I have poured ganach over an unfrosted cake but you have to make sure your cake is level and smooth. especially the sides. if not your ganach will not fill in the gaps between layers but drip down onto the next layer and leave a big hole. and it seems no matter how many times you coat the thing it will not cover the gap. Maybe you can just put a crumb coat on the sides??
personally I think buttercream makes anything taste better!! Well maybe not steak!!
I think it will all depend on how sweet your cake is as to whether or not you think the BC will make your cake too sweet under the ganache. My ganache I use is equal parts of chocolate and heavy cream, no sugar at all. I would put more than a crumb coat on, mostly because a crumb coat is so very thin and may be slightly "grainy"-looking once you put on the ganache will all the little crumbs sticking out of the ganache. Make sense?
HTH,
Odessa
Thans Odessa, that makes sense. I am making a Chocolate Cherry Cake made with cherry pie filling. This will be my first try at this recipe so I am not sure how sweet this cake will be. I am leaning more towards putting a layer of BC on before the ganache. I guess I just always thought the ganache also worked as a frosting and I did not have to add anything else.
Thans Odessa, that makes sense. I am making a Chocolate Cherry Cake made with cherry pie filling. This will be my first try at this recipe so I am not sure how sweet this cake will be. I am leaning more towards putting a layer of BC on before the ganache. I guess I just always thought the ganache also worked as a frosting and I did not have to add anything else.
[Okay, now, class, your bespecktacled instructor is stepping in here to provide you with the limited amount of information she has gleaned from years of experience. Realize that this is only from my knowledge base and is not intended to disrespect anyone else's experience or knowledge. I hope not to offend, but to inform here. Please note, there will be no test or quiz following the lecture....]
Ganache, when it's first made (at least the way I learned), is very liquid. Allowing it to sit will stiffen it, depending on how long it sits and at what temperature. You can also help this process along by stirring/whipping the ganache, but that will also lighten the color as it is adding air to the mixture. As the chocolate in the mix cools, it will want to go back to is pre-melted, more solid state. Because you've added whipping cream and/or butter and/or sugar (depending on your recipe), it will not become completely stiff, but will remain more like an icing in texture.
The trick is to NOT have too sweet a ganache that is NOT too thin nor too thick when applying it to the cake. Because of its liquidity, the possibility exists that some of it will soak into your cake, which would tend to make it a little soggy. How do you prevent this? well, a barrier is needed. In the cake game, that barrier is usually some sort of buttercream.
When you put on a crumb coat of buttercream, it is supposed to be extremely thin; it's only to "catch" the crumbs and hold them in place so they don't get in the "real" coat of icing (kind of like putting on long underwear to hold the heat closer to your body before you put on your ski suit which is what the rest of the snow bunnies on teh hill will see ..... 
).
So, your crumb coat holds the crumbs in, then a decent layer of buttercream makes a true barrier and also gives you the opportunity to make sure you are putting the ganache on a smooth surface ... after all, how many times have you taken a cake out of the oven and it comes out less than perfect??? Now comes your ganache and viola! What you end up with is a beautiful, shiny, fragrant, dark canvas for decorating. Make sure you thoroughly chill your crumb coat, buttercream coat and ganache; it will assist with the success of your finished project.
I hope this little bit of "tutorial" is helpful, not too preachy and not too long. I just think that some of you had questions that were not quite getting a thorough explanation, which can sometimes leave us with even more questions, and I hope this has helped.
Odessa
(specktacles come off and pastry jacket goes back on and I become a mild-mannered independent pastry person once again ..... )
I don't know how you guys make you ganache but i do mine half liquid whipping cream warm it up in a sauce pan then add half chocolate of choice then melt it till it's smooth, let it cool for a few min then pour it on my cake, sometimes i put it in the freezer and then i whip it and use it as a fillin as well. I do some strange things sometimes i guess, but they taste good.
I haven't worked much with ganache, but I've been wanting to, so I just recently started looking at other forum posts on the topic. I read someone else's post (I can't remember who), and read a suggestion to try spreading whipped ganache over the cake to create a smooth surface, and then if you want the shiny look of poured ganache you can pour it over the top of the whipped ganache. I haven't tryed it yet, but it sounded like a good idea to me, so I just wanted to share!
I always put a little butter in my ganache and stir it until thoroughly melted. It helps to add shine to the ganache.
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