Hey Jodie... does this chocolate BC work well for decorating? I have had trouble finding a good-tasting chocolate BC that stands up to decorating! I see lovely chocolate cakes here and I always wonder what recipe they used. I want to make chocolate roses someday!! They look SO neat!

Melvira-Have you seen the thread form katy625 on choc modeling clay?
It sounds divine and I know she made roses with it.

I have all the ingr and plan to try it sometime this week. This recipe as well!! YUMMY!!!!! LOOOVE CHOCOLATE!!!!!!!!

Hey Michelle, I have made chocolate roses like that, (tootsie rolls) but it's too much work. It's like making fondant roses, which I hope I don't have to do any time soon! haha! I like icing roses, quick, easy, and beautiful!

i really want to try this recipe, but with the chocolate liqueur, it costs about $10 per cake just for the frosting!! is it worth the splurge?

I was able to pipe borders with no problem at all. They held their shape beautifully. I'm sorry, I don't know how to make roses! I would think that you could either add a little more powdered sugar or refridgerate the buttercream to firm it up enough.

The icing is pricey, but for a double batch of buttercream you only use a little over 1/2 cup of liqueur. I iced a torted 11 x 15 cake (with borders) and a 2 layer 8 inch cake, and still had some buttercream left from a double recipe. It definately adds to the taste! I would charge a little more to use this wonderful buttercream.
Try a 1/2 recipe once and see what you think.

I made 2 batches of this today. I haven't frosted the cake yet, it's sitting in the fridge. The wedding is Feb. 10th. I made it for the grooms cake.

I would give it a four stars out of five. It tastes great. It is lighter than what I like for chocolate icing. The consistency is like that of mousse, and it tastes like chocolate malt to me. The only thing I did different to the recipe was use hi ratio shortening instead of Crisco.

I have had better chocolate icing, but this one ranks pretty high. I actually prefer a richer, deeper dark chocolate. My husband, (who is picky) said this is the best he has ever tasted. He gives it five stars.

Thanks so much for posting this recipe. I'll be anxious to see how it goes on the cake. I am pretty sure it will crust well, as it has 3 TBLS of meringue powder.

It's interesting that you'd say it was "mousse-like". The first time I made it, I thought so too when I tasted it out of the bowl. So, the second time, I didn't whip it as much after I added the ganache and I thought it was more like buttercream out of the bowl. When I made it the second time it was for a cake I took to school and I was able to eat some, and I didn't think it was mousse-like at all on the cake. The man I made the first cake for didn't think it was mousse-like at all on his cake! Maybe it just needs to set?
I'm glad you liked it......it sounds like your DH loved it as much as mine does! He's still working on the extra I had, one spoonful at a time. He think that, if you stirred nuts into it, it would make a great fudge!

I just went and tasted it again, and you are right, I think the more it sits, it takes on the consistency of buttercreme. I really like the after taste of this frosting, it makes you want more. I don't know how your dh can stop after one spoonful. Oh. . . and nuts added would be awesome, and certainly fudge like.

thanks again, I am anxious to taste it on the cake. I am making this cake for my sisters wedding (this will be on the grooms cake) so I will be able to taste the finished product.

Oh, and when I made the second batch I didn't whip the ganache into the frosting as long either, but mostly because it wasn't set as firmly as my first batch was.

Thanks

Thank you for the recipe. I've been looking for a great chocolate bc recipe and it sounds like I've found it!!!! Can't wait to try it!

JodiF, Thanks for posting this link. I haven't found a choc bc I've really liked yet so I'll be glad to try this one. I helps a lot to hear reviews before you try it yourself. I've been thinking for a while about getting Toba's book too. I'd like to browse it before I buy though. I have a neat book from the library called The Secrets of Baking by Sherry Yard. I just made her ganache glaze this evening for a cake I'm making tomorrow. It called for 4T of apricot jelly. I've never heard of apricot jelly before. I ended up getting apricot preserves, cooking it down and then straining it thru cheese cloth, which was fun. I'm using this on a tree cake. And that's not a cake shaped to look like a tree. Gonna have to look for Toba's book now.

Ok I'm confused (and that's easy to do) They say add the gnache how do you make that and how much do you add? Thanks

If you look at the link to the recipe, and click where it says Ganache, it will take you to the ganache recipe. It was a pound of semi-sweet chocolate and 1 1/2 cups whipping cream, melted together, stirred well and then chilled until firm.

