3 Clever Uses for a Whipping Siphon

What’s a whipping siphon, you ask? Well, if you’ve ever had a skinny half-caf mocha with extra whip—or given your BFF the side-eye for ordering one—you’ve seen a whipping siphon in action. You know the slim silver canister that sits all shiny and chrome behind the espresso machine until the barista breaks it out to finish your Frappuccino? That’s the one. Salivating already? It gets even better. Coffeehouse cream isn’t the only thing this magical device can whip up—far from it.

From a brunch-conquering hollandaise to crowd-pleasing cocktails, your wish is your siphon’s command. Ever yearned for a whipped cream with some flavor—vanilla bean, maybe, or a delicate lavender note? A whipping siphon makes it easy. Dreamed of making your own fountain-style sodas? Your siphon’s a whiz at fizz. Felt the urge to dispense cake batter directly into your mouth? Save your self-respect: with a siphon, you can have a fluffy cake on the table in 10 minutes.

Read on for three of our favorite ways to use a whipping siphon. Once you’re hooked, you can find dozens more at ChefSteps.

Customize Your Cream

Whipped cream starts with one ingredient: heavy cream. But a whipping siphon makes it a cinch to customize to your heart’s content. Got a sweet tooth? Mix in some sugar and vanilla. Feeling adventurous? Add your favorite edible essential oil. Texture, too, is easy to control with a siphon—for cream thick like butter, shake it up; for silky softness, let it warm at room temp for a few minutes. Get to know the step-by-step for foaming your cream to taste, then dispense that bespoke beauty all over your mocha or old-fashioned ice cream float.All the Bubbles, No Toil or Trouble

That ice cream float sounded good, didn’t it? But don’t head out for a two-liter just yet. You guessed it: With a whipping siphon, you can make your favorite juice into a fountain-worthy fresh soda.

Strain all the pulp out of your juice—the job’s a breeze with our secret ingredient. Then follow our instructions for flavoring, carbonating and chilling, and serve up a fizzy glass. Add a scoop of ice cream or drink it straight, and float away to a world of cherry-red vinyl and checkerboard floors.

Fastest Cake in the West

What goes better with ice cream than a piece of cake? Go ahead and whip some up—literally!

Making a cake in a whipping siphon might seem like high-tech wizardry, but it makes a lot of sense when you learn that many of your favorite baked goods are actually foams. Usually, these foams require leaveners such as baking powder or yeast, but here, we bubble up our batter with nothing but a whipping siphon. Pop that cake foam in your microwave, and the bubbles will first expand, then get trapped as heat solidifies thickeners in their walls. Result: a tasty, featherlight—but solid—dessert with none of that tinny baking-powder aftertaste. Give it a try.

ChefSteps is a team of award-winning chefs, filmmakers, scientists, designers and engineers focused on revolutionizing the way people cook by inspiring creativity and encouraging expertise in the kitchen. Learn more at ChefSteps.com.