I'm making a vanilla cake which will (hopefully) end up as a top hat cake, so it will be tall - I'm using 4 2"high cakes so there will be lots of layers.

I'm wondering if I could use alternate layers of bittersweet chocolate ganache with white chocolate ganache? I'm not sure if this will taste OK or if it will be too strange mixing bittersweet with the sweeter white? The cake will be covered in fondant.

Also, I've never made white choc ganache before - does it work the same way as normal? I'm a little worried about the milk content messing with the process!

Thanks
SG

Hi there Stargazer:

I think those flavors would be perfectly ok. However, since I have not made White Chocolate Ganache either I could not tell you about the milk contents. A lot of people here on CC have made it before and claim it's the same thing.

I think White choc ganache is a slightly different ratio than the dark choc...
If u are not already planning to, u might want to use dowela and a board in the middle of the cake, usually 6 inches is as high as u should go without.
Xx

yes, the ratio is different for white choc. ganache

regular chocolate (bittersweet, semi sweet and milk) is a ratio of 2 parts chocolate to 1 part heavy cream, with white chocolate you need 3 parts chocolate to 1 part cream.

HTH

Thank you for the replies! Will be brave and experiment with the white choc!

Thanks for the dowel and board tip - I'll do this. I guess it'll actually make it easier to cut up too!

One quick question though - would you put the dowel through the board in the middle? So that all four cakes would have the same dowel? If so, how would you make the whole in the board? (I use cardboard boards glued together)

Thanks again!

put down a cake board, put down one layer of cake, then run a line of buttercream around the edge of the cake (using no tip, just the coupler on your bag), then fill in with a layer of ganache. Then put a second layer of cake on top and coat the top of the cake in icing.

Cut a piece of wax paper the exact size of the top of the cake (even a tad smaller is good) and then put dowels into your cake making sure the tops of the dowels are the exact same height as the icing on the top of the cake. Cut all the dowels the EXACT same height!

Then put your sheet of wax paper on the top of the iced and doweled 2 layers of cake, then add another cake board and repeat the process of cake layer, icing dam, ganache, and then finally your top layer of cake!

Then you'll just ice the whole thing and decorate as normal. If you're traveling with the cake you may want to take a long wooden dowel and sharpen the end of it in a pencil sharpener and put it in the center of the cake (called a central dowel), when you come to a cardboard cake board tap the top of the dowel (using a hammer/mallet) until it pops through the board and continue going down all the way to the bottom of the cake.

HTH

Wow.. great detailed directions KHalstead! Thanks

I agree that the white chocolate ganache requires more chocolate. I just made a cake with 1 filling layer of semisweet chocolate truffle ganache filling and 2 filling layers of white chocolate whipped ganache (paired with an orange butter cake). I think they worked really well together. Especially since the semisweet was a truffle filling (much less cream) it somewhat overpowered the white chocolate layers but they didn't clash at all and were all very yummy. Good luck with your cake

Wow - thank you all so much for taking the time to reply to me and for the wise words! I'm going in now, will try and upload a photo later!

Thanks again,

SG