Chocolate Ganache Frosting

Chocolate Ganache is so easy to make I can explain it to you in three steps:  Chop 9 ounces of bittersweet chocolate, boil 1 cup cream, whisk together cream and chocolate until smooth.  From this point, there are many things you can do with it.

 This cake is frosted with my very favorite Cream Cheesy Frosting, then topped with just-made, warm Ganache.

 This little butter cake is topped with heated Ganache that has been thinned with a couple splashes of cream.  I could see jazzing this type of dessert up with something like toasted coconut and raspberries.  Or, you could frost the cake with a smooth under layer of Bittersweet Frosting, then pour the thin Ganache over the cake for a cleaner look.

I made this Bittersweet Frosting by whipping lukewarm Ganache for several minutes until fluffy.  When cooled, this frosting is kind of dense, much like a chilled buttercream.

And this frosting is made by whipping Ganache into the Cream Cheesy Frosting.  This one has the best texture in any frosting I've had.  It's super smooth and creamy with a denseness that is not really similar to whipped cream, it's thicker than mousse, maybe a little like a marshmallow fluff ...I guess it's indescribable!  Anyhow, it's fantastic!  I'm thinking it would make a nice kind of dense mousse layer in a frozen dessert...another day...

Cream Cheesy Frosting
Makes enough frosting to generously cover a two tier cake.

1 cup milk
5 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup sugar (not powdered)
1/2 cup butter (room temp)
6 ounces cream cheese (room temp)

Whisk milk and flour together in a saucepan over medium heat.  Once it warms, whisk vigorously until it is so thick you struggle to get your whisk through it. Put the pan of paste in a bowl of ice water to cool it completely. Once cool, whisk in the vanilla.

Using an electric mixer on high, mix together the butter and sugar for one minute. Add cream cheese and mix for one minute. Add the cooled milk paste and mix for 3 minutes.  Refrigerate until ready to use.

Chocolate Ganache 

Makes about 2 cups.

Chop 9 ounces of bittersweet chocolate.  Heat 1 cup heavy cream to a boil. Pour the hot cream over the chopped chocolate. Whisk until smooth.  You may also whisk in up to a tablespoon of a flavored extract, liquor or liqueur of your choice.

Pour some Ganache onto the top of your cake and spread it out using the back of a spoon in a circular motion from the center moving out. Add more ganache and continue to spread out in this manner until it spills over the edge a bit. It will drip and quickly cool in that shape. When chilled, the ganache is creamy and soft, not crunchy.

For Thin and Drippy Ganache, heat Ganache over medium low and whisk in splashes of cream until the Ganache reaches the consistency you desire.  Test the consistency by watching the Ganache pour off a spoon into the pan.  Pour over your cake while warm so the Ganache will flow freely.

For Bittersweet Frosting, whip lukewarm Ganache for 4 and a half minutes or until the frosting holds almost stiff peaks.

For Chocolate Cream Cheesy Frosting, whip 1 cup of room temperature Ganache into chilled Cream Cheesy Frosting just until combined.  This makes frosting with a dark-milk chocolate flavor.  You may want to start by adding 1/2 cup Ganache, then add more to the desired darkness of chocolate.

Enjoy and have fun!

Clementine Cookie and Chocolate Cream Pies

This chewy clementine cookie with its cream cheesy chocolate counterpart is deeee-lish! And really easy to make.

We always have clementines in our fruit bowl, and I use at least one citrus fruit a day - as a marinade, salad dressing, tequila chaser or snack...But for some reason I've never thought to juice a clementine! The flavor really comes through in these cookies and it definitely says "clementine" while the zest gives the cookies a delicious bitter orange quality. The chocolate filling has a gentle tang of cream cheese and a not overly sweet dark chocolate flavor.

No kidding:  I was told by a recent visitor to Europe that this cookie was better than any pastry she tasted in France...try them and you'll like them!


Clementine Cookie:
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg plus 1 egg yolk
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup clementine or tangerine juice
2 tsp. clementine zest
2 tsp. lemon juice
Powdered sugar for dusting

Combine butter, sugar, egg and egg yolk. Mix until creamy. Add flour, baking powder and salt. Mix well. Add juices and zest and blend thoroughly.

Spoon onto a parchment covered baking sheet. Bake at 350F just until the edges barely begin to turn golden brown, 8-12 minutes, depending on size. Do not over bake!

Remove from the pan immediately and dust with powdered sugar while warm. Cool completely and chill, preferably overnight, before consumption.

Note:
Avoid judging the taste and texture of these cookies warm from the oven. They will seem too soft and cakey for a cookie sandwich. After they cool for a half day or so, they will set up as a thin chewy wafer with intensified flavor. I prefer mine to be chilled in the fridge for a day before use, and they are especially delicious eaten straight from the freezer.

Chocolate Filling:
5 tablespoons flour
5 tablespoons powdered unsweetened chocolate
1 cup whole milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup butter, room temp
1 block cream cheese, room temp
1 cup granulated sugar

Sift together flour and chocolate. In a saucepan over medium-high heat, whisk together flour/chocolate mix and milk. Whisk constantly until it is really thick. Remove from the heat and press your paste through a mesh sieve, if needed*.

Place your pan in a bowl of super cold ice water to cool quickly. Once cool, remove skin if there is one (better yet prevent skin by placing plastic wrap up against the warm paste before cooling). When the milk chocolate paste is completely cooled, whisk in vanilla.

Cream together butter and sugar. Blend in cream cheese until well mixed. Beat the chocolate paste into the butter mix for 1 to 3 minutes until the frosting is gooey, smooth and fluffy. The longer you mix, the lighter (more airy) it will be.

* Your chocolate may lump a bit when cooking with milk. It will not be noticeable at all when eating, but it makes for better photos if you press it through a sieve.

To assemble the Cream Pies, squish your filling between your cookies and chill for an hour before serving. Best served chilled. Enjoy!