How can you thicken lactose free cream

Question

I am trying to thicken lactose free cream and it does not thicken up the same as normal cream. Any suggestions.

Answer 1

The best method depends on what you're trying to do with the cream (adding it to a recipe or eating it plain, serving hot or cold, etc.) but here are some general tips:

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Mix some cornflour (cornstarch in the US) in a bit of cold cream (or milk) and then gently heat until thickened, much the same as you would to thicken a gravy or sauce. Then stir the thickened mixture into the cream.

The amount of cornflour you should use depends on the amount of cream you're trying to thicken of course but 1-2tsp is normally plenty.

Other methods that work:

• gelatine powder/leaves (careful not to add to much or your mixture will end up too gelatinous)
• egg yolk heated in cream (think custard) - careful not to heat too much or you'll end up to scrambled egg

Answer 2

You can use some castor sugar to turn it into mock cream, with the lactose-free cream replacing the water. But this would only be good for desserts.