Description
This classic Chocolate Ganache recipe creates a smooth, glossy, and rich chocolate mixture perfect for glazing, filling, or frosting cakes and desserts. Made with high-quality dark or semi-sweet chocolate and heated heavy cream, it can be customized with butter for shine and flavored with vanilla or other extracts.
Ingredients
Scale
Ganache
- 8 oz (225 g) high-quality dark or semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
- 1 cup (240 ml) heavy cream
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter (optional, for added shine)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or other flavoring (optional)
Instructions
- Prepare Chocolate: Finely chop the chocolate and place it in a heatproof bowl to ensure it melts evenly when combined with the hot cream.
- Heat Cream: In a saucepan, heat the heavy cream over medium heat until it just begins to simmer, careful not to let it boil to prevent scorching.
- Combine Cream and Chocolate: Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate and let it sit undisturbed for 2–3 minutes to allow the chocolate to soften.
- Stir Until Smooth: Gently stir the mixture until completely smooth and glossy, creating a luscious and homogenous ganache.
- Add Optional Ingredients: Stir in butter and vanilla extract or other flavorings if using to enhance shine and flavor.
- Use as Desired: Utilize the ganache warm for glazing, cooled for filling, or whipped for frosting your desserts according to preference.
Notes
- Use high-quality chocolate for the best flavor and texture.
- Do not let the cream boil; it should only simmer gently.
- Butter is optional but adds a beautiful shine and richness to the ganache.
- Flavored extracts like vanilla can be substituted with alternatives such as coffee or orange for unique variations.
- Ganache can be adjusted in thickness by varying the chocolate-to-cream ratio.
- Store leftover ganache covered in the refrigerator and gently rewarm before use.
