Cream in Oz?

[Ce'nedra]

Or more specifically Sydney. I was wondering if 'half and half' cream is referred to by another name here? I can't seem to find it (hoping to make a Thai dessert) in the milk and cream sections.

Also, is double cream commonly available in conventional supermarkets such as Woolworths/Coles?

[Shinboners]

You can make half and half cream by mixing equal parts milk and pouring cream.

[Shalmanese]

Half and half seems like an American invention but it's easy enough to make from cream & milk (plus, as far as I can tell, the majority of half & halfs have all sorts of weird stabilizers & gums in them). Double cream is far more available in Australia than in the US. Sometimes it's called Devonshire cream.

[Ce'nedra]

Thanks for all the info guys. I went to buy ordinary cream and milk for the half & half.

Will be on the look out for double cream next. Should Woolworths have it, I wonder? Or do I need to visit some specialty store?

[Shinboners]

Will be on the look out for double cream next. Should Woolworths have it, I wonder? Or do I need to visit some specialty store?

All the supermarkets carry double cream. It's just a matter of how much you want to spend. You can get everything from the plain label supermarket brand to King Island.

[Ce'nedra]

I know nothing about cream so what do you consider a decent brand at a reasonable price?

Oh and thanks

[Shinboners]

It just depends on what you're using it for. If I'm putting the cream next to a lemon tart or other cake, I'll buy King Island. But if it's used for cooking, I'm happy to use Pura or one of the other commercial brands.

If you're using it to cook, the key is to check the recipe, what cream they're using, and the fat content of the cream - and buy as close to that as possible.

[Nayan Gowda]

Just to follow on from what Daniel C said, also be aware that many of the commercial brands contain a thickening agent that meant that the cream never quite behaved in the way I expected it too. I usually traded up to King Island.

[Ce'nedra]

I'll be making something similar to a pavlova; so in other words, simply whipping the cream. But judging by your comments, I think I'll stick to the King Island just in case

[Shalmanese]

For a pavlova, I would definitely splurge on the king island. But every pavlova recipe I've seen asks for whipping cream, yours specifies double cream?

[Nayan Gowda]

Pretty sure they don't have whipping cream in Oz so you have to use double cream (unless you want additives). It will be a little heavier than whipping cream.

[stuartlikesstrudel]

The "standard" cream we have in Australia is fine for whipping, and is what people will typically think of when cream is asked for in a recipe. It's about 35% milkfat, i think. Pavlova, for example, is pretty much always topped with whipped "standard" cream. We don't use the term "single" when discussing cream. I think some call it "pouring cream" but I don't.

There are indeed thickeners in most of our commercial cream, either gelatin or a vegetable gum. This would be why it's called "Thickened cream" i guess. However I've never had problems with this stopping it whipping or creating issues in recipes. Not that I'm AWARE of anyway!

I think double cream on a pavlova would be pretty intense. I love it for things like lemon tart or other rich, classy desserts, but in my mind a pav has a pretty good layer of cream and doing that with double cream would be heavy, rich and ruin the nice contrast of crispy/chewy meringue with light, airy cream.

OK, i actually just found THIS LINK which has some pictures and there's a great reply in the comments at the bottom from someone who knows their stuff more than me, which has equivalent terms and all that

[Ce'nedra]

I'm planning to make Forgotten Puddings (a Nigella Lawson recipe), which are essentially pavlovas but rather than a crispy meringue, it's more like a marshmallow base. I don't know if that makes using double cream any more reasonable. I was at Woolworths today and I didn't see the King Island hmm...perhaps I need to venture beyond.

Oh and thanks so much for the link, stuartlikesstrudel. It looks like I'll get good ol' thickened cream then.

While at the shops today, I saw Bulla double thick cream...is that the same thing as the double cream I've been referring to? I checked on the Bulla website and it says:

"Rich, indulgent and velvety smooth Bulla Double Thick Cream is the ultimate cream. It’s Extra Thick so you get a perfect dollop straight from the tub, without whipping."

...which confuses me. So it's NOT used for whipping?

Edited November 26, 2009 by Ce'nedra (log)

[Ce'nedra]

I forgot to mention that I was checking the Bulla pure cream and it's listed as 45% fat, which is actually closer to the fat content in double cream, than thickened cream is (which is in the 30s). Does this mean pure cream is closest to double cream?

[lamington]

Ce'nedra, you're getting hung up on labels rather than just looking at constituents. The fat content is the primary guide to thickness. And there you have it. (The small amount of gelatine added to Aus "thickened cream" has a relatively minor effect on thickness, so can be largely ignored.) Labels like pure and double are of little help beyond indicating that they are relatively high fat content relative to our standard thickened cream which is suitable for whipping. Just look at the fat content.