chocolate ganache

Ratios for different types of ganaches

Ingredients

For all ratios:

Place the chocolate chips in a heatproof bowl.
Heat the cream in a double boiler until it's not quite at a simmer, but showing fine bubbles around the edge (goal is 200°F).
Pour the cream over the chocolate, stir very briefly to combine, and let rest for 5 minutes. Stir again — at first slowly, then more vigorously — until the chocolate is completely melted and the glaze is smooth.
If any bits of chocolate remain, reheat briefly, then stir until smooth.

2 parts chocolate : 1 part cream

Once the ganache is mixed and warm, it will be quite thick, but still soft. At this consistency, you can pipe decorations. It will set up to be very firm, and you’ll need to work quickly so it doesn’t cool so much you can’t pipe it.
To make truffles, pop the ganache into the refrigerator and stir it every 5 minutes until it’s thick and cool, but not completely hardened. You still need to be able to scoop it! The ganache should hold its shape when you roll it into a ball in your hands. Then you can dunk your truffles in cocoa powder or whatever else you want to coat them in!

1 part chocolate : 1 part cream

The consistency of this ganache when it’s still warm will be kind of like chocolate pudding. In this stage, you can use it as a dip or as a glaze. Hellooo, donuts!
Once the ganache thickens ever-so-slightly, you can spread the ganache between cake layers.
To make whipped ganache frosting, cool the ganache so that it’s thick but soft, transfer it to a mixing bowl, and beat it until it’s fluffy and light in color. This is a great frosting for cupcakes.

1 part chocolate : 2 parts cream

Fresh from the stove, this ganache is very thin. While it’s still liquid, you can get a smooth, thin coverage of ganache over an entire dessert by pouring the ganache over the top.
If you let it cool and thicken a bit, you can make those awesome drips down the side of your layer cake by pouring a small amount ganache on the top and guiding it to the edges so it runs down. If the ganache is too warm, the drips will run all the way to the bottom of your cake, so do a test drip first!
When it has cooled to thicker consistencies, you can whip this ganache in the mixer to be very light and fluffy with almost a milk chocolate flavor. Or you can leave it unwhipped for a rich, soft frosting.