regular old whipped cream and I am in Australia so there is no way for me to get my hands on real cool whip. Thank you!
So glad you found it then, Madi.
I think it would have been great but unfortunately I let it turn to “cool butter”
Can you use this for a non bake cheesecake?
You can use this for a topping, if that’s what you mean.
In “ Tools Used in the making of this Homemade Cool Whip:”, it says,
“Gelatin: Same kind you’d use in jellies, you can also use store brand.”
I have gelatin, but it’s the kind to make jello with, not the pectin/sure jell you make jelly with.
I want to make sure I use the right one, cause I really want to make this recipe!
Thank you!
That’s not the right type to use for this recipe. You’ll need to get the kind you use to make jellies with. Hope this helps clear things up.
Can you use this homemade cool whip in a cool whip frosting for a cake? For cool whip frost I add cool whip, instant vanilla pudding, powdered sugar and milk. I trying to find a cool whip that will do better then the store bought and hold shape
I’ve not tried it before but I don’t see why not. Good luck!
Can this be made with 1% or 2% milk instead of whole milk to reduce fat content?
Yes 🙂
I made this three times without success ?. Boiling the sugar water never gets the desired results. It was too hard the first time (cooled too long), burned the second attempt (heated up too fast) and the third time I thought it was perfect! I got it in the metal bowl, mixed my gelatin in, but the mixture didn’t get bigger when mixed. I went ahead and let it sit then added the heavy cream anyway but now I have melted ice cream. How do I get this to WHIP?!
Oh no! It might take a bit to try and help diagnose what the issue is. Did you use a thermometer?
I just found your web site tonight and I am thrilled to see all of the exciting recipes! I believe that this cool whip is going to be the first one that I’ll make because I just love the stuff on any desert! I would have never imagined anyone would come up with a homemade version!
And by the way, even though you did the strawberry pic, you’re still very original to me because I’ve never seen this recipe before anywhere and I follow 100 recipe blogs!
You just made my day! Thank you so much.
Sabrina,
1. Wow! This is SO GOOD! Incredible. And I love love cool whip. I love this more.
2. No, making this is not as easy as buying a container of cool whip. That’s okay! Way okay.
3. Yes, yes, yes, it is very much worth your while: this cool whip copycat is leagues ahead of the prepared kind. By 20,000. It has a fresh, delicious flavor and great texture. It lasts by being stable like its namesake.
4. Bonus: it makes for a fascinating conversation for those, like me, who have never heard of homemade cool whip. Especially when tasted and you say “I made this” and they say “no way!”
And, the ingredients are natural food, not the ingredients of mono/tri/glutinus-silicon/xanthan-gun/esters of fatty acids/red 40 lake/blue 31 ocean/42 Blue Danube, etc….
5. Score: I don’t feel guilty serving this natural and delicious whip to my children.
6. I did not vary the ingredients one iota. This is science here.
Thank you!
Thank you so much, Anne! You really made my day!