Latest news with #whippedcream
CBC
16-07-2025
- General
- CBC
Cookbook author Camilla Wynne on why you should bake all summer long
Yes, it's worth turning your oven on for these sweet treats Summer is all about fruit. Markets heave with colourful harvests begging to be transformed into dessert. And although there's nothing quite like that first bite of a perfectly ripe strawberry or juicy peach, you need to turn on your oven to truly experience the full potential of the season's offerings. There's something special about cooked fruit; it's delightful in a pie or crumble, but even better in a galette. I find it so satisfying to arrange sliced fruit in neat concentric circles on a disc of dough. The latter becomes shatteringly crisp in a hot oven, while roasting fruit causes some of its water content to evaporate, concentrating flavours and filling your house with incredible aromas. Plus, this sweet requires no toppings, except perhaps a spoonful of whipped cream. Planning to freeze all that fresh fruit to bake with throughout the winter? While that works for some preparations — jams, muffins, crisps — you'll never get the ideal galette from frozen fruit. Freezing breaks down cell walls, causing the juices to flow free and the fruit to lose its shape. I'm afraid you're just going to have to bake now. Luckily, I have some tips to help you deal with common hot-weather baking problems — for galettes and more — that will help you avoid any potential pitfalls. Stick to smaller treats If you're lucky enough to have air conditioning, you might be in the clear. If not, I find that opening the windows and turning on the fans for a cross breeze can help. But on super-hot days, choose recipes with shorter bake times to limit how long the oven is on. Smaller treats such as cupcakes and mini tarts bake faster than their full-size counterparts, and they're excellent for bringing to picnics since they're pre-portioned. Shortcakes in particular are a classic summertime treat; if you don't have round cutters, you can use an upside-down glass or cut the dough into squares. Be mindful of rising temps If you're baking with yeast or making sourdough, keep in mind that higher ambient temperatures will affect rising times, often speeding up the rise itself. There's nothing worse than kneading dough into full gluten development only to later find it spilling out of its container. When it's over-proofed, it lacks structure and can take on a slightly alcoholic scent. So when temperatures peak, check on the rising status of your dough sooner rather than later. On the plus side, if you're doing one rise in the fridge overnight (my timesaving hack for making yeasted treats in the morning with less fuss), the dough will shake off that chill much faster in a hot kitchen and will be ready to bake — and eat — sooner. Make your refrigerator work for you While most cookie recipes call for room-temperature butter, a very hot room makes for very soft butter, which can cause cookies to spread too much in the oven and bake too flat. The refrigerator (or freezer, if you're in a rush) is your best friend here. Chill cookie dough thoroughly before baking it so the proteins and starches can begin to gel before the butter melts and slumps. Similarly, working with pie dough or puff pastry in a hot environment can feel impossible with too-warm butter making things sticky. To avoid this, pre-chill all dough ingredients and return the dough to the fridge if it ever feels too soft — or stick to crumb crusts and cookies that start with a melted-butter base! Steer clear of sweaty confections There are some bakes you should avoid on particularly humid days. While a pavlova might seem like the ultimate summer dessert — crisp meringue topped with mounds of whipped cream and fresh fruit — it's only for days with a low humidex. Humidity is the enemy of meringue, making it soft, sticky and even weepy, so you'll want to avoid meringue-topped pies as well. If you're making meringues ahead of time, store them in an airtight container. Save little packets of silica from packaged snacks such as seaweed to add to the container — they will help to absorb excess moisture and keep things crisp. Don't miss out
Forbes
11-07-2025
- Health
- Forbes
Whipnotic: Whipped Cream Without Guilt Made With Lower Calories
