**Hello to all y’all finding me through Pinterest! I’m so glad you are here and am blown away by the incredible response I’ve gotten to this ganache post! It really is so simple and so, SO yummy! As I’m nearing the end of my pregnancy with my sweet second babe, please know that I may not be able to field questions as I have in the past. Thank you for understanding and happy ganaching :) **
Oh ganache… How I love thee. How I lived 20 some odd years never knowing of your glorious fudgy goodness, I don’t know, but I could never go back to that sad, ganacheless place.
It’s. that. good.
I was a little intimidated when I first set out to make it, but ganache truly is the absolute easiest way to make a foolproof, super rich chocolate frosting. And your friends and family will swoon over your baking skills… It’ll be our secret.
By definition ganache is just two parts chocolate melted into one part of heavy whipping cream. I found, for my purposes, a 3:2 ratio works a bit better. When I used the 2:1 ratio the frosting harded up to a really, really dense fudge consistency, making it hard to eat on a cupcake. Increasing the amount of whipping cream kept it a bit softer and made for a really nice frosting that piped well.
For supplies you will need a microwave safe mixing bowl, a scale (optional) and a whisk.
Easy Chocolate Ganache
24 oz semi sweet chocolate chips
16 oz (1 pint) heavy whipping cream
To start, grab your heavy whipping cream. You can just as easily buy a pint of heavy whipping cream and use the whole thing, skipping the scale, but I only had a quart on hand so I’ll be weighing mine out.
Place your bowl on the scale and zero it out.
Pour 16 oz of heavy whipping cream (should be about 2 cups or a pint).
(my scale is reading 1 lb 0 oz… or 16 oz)
Place bowl of whipping cream into the microwave for 2-3 minutes. You want it to be hot, but not boiling. Pour chocolate chips into hot whipping cream.
Shimmy the bowl back and forth so that the chocolate settles to the bottom and is completely covered by the hot whipping cream. Let the bowl set for a few minutes to allow the hot whipping cream to soften the chocolate.
Then grab your whisk and stir…
…and stir…
…and stir…
… and stir until you get a smooth chocolate sauce. Don’t be afraid to throw it back in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time if the chocolate doesn’t seem to be incorporating.
What you have now is a ganache sauce, which can be used to glaze a cake, dip a cupcake, coat a truffle or even be used for fondue.
If you are looking for a thicker, frosting consistency to the ganache, you simply let it cool. Cover it with plastic wrap and throw it in the fridge for about 3 hours, or until it’s firm.
And that’s really it! Just spoon it into a piping bag and frost your cupcakes! …Or eat it by the spoonful. I’m not going to pretend like it’s never happened. ;)
the welch cupcakery 