Dark Chocolate Ganache

With only 2 ingredients, this dark chocolate ganache recipe comes together in minutes and is incredibly rich and decadent. The shine lends it to beautiful frostings, and it can even be whipped for a lighter texture.

Chocolate ganache is a rich, silky mixture of chocolate and cream. Its origins can be traced back to France, where it is a staple in many classic desserts. Ganache can be used as a glaze, filling, frosting, or even as a truffle base. The ratio of chocolate to cream can be adjusted depending on its intended use, making it an incredibly versatile component in any baker's repertoire (try is as a filling for these bad boys!).

A golden rule for perfect ganache is that it can only be as good as the chocolate it’s made with. Aim for at least 60% cocoa solids but don’t go over 75%, this will affect the melting quality of the chocolate.

The heavy cream should be steaming when poured over the chocolate but not quite boiling, Keep an eagle eye on it.

Ganache can be enriched with butter or flavoured with things such as spirits, liqueurs, or extracts such as almond or vanilla. Make sure to try a few and see whatever makes your tastebuds sing.

DARK CHOCOLATE GANACHE

Ingredients

• heavy cream (30% fat content)

• dark chocolate (60-75% cocoa content), finely chopped

The consistency of your ganache will depend on the chocolate-to-cream ratio:

• 1:1 Ratio: Equal parts chocolate and cream. This is perfect for glazes, drips, and pourable sauces.

• 2:1 Ratio: Two parts chocolate to one part cream. Ideal for firm fillings, truffles, and frosting.

• 3:1 Ratio: Three parts chocolate to one part cream. This creates a very thick ganache, suitable for dense truffle centres.

For this recipe I used the 1:1 ratio, 100g chocolate to 100g heavy cream.

Place the chopped chocolate in a large bowl.

Heat the cream in a medium saucepan, up to steaming point.

Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and start mixing with a spatula. The mixture will look weird at first (trust the process!) but soon will become smooth and shiny. It will be a little runny at first then gradually as it cools it will become thicker. After about an hour at room temperature or half an hour in the fridge it will be at the perfect consistency to frost cakes or fill donuts. I like to add the tiniest pinch of sea salt for a stronger flavour but you can totally omit that step.

Ganache also pairs incredibly well with alcohol add-ins, such as whisky or rum. Add about one tablespoon to the 100g-100g mixture.

Enjoy!