There are many reasons why crème fraîche isn’t for everyone. Already, some people are allergic or intolerant to cow’s milk. Moreover, when you have cholesterol, when you want to lighten a dish or when you simply cannot digest it, it is always good to know about alternatives. And when you switch to a vegan diet, it allows you to continue to make your favorite recipes without this ingredient very present in French cuisine. Finally, it can also happen that we don’t have any more. If you can’t go to the supermarket, then these replacements can be very practical. Whatever your tastes and your reasons, you will certainly find something here to replace fresh cream in a recipe.
Enough to satisfy your desire for risotto, veal blanquette, quiche or even leek tart even if you no longer have a pot of cream in the fridge.
1) Milk and flour to replace fresh cream
Thicken a little milk with flour (or alternatively cornflour). You will then obtain a kind of bechamel without butter, the latter also being an alternative to cream. Neutral in taste, this option can be easily adapted to all recipes. It is particularly useful for a tartiflette, a gratin or a sauce. Furthermore, she is used exactly like fresh cream. You will therefore not have to modify the cooking or the recipe of your dish too much. In short, you will not see the difference.
2) Coconut, rice or soy cream
In addition to bringing a little more in terms of taste, vegetable creams are lactose-free and have a ideal texture. Furthermore, they slightly alter the cooking time, which is a definite advantage. With its very subtle exotic flavor, coconut cream lends itself very well to sweet and savory dishes, for example, as well as to sauces to accompany chicken or fish (just like rice cream). The soy cream is ideal for a quiche, spinach, French pasta carbonara or a savory tart.
3) Cottage cheese to replace fresh cream
Cottage cheese is ideal for replace cream in cakes and cold preparations. On the other hand, it is not the ideal choice for hot dishes or sauces. Indeed, this ingredient has the annoying tendency to separate into two phases during heating. For your oven or casserole dishes, consider a pot of ricotta instead. Finally, to stay in the Italian specialties, also think of mascarpone to make an ultra-gourmet whipped cream. If you are on a diet, be careful, because this last option is not the lightest…
4) A yogurt to replace the fresh cream
Well chosen, yogurt is a very effective alternative, but preferably in cold preparations (ice cream, etc.), as the heat can cause it to curdle. With its dense and compact consistency, Icelandic skyr is the perfect replacement for your jar of cream. It will also bring a lot of protein to your dish without exploding the fat. Smooth or stirred yogurt as well as Greek yogurt can also be used.
5) Tofu
Very useful for a diet without animal products such as in case of lactose allergy, silken tofu is low in fat (45 calories for 100 g against 300 calories for the same quantity of fresh cream). It can also be used in many recipes, starting with cakes, quiches or pastries.
6) Condensed milk, last idea to replace fresh cream
We would naturally tend to reserve condensed milk for sweet recipes (whipped cream, etc.) to replace liquid cream. However, be aware that there are also unsweetened versions which will go wonderfully in a soup or a homemade velouté. Whether you take the sweet or savory version, you can put your condensed milk in the fridge two or three days before designing a foam to make it more airy.
And also know that it is possible to replace mustard, flour, sunflower oil, eggs and a whole bunch of other ingredients if you don’t have any more in your cupboards or your refrigerator. You just have to know them and dare to get started!
