Real, or cool whip. The Reddi Whip will deflate. Ask me how I know this ;) No, I didn't buy it but asked my mother to pick up cream to whip one year to include her in a family dessert we were making. Mother doesn't cook at this age, and never did enjoy or take an interest in it. The Reddi Whip was a failure.

Huh, I would have though that real whipped cream would not have the half life of Cool Whip, which I believe NASA has also used to patch portions of the space shuttle, so I would stick with the Cool Whip.

Maybe add some Knox to it (if you want to use whipped cream)?

See here: http://www.chowhound.com/post/substitute-cool-whip-342568

Look for unpasteurized cream if you are worried. It stays whipped longer. I always use real cream (usually pasteurized) and it works fine with trifle and layer cakes ( I use confection sugar in it which probably helps stabilize). The thought of Cool Whip or Redi makes me shudder. That's a good way to ruin a good dessert!

I know Cool Whip is like a science experiment which is why I asked. The trifle seemed more festive than bars or cookies. We go to my brother's and they usually make pumpkin cake but they had it two weeks ago for DB's birthday so I am the only one doing dessert this year. No one is really into pumpkin or apple pie.

I buy Organic Valley brand because it has a higher butterfat content and I swear it whips in ten seconds. I would think it'd hold better too. So check out the fat content if you have a choice at the store. You want heavy cream, not whipping cream.

I often use Organic Valley. It doesn't stay whipped long at all (not even half a day) but for some reason whenever I use whipped cream in a dessert like trifle or a layer cake there is no problem with it liquefying even though it isn't eaten all in one day.

Since this is a special occasion with guests, why not just try something you have made before.

Since you're putting it in between layers I'd use the frozen topping. Looks like these versions do too.

trifle with brownies and pudding

P.S. I use confection sugar in the cream for those desserts, so that might help to stabilize it a bit.

Last week on America's Test Kitchen they added a small amount of unflavored gelatin to the whipping cream when making a Boston Cream Pie (I think).

If you wish to use real whipped cream, search for directions on making stabilized. My question would be, is the pudding a separate layer from the Cool Whip or are they combined? If the pudding is folded into the Cool Whip, you could easily whip the cream with a bit of sugar and fold in the pudding and the 2 together will be very stable.

I have never seen un-pasteurized whipping cream. Most cream in the store is ultra-pasteurized and but sometimes you can find cream that is just pasteurized (like at Trader Joe's). The shelf life is shorter but it the taste is fresher.

The unpasteurized is hard to find. One of our supermarkets was carrying it but seems to have discontinued.

Recipe says to layer the pudding and cool whip. Will probably just use cool whip to be on the safe side.

thanks to everyone!

If you want to replace the cool whip with real cream, you may want to stabilize it first with gelatin so it stays together and has more body.

Stabilized cream

ETA: Oops...just read that tishtosh has already recommended this...I second it.

joaniepoanie, your trifle sounds so good that I clicked on CindyMac's link to check it out. Looks festive as well as delicious.

MtnRdRedux, Cool Whip as NASA space spackle -- hilarious!

Which recipe are you using? They all look yummy. I might try it too.

I'm using the Betty Crocker one below. I'm going to use regular pudding instead of instant....I think it tastes better. I did wimp out and get Cool Whip. Couldn't find toffee pieces so bought Heath candy bars as well as Nestle Crunch bites. Will use one of them on top....have no clue how to make those chocolate curls. It looks very easy to make and easy to transport.

http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/classic-fudgy-brownie-trifle/ce60975e-de0e-4206-8cda-7350a544bee1

For chocolate curls get a large, thick bar of chocolate and use a vegetable peeler or cheese plan (Trader Joe's pound plus works good for this). There is also a method where you can melt chocolate, pour it on the back of a cookie sheet, spread it thin and use a scraper or metal spatula (but that is more work to me and messier and I also have the pound plus laying around).

I would done stabalized whipped cream. I recently cleaned out a freezer and found a partial container of Cool Whip that the date indicated had been there for years (even without the date, it would have had to have been at least 3 years old since I haven't hosted TG dinner the last two). When I opened it to dump out the contents, it looked like it probably did last time anyone looked at it -- which made me wonder about the stuff.

I have heard of people having problems with the gelatin to stabalize whipped cream. . I think it is a matter of mixing in and dissolving evenly. KIng Arthur Flour also sells a Whipped Cream Stablizer that some folks find better to work with than gelatin. I think it is gelatin and sugar premixed in a fine powder for easier blending. I ordered some to try it and have only used it once. Worked well -- the leftover cream stayed fully whipped in my fridge until I tossed the remnants. Mentioning it in case you want to have it on hand for the future.

Hope you tried the chocolate curls and got them to work too. They always look great and dress up anything, but your crunched up candy would do that too.

Though the OP's occasion to use this has come & gone I'll add my experience for future reference.

I made Cook's Illustrated Chocolate Eclair Pie for a recent event. It's a riff on one of those cookies layered with cream refrigerated cakes but theirs uses pastry cream made from scratch instead of instant pudding and real cream instead of Cool Whip. They use unflavored gelatin to stabilize the cream. First time I'd done this & it was easy and effective.

I do an English trifle for New Year's dinner and always use just heavy cream with good results. I don't consider myself a food snob but I wouldn't ruin the flavor of a dessert with Cool Whip or similar non-dairy replacements for whipped cream.

I do keep a can of Redi Whip on hand in winter to spray a dollop on the kids' hot chocolate ;)

My English Trifle/ Recipe from Yankee Magazine