Sisters Tracy Luckow (left) and Lori Gitomer (right) launched Whipnotic so customers could use ... More whipped cream as a topping with only 10 calories per two-tablespoon serving. Motivated by their mom who has insulin-dependent diabetes, two sisters, Tracy Luckow and Lori Gitomer, developed Whipnotic, a low-calorie whipped cream in 2022. Indeed one serving of Whipnotic, equivalent to two tablespoons, contains only 10 calories with one gram of fat, and is gluten-free and low in sugar, notes Luckow. It can, she says, be 'eaten by people of all ages and with many dietary restrictions.' However, it still consists of cream, milk, a touch of cane sugar, natural vanilla, and is thickened with a plant-based gum called Konjac. Is Low-Calorie Whipped Cream an Oxymoron? And what does a noted nutrition expert say about Whipnotic's ingredients? Marion Nestle, a retired New York University professor of Nutrition, Food Studies and Public Health and author of Food Politics: How the Food Industry Influences Nutrition and Health, declares, 'Whipped cream is not about health; it's about deliciousness.' But she adds that 'Healthier whipped cream is an oxymoron.' But asked if she'd recommend topping something off with it, she replies, in a very balanced way, 'Try it and see if you like it. If it works for you, fine.' Luckow emphasizes that 'If you're going to eat a dessert, our product is low in sugar and airy, rather than denser desserts on the market.' And she notes it's less artificial than ice cream and that most dishes of ice cream are 100 calories or more, or 10 times more than a Whipnotic serving. Whipped Cream Needed Reinventing The two sisters felt that many food items in the supermarket aisles have been updated and modernized but whipped cream got left behind. Luckow said whipped cream's only innovation derived from baristas in coffee shops 'swirling sauces and flavors into creams to make coffees more multi-sensorial.' Those baristas helped inspire them to concoct Whipnotic. Their product also has a nozzle on top of the aerosol can that swirls two flavors together and makes it more 'sensorial,' Luckow says. The two sisters presented Whipnotic at the 2025 Fancy Food Show at the Javits Center in NYC in late June 2025. Gitomer says that the show enabled them to meet new food service retail partners, such as coffee shops and ice cream store owners, that can serve as markets in the future. Both have the requisite backgrounds to develop a food product. Tracy Luckow has a PhD in Food Science and Nutrition from University College Cork in Ireland with a master's degree in Food Science from Rutgers University in N.J. and has held several jobs in food industry for PepsiCo, Dannan and Sabra for over 20 years while Lori Gitomer ran sales organizations at NBC Universal, CAA and Viacom. The sisters collaborated with the Cornell University Agi Tech Department 'to ensure proper quality, safety and nutritional standards were being met,' Luckow said. Both sisters graduated from Cornell University as undergraduates, and its Agi Tech Department invites entrepreneurs to take workshops, learn about the business, before they scale up. The company is headquartered in NYC, but the product is manufactured in Delhi, N.Y. and the nozzles are made in Rochester, N.Y. Gitomer was brainstorming names, looking for something that was playful, fun and captured the swirling ability of its nozzle when Whipnotic flashed in her mind, and that was it. Several Distribution Centers Whipnotic is currently available in over 1,500 supermarkets including Target, Kroger, ShopRite and Fresh Thyme Market, and locally in NYC at Citarella. It's also sold online, particularly during the holiday season as gift packages. But about 95% of its business derives from supermarket sales, and 5% online. Most of its customers use it to spice up 'healthful coffee, hot chocolate or matchas at home, but they also it to pancakes, waffles, crepes, fruits parfaits, ice cream, pies and even cocktails,' notes Luckow. The duo tapped Instagram and TikTok to spread the word about Whipnotic, where followers gather to discuss their favorite whipped cream recipes. Most users start buying Whipnotic to supplement their coffee or for coffee-inspired drinks at home. The sisters split tasks in that Luckow manages the Product Development, Operations and Retail Sales, while Gitomer manages Finance, Investor Relationships, Legal and Social Media. They also rely on a team of designers, content creators, photographers and recipe experts. AI says that whipped cream sales in the U.S. have been flat at about $800 million annually, though private label sales have been increasing over branded products. Two of the largest whipped cream brands are Reddi-wip produced by Conagra Brand and Cool Whip owned by Kraft Heinz. Reacting Quickly to Changing Trends Gitomer says that because Whipnotic is smaller, it can 'react faster to trends,' and enables it to appeal to a younger, trendy generation. It's introducing a new flavor soon, Dubai Chocolate, because it's discussed avidly on TikTok and Instagram, showing it can be more responsive than their larger competitors. A year from now, Gitomer would like to increase its retailers to over 5,000 stores nationwide, add more flavors, establish partnerships with food servers, and heighten its connection to its loyal customers.
