Name: Chocolate Ganache
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 2
Cuisine: French Cuisine
Ingredients: 1 tsp honey; 1 tablespoon liqueur of your choice, amaretto, grand Marnier, baileys, etc.(optional) to match the taste of your dessert.; Flavour (vanilla, peppermint, raspberry, coffee, citrus etc.); Citrus zest; Coarse sea salt (about 1/2 tsp); Freshly grated black pepper or chili; 225 grams good quality chocolate, sweet, semi-sweet, bitter, couverture, white chocolate, etc.; 3/4 cup (180 ml) heavy cream; 2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter; 225 grams good quality, dark chocolate; 225 ml heavy cream

Jump to Recipe

Ganache is a French term referring to a smooth mixture of chopped chocolate and heavy cream, used as a base to make chocolates or as a glaze, sauce or icing used as filling for pastries, to make truffles, to glaze cakes and many more uses.

This post has two recipe cards and two videos. So, if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE button you will see the Vegan Chocolate Ganache first. You will have to scroll further down for the regular Chocolate Ganache.

Before making a ganache, you will need a good quality chocolate (dark or white) to melt.

Chocolates with around 70% cocoa content will make your desserts much tastier.

How to melt chocolate

There are a few ways you can melt chocolate, in order to make the ganache:

Using an electric chocolatière (electric chocolate melting pot). Follow the instructions of the manufacturer.
Using the microwave. This is the easiest way, however, you must be careful to use a microwave safe container. Break chocolate in smaller pieces and put your microwave to low heat. Melt it for 1 – 2 minutes, stir with spoon and if it has not melted completely, add 1 minute more and repeat. Add remaining ingredients and mix. For white chocolate, start with 1 minute and continue with 30 seconds.
Another way is to heat the heavy cream on the stove top and then remove it from the heat, add the chocolate and other ingredients and mix until it melts.
Finally, the method I use is to melt the chocolate in a double boiler also called bain Marie or water bath. If you don’t have a double boiler use a saucepan and a metallic bowl which fits on top of the pot. Add about 1 – 2 cm water in the pot and add the bowl with the chocolate on top. Bring to boil, reduce heat and stir chocolate until it melts. Add the remaining ingredients, as per recipe and mix.

The less heavy cream you add, the result will be a harder ganache when it cools. So if you want a soft ganache it’s advisable to add equal amount of chocolate and heavy cream. Increase or decrease, depending on the result you want to achieve.

Here is an example:

For a thick glaze, use one part chocolate and one part heavy cream, i.e. 100 grams chocolate and 100 grams heavy cream.

To coat chocolate truffles, use two parts chocolate and one part cream, i.e. 100 grams chocolate and 50 grams heavy cream.

For a soft glaze, similar to chocolate sauce, one part chocolate and two parts cream i.e. 50 grams chocolate and 100 grams heavy cream.

Recipes shown in the video:

Strawberry Cake with White Chocolate Leafs and Cream Cheese Frosting

Two Tier Valentine’s Cake

Homemade Chocolates with Pomegranate and Cinnamon

Luscious Bounty Cake

Easy Chocolate Truffles from Christmas Leftovers

Eggless Nanaimo Salepi Bars

Profiterole Chocolate Cheesecake

Tourta Fraoulita (Strawberry Cake)

Bergamot White Chocolate Cake

The Ultimate Chocolate Cake

Can I make a Vegan Chocolate Ganache?

Absolutely!

In the vegan option, use vegan chocolate and substitute heavy cream with coconut cream or almond milk. Honey is not necessary.

For the vegan ganache with coconut cream, I found out that it is better to add more chocolate than cream i.e. 120 grams chocolate and 80 grams coconut cream.

To sweeten your ganache, add icing sugar to your taste.

Vegan Chocolate Tahini Ganache

For the vegan chocolate tahini ganache, use 1/4 cup tahini for 200 grams chocolate.

Melt 200 grams dark chocolate over a double bath and mix in the tahini.

To sweeten it, add some pomegranate syrup, or other syrup of your choice (I usually use leftover syrup from my fruit preserves) and mix until it becomes spreadable. You can also add maple syrup, petimezi (grape molasses) or carob syrup.

Instead of maple syrup, I usually use honey as I am not a vegan. The cake is still Lenten (nistisimo) as honey can be eaten during Orthodox fasting.

Vegan Chocolate Ganache with Tahini

Yield: 1

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

One of the easiest and delicious, vegan glazes to add on top of your vegan cakes and other creations!

Ingredients

200 grams dark chocolate
1/4 cup tahini
Freshly grated black pepper (optional)
A pinch of coarse sea salt (optional)
1 tbsp honey (optional)

Instructions

Melt the chocolate over a double boiler.
Add the tahini and mix.
Add syrup or other sweetener as well as salt and pepper and mix. .

Notes

Before using the tahini, mix it well as the oil usually sits on top.

The amount given is enough to glaze a cake baked in a 26 - 28 cm baking pan.

Nutrition Information

Yield 1 Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 1207Total Fat 94gSaturated Fat 41gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 47gCholesterol 16mgSodium 69mgCarbohydrates 135gFiber 17gSugar 96gProtein 20g

Chocolate Ganache

Yield: 2 cups

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

225 grams good quality, dark chocolate
225 ml heavy cream

or

225 grams good quality chocolate, sweet, semi-sweet, bitter, couverture, white chocolate, etc.
3/4 cup (180 ml) heavy cream
2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter

Optional ingredients:

1 tsp honey
1 tablespoon liqueur of your choice, amaretto, grand Marnier, baileys, etc.(optional) to match the taste of your dessert.
Flavour (vanilla, peppermint, raspberry, coffee, citrus etc.)
Citrus zest
Coarse sea salt (about 1/2 tsp)
Freshly grated black pepper or chili

Instructions

First method:

Prepare a water bath: Put about 2 - 3 cm water in a small pot and put a metallic bowl, which fits in the pot, on top.
Chop the chocolate into smaller pieces or use chocolate drops and stir with a metal spoon until melted.
Add the heavy cream gradually and mix until incorporated.
Finally add any of the optional ingredients and mix until smooth.
Set aside to cool, stirring occasionally, until the ganache is thick and spreadable.

Second method:

Heat the heavy cream over medium heat
When the cream has come to a boil, pour over the chopped chocolate, and whisk until smooth.
Stir in the remaining ingredients, if desired.

Notes

Apart from the chocolate of your choice the heavy cream may be substituted with low fat cream or 0% fat milk, to make it with less calories.

For a vegan ganache you can use dairy-free chocolate and substitute heavy cream with vegan cream, coconut cream or almond milk.

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