Give Your Whipped Cream Some Class By Adding Orange Blossom Water

If you're a fan of dessert, there's nothing like a dollop or two of vanilla whipped cream on your favorite berry pie or chocolate cake to sweeten the deal. If you're used to making this luscious topping yourself, you probably stick to your own variation of the classic recipe. With only a small handful of ingredients, including cold heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract, along with your trusty handheld mixer, you're at the behest of one of the best dessert toppings often used to enhance your most loved confections. But if you're a true sweet treats fan and fancy having a spoonful of whipped cream on homemade desserts, you may want to change up the flavor of this rich and creamy topping. If you've been looking for a new way to flavor your whipped cream, why not try a small splash of orange blossom water? 

For those who've never heard of this brilliant, flavorful product, orange blossom water is distilled, concentrated water made from the petals of bitter orange trees. This particular water smells and tastes just like citrus rind, imparting an equal balance of sweet and sharp characteristics. However, this flavor enhancer is subtle enough to impart just the right amount of citrus essence into your next batch of homemade whipped cream.

Before we reveal how to make orange blossom water and where you can purchase a bottle or two, let's get into the details regarding how much is needed for your next round of whipped cream. Besides the standard ways to take whipped cream to the next level, if you want to add an unexpected yet complementary flavor, orange blossom water may be the right ingredient for you. The process of incorporating this delicately fragranced product into homemade whipped cream couldn't be simpler. Use 1 teaspoon of orange blossom water for every cup of cold heavy cream, combining them in a bowl with your preferred amount of powdered sugar. From there, all you need to do is mix until the cream has thickened and peaks become visible.

The amount of flavor orange blossom water imparts on your next bowl of whipped cream depends on how citrusy you want the end result. If you're looking for a mild upgrade yet still want to taste that subtle orange flavor, try mixing this product into whipped cream that will be used atop mild vanilla or chocolate-flavored confections. This gives the added orange essence room to shine. 

In some cases, chefs prefer to add a sprinkle of grated orange zest to the final product to ensure that the intended citrus flavor comes through. Either way, orange blossom water gives whipped cream a delicate yet sophisticated upgrade.

Now that you know how to flavor whipped cream with orange blossom water, where can you buy a bottle? While inventory may vary, you can order orange blossom water online or grab some from one of a few select supermarkets, including Sprouts Farmers Market, Whole Foods, or Walmart. As this ingredient is quite common in France and the Middle East, you can also procure a bottle in select Middle Eastern food stores.

Technically, you can make orange blossom water at home with Seville orange tree petals and distilled water. However, this variety of orange is more prevalent in European and Spanish countries. Apart from any potential difficulty in scoring fresh Seville orange petals, you also need to wait at least 2 weeks for the petals to steep before straining. 

If you're still up for making flavor-infused water, orange blossom water is the floral ingredient that can replace rose water in any cocktail. And rose water can elevate a fresh batch of whipped cream, too. Making rose water can be done in just one day with fresh untreated rose petals, distilled water, and your stove. At the end of the day, though, the essence of rose differs from orange. For foodies committed to adding a fancy hint of citrus to their favorite desserts, a bit of orange blossom water is sure to give whipped cream a  new level of refinement.