Ganache 101, Lessons from Martha Stewart

The holidays are a crazy time for everyone, trying to get the presents, wrap, cook, clean, bake, decorate and a myriad of other things. I myself am always looking for shortcuts or simple ideas to save time. In the December issue of Martha Stewart she has a fabulous article title Ganache 101.

Martha explains that with a little chocolate and some heavy whipping cream you have the makings for some delicious and easy but fancy desserts. From these two simple ingredients you can make a frosting, a filling, a glaze, and a truffle.

The Basic Recipe:

Take 8 ounces of quality chocolate and chop into uniform pieces with a serrated knife, place into a bowl. Then take one cup of heavy cream and heat to just a boil. Pour the heavy cream over the chocolate pieces. Let stand for 10 minutes. DO NOT STIR!!!!

Whisk the mixture until smooth and shiny to break any lumps and to emulsify the chocolate and the cream.

Scrape the side and bottom of the bowl to be sure to get all of the mixture incorporated.

To use the ganache:

While its warm you can pour it over a cake as a glaze, you can fill tart shells and make a filling.

At room temperature you can beat the ganache until fluffy and use as a whipped filling or frosting.

And finally once chilled you can use it to make truffles!

All of these are easy and tasty additions to your holiday baking. Do you have any ideas for using ganache? Do you make your own truffles? I would love to hear some of your ideas, please if you would like to share leave your ideas in the comment section.

Have a wonderful day and enjoy your family and friends during this special time of the year. Happy Holidays!