Okay so here's another question about ganache. Can you make a big batch, like Toba's recipe called for with 1# of choc and 1 1/2 C cream, and chill till firm to use in blocks for different recipes? You know, slice off what you need like you do a stick of butter. I made a batch yesterday to use on a cake today. I used a recipe by Sherry Yard's book I got from the library. It called for 8 oz of bittersweet chocolate. I used half that and half semisweet. All bittersweet sounded gaggy to me.

Yes , yes try this recipe it is delicious. I use it all the time. A bit expensive, but trust me they will pay extra after they have tasted it.

I make a full batch of ganache and freeze in 1 cup increments. Also the chocolate buttercream works really well to freeze. I tend to get 3 4" 9" round cakes out of one batch, so really the liquor is not that much. Also, i have subbed in a chocolate flavoring and jsut added more of the liqiud called for when i did not have the flavoring. However, i do use the Godiva choc. liq. and I have used baileys. Both yummy.

Julia

with the liqueur, can you serve this to children? i don't usually work with alcohol, so i'm not sure...

The recipe makes almost 12 cups of icing. The amount of liqueur is just over a 1/2 cup. I do, but then again I think it is a personal preference. Jsut leave out the liqieur and use more milk if you want. It does not adversely affect the taste.
julia

chakkakin, I was thinking the same thing. I wouldn't want to use a liqueur. Anyone got a fabulous recipe without it?

I was wondering the same thing! I'd like to try this for a baby shower cake. I'm not sure about the new mom eating it with the liqour in it.
Do you think using a coffee flavor sryup would taste ok? Maybe a caramel or raspberry?

I'm sure you could substitute. But, again, there is just over 1/2 cup of liqueur in 12 cups of icing......it's hardly "boozey".
I'm sure you could add any liquid....or just whipping cream!

You certainly won't get bombed off of eating a piece of this cke with frosting. The alcohol content is low (17 % by volume) I hardly think the small amount you put into a huge batch would make anyone, even a small child feel intoxicated.

the taste with the Godiva Chocolate is wonderful! I personally wouldn't substitute it, it wouldn't be the same.

As for the cost, I used about $8.00 worth of liquer. that amount made enough for 2 HUGE batches, my kitchenaid mixer was overflowing with each batch. To me that amount of money for the Godiva seems minimal.

You can substitute strong coffee (or decaf even, I do), for the liqueur. I do that all the time in chocolate recipes that ask for liqueur, so I don't have to make a trip to the shops and have the extra expense!

I just wanted to add.......I made another batch of this last night for 2 cake orders. I found it smoothed beautifully with a hot knife.
The DH took a 11 x 15 sheet cake, chocolate fudge, filled with cookies and cream, iced with the chocolate buttercream, to work the morning.
His comment was "they fell on it like vultures!"

I'm trying this receipe today. I made the ganache this morning (my first time), now I'm waiting while it is in the fridge getting "firm". How firm is this supposed to get, and how long should it take. It's been about 2 hours already. Thanks!

It shouldn't be runny......more like chocolate truffle or soft fudge. Please post what you think of the flavor!

Just an update about the added cost of the Godiva liquer. I bought a bottle today at a liquer store for $16.99. It's a 750 ml bottle.....which is a bit over 25 ounces. A bottle would make 5 double batches of buttercream. So, for a double recipe of the chocolate buttercream (which takes 5 ounces of liquer), the cost of the Godiva would be approx. $3.40 for a double recipe (12 cups of buttercream), or $1.70 for a single recipe (6 cups of buttercream).
So, decide for yourself if it's worth it! I'm sure it is! I can easily add the cost to the cake and the impression this buttercream will make will be outstanding.

Has anyone made this without the liquor?

It is delicious without the liquer. Use cream, milk, coffee....whatever liquid you want to replace the liquer.
The chocolate liquer just adds a wonderful depth to the flavor.

Thanks

For what it's worth, Vanilla extract ( and lemon etc) are all 70 proof, or 35% alcohol. Extract has a very high alcohol content. In comparison, liquers, such as the Godiva or it's inexpensive counterpart, which I use all the time, are about 12 to 17% alcohol.

Just because you buy it in a liquor store doesn't mean it will get you drunk. The extra flavor is worth it, IMO.