Dessert recipes often call for heavy cream. What is it?

Heavy cream is a somewhat antiquated term that is rarely seen on cartons of cream in the grocery store dairy case. Heavy cream is whipping cream with a fat content of between 36 and 40 percent; the whipping cream commonly found in our markets is its closest equivalent.

Ultrapasteurized whipping cream is often available. This thick cream has been heated to kill microorganisms that cause cream to spoil, so it has a longer shelf life than whipping cream but is not as fluffy and light when whipped.