Giving your desserts a decadent, shiny finish with chocolate ganache is easier than you think.
Shiny, silky, and oh-so chocolaty, ganache is the extra special touch on many desserts.
It can even be whipped into a mousse-like filling for cakes or piped onto cupcakes.
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What Is Ganache?
Butter is often added for extra richness.
We’ll breakdown how to make a simple ganache to use as a frosting, filling, or mousse.
Credit: Photographer: Antonis Achilleos; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Styling: Mary Clayton Carl
How do you pronounce “ganache?”
In the beginning of the word, the “ga” makes a “guh” sound.
Originally, the term stems from the Italian word for “jaw"ganascia.
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For the best ganache, pick a premium, semisweet baking chocolate bar.
Bars melt differently than chocolate morsels, which contain stabilizers that impede on the melting process.
Tip
To make chopping chocolate easier, use a serrated knife.
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The grooves on this knife easily chip away at hard bars of chocolate.
Uses for Chocolate Ganache
Many of our recipes include making a ganache in one form or another.
Here are a few recipes that each use ganache in a different way.
What Makes a Silky Ganache?
The ratio of chocolate to cream determines the texture of the ganache and how it will be used.
Troubleshooting Chocolate Ganache
Although fairly easy to make, a few things can go wrong.
Don’t panic, here’s what to do when making a ganache doesn’t go as planned.
This lets the hot cream do all the melting and helps avoid over whipping the mixture.
You then have to reheat the mixture gently.
The best way to do this is low and slow over a double boiler.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ganache sets to a fudge-like consistency, but never completely hard.
Melt chocolate:
Chop chocolate bars, and add to a large heat-proof bowl.
Carefully pour heated cream over chocolate.
Let sit 5 minutes to soften chocolate.
Stir:
Gently stir the cream-chocolate mixture until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
Rest ganache:
Rest the ganache until lukewarm, about 20 minutes.
The mixture should be pourable but cool enough to stick to the cake.
Use ganache as desired:
Use the ganache between cake layers or as a cake frosting.
Pour it over a layer dessert, or use it for your dessert of choice.
