Chocolate Ganache Icing is a rich, two-ingredient dark chocolate liquid that's perfect to pour over cakes, cupcakes, and ice cream. It's also great for dipping strawberries or other fruit. As ganache cools and thickens, it can be used as a filling between cake layers or even whipped into a beautiful frosting. Chilled, it becomes truffles!
I love this recipe because it's so easy to make! A simple combination semi-sweet baking chocolate and heavy whipping cream yields such decadence!
Most icings and frostings contain copious amounts of powdered sugar. I find this to be disappointing as we learn more and more about how damaging sugar is to our health.
Now, I do realize that there is some sugar in semi sweet chocolate. However, with this recipe we can enjoy a little sweetness in a thin layer rather than the heaps of sweet frosting we so typically encounter on fancy pastries. I don't have any powdered icing sugar in my cupboard, and I'm always on the lookout for ways to reduce sugar while still enjoying delicious food.
Ingredients
- Semi-sweet Baking Chocolate - Use semi-sweet or bittersweet baking chocolate.
- Heavy Whipping Cream - Cream is labeled differently in different countries. In Canada, I use 35% whipping cream. It might also be called heavy cream or heavy whipping cream. Use something that has 30% fat content or greater.
Instructions
Heat cream until it's just steaming but not boiling. Pour it over chopped chocolate.
Cover the bowl of hot cream and chopped chocolate to keep the heat in, and let it sit for 2 or 3 minutes while the cream melts the chocolate.
Stir the melted chocolate and cream together, and you have chocolate ganache icing!
Pour ganache over cake while it's still warm if you want it to be thin and run down the sides. Also use warm ganache for any sort of drizzled effect you might like.
Chocolate ganache will thicken as it cools. Then it's more suitable for spreading as a filling between cake layers.
Chocolate ganache is gluten free as long as the ingredients used to make it are gluten free. Well, obviously, right?! Chocolate and cream should be gluten free. However, you need to check. Chocolate that has been processed in a facility that also processes wheat can cause a problem for people with celiac disease.
Technically, chocolate ganache can be kept at room temperature for a couple of days. However, I put it into the refrigerator if I'm keeping it overnight, just to be safe. Moisture in the cream could promote microbial growth.
If I'm keeping chocolate ganache more than a week, I freeze it. It can be frozen for up to a month without deteriorating in quality. Thaw it in the fridge and then bring it up to room temperature before using.
Yes, chocolate ganache can be successfully reheated. Ideally, allow it to come to room temperature first. Then reheat it very gently over low heat, stirring it frequently to keep an eye on it.
More Gluten Free Chocolate Recipes
- Chocolate Avocado Pudding
- Chocolate Almond Bark
- Sweet Potato Brownies
- Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake
- Flourless Chocolate Cake
Recipe
Chocolate Ganache Icing
Ingredients
- 8 ounces semi-sweet baking chocolate finely chopped
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- Chop up the chocolate finely.
- Heat the cream in a saucepan over low-medium until it's steaming but NOT boiling (145℉/63℃). Turn off the heat.
- Add the chocolate to the steamy cream. Cover the pan to keep the warmth in. Let it sit for a few minutes for the chocolate to melt. Then, stir it all together until it's smoothly blended.
Notes
- Use a good-quality baking chocolate here, rather than chocolate chips.
- Chop the chocolate as finely as possible, so it will melt completely and evenly.
- Use heavy whipping cream, not half and half or anything lighter.
- Chocolate ganache will thicken as it cools. If you want to drizzle it over a cake so that it runs down the sides, use it right away while it's still warm. If you want to spread it out thicker over a cake layer, allow it to cool more.
- Leftovers will keep in the refrigerator for a few days. Gently reheat it, stirring frequently, to use it again.
Amy Brown says
Have you tried to make ganache with any milk substitutes like oat milk? Not only do I have celiac disease but I am lactose intolerant. Thank you.
Cathy says
I am so sorry, Amy. I have not tried to make ganache without dairy. I wish I could suggest a substitute, but that would be challenging. The high fat content in cream is key in this recipe. Do you like coconut?
Shimay says
The reply is a bit late, but refined coconut oil works too. It will just need to be served cold to retain its texture, in hot weather it will go really runny.
Cathy says
Thank you for the tip, Shimay! Refined coconut oil, at the right temperature, could work here. For those who might not be familiar with it, the nice feature of refined coconut oil is that it doesn't have the distinct flavour that unrefined coconut oil has.
For coconut oil to work in this recipe, it would need to be kept at precisely the right temperature; too warm and it would be runny, too cold and it would turn solid. Have you tried it to see what amount works best?