i did a milk chocolate cake then filled and covered with dark chocolate ganache... but when added the cream, its not dark anymore

does anyone have an explanation on this... was not able to get a pic of that cake, it was a gift for my DH officemate...

anyone? please

Well... yes the white cream will make it lighter. Compare it to milk chocolate ganache and you will see the difference again. I guess the only other option would be to make it with water.

so how i need to lessen the cream? i thought the water will ruin the ganache?

how did others make dark colored ganache? did they just use corn syrup/glocuse or even butter? i'm so desperate... please help!

What is your recipe? Lessening the cream will effect the consistency of the ganache. You cannot add a small amount of any liquid to melted chocolate or it will seize. Add a lot of any liquid and you will have ganache. Water+ choc, booze+choc, or butter+choc will give you very dark results but you cannot sub them out one for one, you need to adjust the recipe.

Thats the recipe I use too. Its plenty dark enough for me. For a water based, I'd start maybe 2 parts chocolate to 1 part water. Let it sit overnight then see how the consistency is. You may need to adjust it.

I do a 1:1 cream and chocolate and it's plenty dark for me too.

What are your exact measurements and what are you using to measure?

I use 8 oz (by weight) of dark chocolate to 1 cup of heavy cream.

pretty the same with your measurements jeanne... maybe i'm using a low cocoa % chocolate... it pretty cheap on craft store where i bought it and they say it is imported though its pre-packed so i cant really tell... do you think i need to change the chocolate i am using? what brands are giving you dark chocolate color even after adding the cream? is tablea chocolate can be used for ganache also?

what do you mean by water based ganache KoryAK? you use boiled plain water with your ganache? sorry for my ignorance, all i know about ganache it is made of chocolate and cream then you add butter or corn syrup/glucose to have shiny ganache...

this might be a stupid question but are you using dark chocolate? i use a local brand of dark chocolate and it's quite dark, almost black when i use it for ganache.

I do wonder, when you say you got the choc from the craft store, is it real chocolate or is it candy melts? It's not so much the brand as the % of cocoa solids in your chocolate. I use anywhere from 65-70% dark chocolate for my ganache and it's definitely dark, if you want to peek in my gallery there is a cake w/two snowmen which is iced in whipped chocolate ganache--even the whipping didn't lighten it too much. Also the one w/the diaper caddy basket is whipped ganache too.

all this talk of ganache... not helping with my diet at all.

Mine either ccshoppe..

I use 60% or more.. usually Callebaut or Ghirardelli. If you got it at the craft store I wonder if it's real chocolate too. When making ganache you don't want to skimp on the chocolate. If you wouldn't eat a piece of it.. don't use it in your ganache.

That's my philosophy (and why my waistline is growing)

nice cakes ceshell

i don't think its candy melts bec i bought a 500g block of it. lesson learned: don't use cheap choc for ganache.

thanks everyone! i am really happy to have helpful CCers around

Hey, I didn't say water based ganache would be tasty... just that it would be dark and still technically ganache

LOL but IS it still technically ganache? The only definitions I can find consider ganache a combination of chocolate and another fat, usually (or by some definitions: always) cream. The water version sounds like it should just be called "chocolate sauce." (All this said with tongue in cheek, since I don't know the correct answer!)

My Drunken Turtle brownie topping is a ganache made with about 80% rum and MAYBE 20% cream. Nice and strong, but very little fat added. I also don't know what would TECHNICALLY disqualify something from being a ganache... but if it walks like a ganache and talks like a ganache....

It sounds more like it stumbles and mumbles like a ganache. *hic*

ROTFL!

@cupcakeshoppe
around Php 75.00 and i got it from sweetcraft here in mandaluyong, phils

If you want it darker add a tiny bit of black gel color....I've done it once and it made it nice and dark but didn't change any of the consistancy....you can also do colored white choc. ganache which is really pretty in pastel colors

@amoos
i've been thinking about it... is gel colors oil based?

i'm also considering adding black cocoa to it, the alkalized one...what do you think guys? has anyone tried this before?

If you add black coloring you have to use oil based coloring. Not gel. It will freeze up.

Ok, well I don't know all the science etc. but I always add the wilton gel colors and haven't ever had a problem or had it freeze or seize or whatever anyone wants to call it. Then again, I'm only just adding like a pin prick worth of color, not like a whole TBS or something.....but that's just me and I'm sure the "PROS" out there will say what I'm doing is wrong but if it works (for me) why mess with it

amoos that's awesome! I SO wanna try it.

maimai, yup, we're using the same one. that might be the semi-sweet one you're using which for me is not dark chocolate. I use the bittersweet one. HTH

You can use any type of coloring in ganache. There is already a lot of liquid in it so it will not seize. You only need to use oil colors when you are coloring just chocolate.

@KoryAK
that makes sense... i'm confuse on when to add the colors... thanks for another info

@cupcakeshoppe
thats odd... the label says dark chocolate... so the bitter-sweet is much darker compared to semi-sweet?

maimai, for me it is. so i've always used the bitter sweet one to make dark chocolate ganache or whenever the recipe calls for dark chocolate.