Half And Half Vs Heavy Cream: The Differences You Need To Know When Baking

Half and half and heavy cream are both essential ingredients when it comes to baking delicious treats, be it pies, custards, cakes, or more. Upon first glance, these two dairy products look remarkably similar and can serve many of the same purposes in a dish, but they also have a few important distinctions. So, what is the actual difference between them, and how does it affect your baked goods?

The primary difference between heavy cream and half and half is fat content. Heavy cream contains at least 36% milk fat, while half and half is between 10.5 and 18%. Either one can be homogenized, and both can be pasteurized or ultra-pasteurized. Thanks to its higher fat content, heavy cream is thicker and richer than half and half (which really is half milk, half cream). Despite being so similar, heavy cream and half and half both lend themselves better to different dishes. Half and half is better suited to light recipes that don't require a lot of fat, like some soups, egg dishes, or certain baked goods like Southern-style pound cake or bread pudding. 

Inversely, heavy cream works better for recipes that need that extra richness or fat, like creamy soups or custard-based pies. If you're baking a cake, not adding enough fat can be a big mistake in some recipes since the dessert often needs a bit of fat for structure. Homemade ice cream is another recipe that requires heavy cream's extra richness for flavor and support.

While in some applications, heavy cream and half and half can sometimes be used interchangeably, we don't recommend doing so for really precise baking applications. Many other dishes will come out great with one or the other, though they'll most often come out richer and creamier if you use heavy cream rather than half and half. If you're in a pinch and have only one of the two, check to see if you can use half and half as a substitute for heavy cream in your dish, or vice versa.

There's also a slight difference in how long each of these dairy products can last in the fridge once they've been opened. Heavy cream, once opened, lasts about one to two weeks in the refrigerator before it goes bad. In comparison, half and half lasts between one week and 10 days. It's not a big difference, but it is important to know how to avoid either of them spoiling in the fridge, whether it's bound for a baked good or another dish.