Chocolate Ganache Frosting

Get the Recipe: Chocolate Ganache Frosting

This chocolate ganache frosting has a ratio of chocolate to cream that starts the ganache as a thick liquid and cools into a dense decadent frosting over a few hours.

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Yield5 servings

Prep5

Cook10

Chill6

Total6 15

Ingredients

8 oz 60-72% cocoa chocolate , chopped from bars
1¼ cup heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon espresso powder
2 tablespoons golden syrup , (subs in notes)
3 tablespoons european-style butter, room temperature

Equipment

1 chef knife
1 cutting board
1 medium bowl
measuring Cups
Measuring spoons
1 kitchen scale optional
1 small pot
1 spatula
1 Immersion blender optional, but recommended (see instructions for substitution)
1 offset spatula (For spreading soft ganache frosting)
1 piping bag with tip (For piping thickened ganache frosting)

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Instructions

For the ganache, chop the chocolate into very small pieces (no larger than .5in or 2cm squares) and place them in a medium sized bowl.
Then, heat the milk, golden syrup, and espresso powder until they just begin to simmer (around 180°F or 82°C). Pour the heated liquid over the chocolate and let it sit for 30-60 seconds. Then, mix with a spatula until all of the chocolate has fully melted.
Next, add the softened butter to the warm ganache. This time, blend with an immersion or stick blender to emulsify the butter and the ganache (if you don't have one use a whisk). Mix until the butter has melted and fully incorporated into the ganache. This is a quick step. It shouldn't take more than 30 seconds with a hand blender or 60 seconds with a whisk.
There are 3 options for the ganache moving forward. If the chocolate ganache is not used while warm (as with option #1), cover it with cling wrap pressed gently against it's surface and place it in the refrigerator to chill.
OPTION 1: Within the first 45 minutes, the ganache is the perfect consistency to dip and coat things like strawberries and donuts. It's also perfect for drizzling over cookies.
OPTION 2: Between 1-2 hours the ganache will be thick enough to use as a loose frosting. Scoop it out the bowl with a spoon and use an offset spatula to spread the ganache over cakes and lofthouse or sandwich-style cookies.
OPTION 3: At 4-6 hours, the ganache is ready to mix into pipeable frosting for cupcakes and other decor. Use a spatula to gently fold the ganache over itself and work in just a touch of air. When it reaches a medium peak but it still silky smooth, it is ready to scoop into a piping bag with a tip and use.
IMPORTANT: Be careful. This recipe is not meant to be a whipped ganache. Over mixing will work too much air into the chocolate ganache frosting. When this happens, the emulsification of the ganache breaks down; meaning the water molecules suspended in fat will separate (think whipped cream to butter) and the sugars in the ganache will bind with the water and crystallize. The ganache will quickly turn into mousse from there. Not a bad outcome, but also not the desired one. If you see the ganache start to go matte and turn less silky you are moving into overmixed territory. Stop stirring and start piping.

Notes

I recommend using chocolate between 60% (semi-sweet) and 70% (bitter-sweet) cacao. Their fat content makes it harder for the dark chocolate ganache frosting to break than dark chocolates with higher cacao content.
Butter and syrup aren't absolutely necessary to the ganache, but the chocolate ganache frosting will be better with them. (See FAQs for the science)
If you can't find Golden Syrup, you can use any other invert sugar (cooked sugar syrup). Quick substitutes are agave or rich simple syrup (2 parts sugar to 1 part water). Honey and glucose, while not invert sugars can also work in a pinch.
This ganache will not harden to a crisp like melted chocolate. Every option will dry into a soft layer that is easy to bite and cut through, but won't transfer to your hands when you touch it. It will not stay liquid.
If it has been stored over night in the fridge, let the chocolate ganache frosting to come to room temperature before prepping it. After that, I recommend using a blowdryer on warm and low to loosen the ganache frosting's texture, and then very gently mixing it up until it's the consistency you'd like. Scoop into a piping bag and go from there.
The piping tip I used to frost the cupcake is a Wilton 1M tip! :)
This chocolate ganache frosting will last up to 3 days at room temperature and 3 weeks in the refrigerator.

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