Glossy Chocolate Ganache, Just Two Ingredients
Chocolate ganache with cream and dark chocolate: glossy, smooth, and versatile. The base for glazes, fillings, and truffles, ready in ten minutes.
Want chocolate ganache that’s glossy and smooth, the kind that glazes cakes and fills desserts, made with just two ingredients? Then follow this recipe: it’s ready in ten minutes and nearly impossible to get wrong.
Ganache is one of the most loved base preparations in pastry: cream and chocolate, nothing more. Depending on the proportions it becomes a glossy glaze, a creamy filling or, whipped, a fluffy cream for cakes and truffles.
It has at least three real advantages: it’s made with two ingredients in minutes, it’s incredibly versatile, and it changes texture just by varying the ratio of cream to chocolate.
The most important tip is simple: don’t boil the cream. It only needs to get properly hot, because it’s the residual heat that melts the chocolate gently and evenly. Pour it over the chocolate, wait a minute, then stir from the center outward.
Remember the ratios: 1:1 for a glaze, more chocolate (2:1) for a firm filling or truffles. From here you can build dozens of different desserts.
Ready? Let’s make chocolate ganache.
To make this recipe
A small selection of handy tools to keep within reach. Some links may be affiliate links.
Pastry whisk
Useful for whipping egg whites to stiff peaks and for gently folding the mixture without deflating it.
Steps
- Finely chop the dark chocolate and place it in a large bowl.
- Heat the cream in a small pot until it's about to boil, without letting it boil.
- Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let it sit for one minute without stirring, so the chocolate starts to melt.
- Stir gently from the center outward with a spatula, widening the circles, until you have a smooth, glossy cream.
- If you like, add the room-temperature butter and stir: it gives the ganache an extra shine. Use it warm to glaze, or let it set to fill.
Helpful tips
A 1:1 ratio (cream to chocolate) makes a ganache perfect for glazing; 2:1 chocolate makes it firmer for truffles and whipped fillings.
Don't boil the cream: the chocolate melts with the residual heat alone.
Use good-quality chocolate: it's the star ingredient and makes all the difference.
For a whipped ganache, let it cool and whip it with beaters until pale and fluffy.
Average nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 320 kcal
- Carbohydrates
- 22.0 g
- Sugars
- 20.0 g
- Protein
- 3.0 g
- Fat
- 24.0 g
- Saturated fat
- 15.0 g
- Fiber
- 2.0 g
- Sodium
- 25 mg
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