Origins & Information - (A-Z) Ganache

Every dessert lover should know what exactly s/he is eating when it comes to the delightful riches of chocolatey goodness. When you are seeing what is in your chocolate or cake (or other desserts) and the word "ganache" (guh-NAWSH) is included, you should be expecting a velvety mixture of chocolate and cream. The exact origins of ganache are undetermined as both France and Switzerland debate back and forth about who rightfully has the claim to this concoction originating in the mid-1800s. Regardless, it is a delicious glaze/icing/frosting/filling for desserts everywhere, and the texture/usage is determined by the ratio of chocolate to cream used when made.

Ganache is created by bringing heavy cream to a boil and then pouring it over chunked or chopped chocolate (preferably dark and semi-sweet); this is stirred until smooth and can receive various liqueurs or extracts for different flavors. Since it is a mixture of purely cream and chocolate, high quality pure chocolate should be used lest the ganache tastes terrible. For a glossy finish, butter or oil can be added too. As aforementioned, the ratio of chocolate to cream will result in various usages whether as a glaze or standalone as truffles. Try out these differences and add ganache to your known recipes!

Chocolate to cream ratios:

• Glazes/coatings - 3:1, keep warm for ease of pouring and spreading
• Truffles/truffle fillings - 2:1, let cool for easy molding
• Light fillings (ex. between cake layers) - 1:1

This post is part of an A-Z series I am running for my blog category "Origins and Information" while I am in Vietnam with my family for July. Many of the posts in the series answer questions that were posed by friends/readers. If y'all enjoy the series, I will gladly run another in the future!