What is ganache, how is it eaten and what recipes can you try in your home kitchen? The history of occurrence, composition, useful properties and harm of chocolate delicacies.
Ganache is a popular all over the world cream of chocolate and cream. Depending on the consistency, it can be used as a frosting, a stand-alone drink, a cream for overlapping cakes, filling in cakes and sweets. If you are a real sweet tooth, you will surely like this product. The cream is rich in nutrients, but despite this, certain categories of consumers should limit the amount of its consumption.
Composition and calorie content of ganache
The original composition of ganache contains two main ingredients - dark chocolate with a high percentage of cocoa and heavy cream. Over time, the standard recipe for the cream changed: the delicacy began to be prepared from white or milk chocolate, they began to use cream with a small percentage of fat and experiment with the consistency of the product.
Depending on the composition, the qualitative properties of ganache, its taste and the list of useful nutrients change. Consider the chemical composition of a thick dark chocolate cream prepared according to a standard recipe.
The calorie content of ganache per 100 g of product is 462.3 kcal, of which:
- Proteins - 4 g;
- Fat - 36.8 g;
- Carbohydrates - 28.7 g;
- Dietary fiber - 0 g;
- Water - 28, 9 g.
The ratio of proteins, fats and carbohydrates is 1: 9, 2: 7, 2, respectively.
Vitamins per 100 g of product:
- Vitamin A - 159.7 mcg;
- Beta Carotene - 0.075 mg;
- Vitamin B1, thiamine - 0.01 mg;
- Vitamin B2, riboflavin - 0.057 mg;
- Vitamin B6, pyridoxine - 0.001 mg;
- Vitamin D, calciferol - 0.171 mcg;
- Vitamin E, alpha tocopherol - 0.333 mg;
- Vitamin PP - 0, 2476 mg.
Minerals in 100 g of chocolate ganache:
- Potassium, K - 43, 57 mg;
- Calcium, Ca - 41, 52 mg;
- Magnesium, Mg - 3.35 mg;
- Sodium, Na - 15.1 mg;
- Phosphorus, P - 28.5 mg;
- Iron, Fe - 0, 105 mg.
On a note! One teaspoon holds 12 g of ganache, and 35 g in a dining room.
Useful properties of ganache cream
Ganache is a real "magic wand" for confectionery masters. After all, the range of application of this cream is quite wide, and any sweetness that contains ganache never stays on the shelves of pastry shops. Also, the cream has won the love of chefs, because it can be stored for a long time at room temperature and not lose its quality properties.
The benefits of ganache for the human body are also great. The cream is rich in vitamins and useful trace elements that can heal, quickly satisfy hunger and even improve well-being during illness or depression.
Ganache received most of its useful properties thanks to the chocolate that is part of it. It is known that a sweet cocoa product contains up to 300 names of nutrients. But don't forget about the cream - they also contributed to the list of health benefits of ganache.
Ganache has the following positive effects on the body:
- Gives a person a feeling of euphoria. Like any sweet product, it provokes in the human body the production of hormones of happiness and joy, endorphins, estrogens, serotonin, etc. In addition, chocolate, which is the main ingredient of the cream, contains natural neuromodizers - substances responsible for the feeling of euphoria. These include, for example, anandamide and arginine.
- Regulates the level of cholesterol in the blood, favorably affects the state of the blood vessels of the circulatory system. Ganache contains a cream rich in lecithin. It is lecithin that prevents blockage of blood vessels and an increase in blood cholesterol levels.
- Strengthens sexual function in men and optimizes heart function. A number of amino acids found in chocolate are responsible for this process. They lift your spirits, increase attraction to the opposite sex and are a powerful pacemaker.
- Helps to cope with stress with ease. The human body is very complex, for example, the hormones of joy and pleasure are produced in our body not only to raise our mood, but also to protect ourselves in stressful situations. It is according to this principle that we produce the hormone dopamine, which helps a person to cope with pain and fear in shock moments. It is found in a fairly large amount in products made from quality chocolate.
- Reduces the risk of fatal diseases in the body, such as cancer, diabetes and others. Ganache is rich in epicatechin - a substance that improves the condition of a patient with diabetes, restores the work of internal organs, disturbed by any disease. Epicatechin also helps healthy people to extend their lifespan.
- It has a beneficial effect on the skin, heals damage to the outer layers of the epithelium. Cocohil, a substance that accelerates cell growth, is largely responsible for this process. Due to this, cocohil is able to heal wounds and even smooth out wrinkles.
Interesting! Ganache is one of the most expensive chocolates in the world produced by an American company. The cost of such a delicacy is 5 thousand dollars per 1 kilogram. Sweets are considered a real work of art. Each truffle is placed in a silk case and then placed in a common golden cardboard package.
Contraindications and harm of ganache
If you prefer to consume sweets regularly and in large quantities, do not forget about the dangers of ganache. This cream contains many saturated fatty acids (24 g in 100 g of product) and can lead to the occurrence of problems with the heart and the work of the circulatory system.
Note! Doctors explain that a product made from natural chocolate is useful for humans, but only if the sweetness is eaten in limited quantities.
Do not consume large amounts of ganache if you have problems with the digestive tract or gaining excess weight … The fact is that chocolate cream can lead to metabolic disorders and obesity.
The increased calorie content of the product can also harm children's body … The child's still fragile digestive system is not able to cope with the processing of such a fat cream.
People should completely abandon ganache with allergies to dairy products or cocoa.
Remember that chocolate products are high in oxalates, which can be harmful to people. with kidney disease - a sweet dessert can provoke the formation of sand or kidney stones in them.
How to make ganache?
First, we will learn how to prepare ganache according to a standard recipe. To prepare such a cream, use only dark chocolate with a high percentage of cocoa, as well as the highest possible heavy cream. Make sure all ingredients are fresh and of good quality.
A step-by-step recipe for thick and black ganache:
- Grind 240 g of dark chocolate with a serrated knife. It is important that the pieces are as small as possible.
- Boil 160 g heavy cream and pour into the chocolate.
- Stir the resulting mixture and set aside for a while. Stir the cream periodically with a spatula.
- The ganache cream is ready when the chocolate is completely dissolved in the hot cream.
This cream turns out to be very thick, it can be used immediately after preparation or stored in the refrigerator under cling film. As you can see, the ganache recipe is as simple as possible - the dish is prepared quickly and does not require special knowledge from the chef.
Please note that when replacing the ingredients of the cream specified in the recipe, the quality properties of the ganache change. So, if you use low-fat cream and white chocolate, the product will turn out to be rare. If you want to get a thick ganache, give preference to cream with a fat content of at least 30%.
Not every cookbook says that ganache freezes for a long time. So, housewives prepare a cream and complain that even when cooled down, it has a too rare consistency. Remember that the cream reaches its maximum thickness at least 8 hours after preparation. Therefore, if you plan to stuff pastries with them, prepare the cream the day before baking the profiteroles or pie.
If you deliberately want to make a rare ganache at home for use as an ingredient in chocolate drinks, use the following recipe:
- Combine 900 ml cow's milk and 300 ml non-fat cream in one saucepan.
- Heat the resulting mass well, but do not boil.
- Take 900 g of any chocolate you like (preferably black, but not necessarily with a high percentage of cocoa).
- Pour the milk-cream mixture over the chocolate and blend everything with a blender. As a result, you should have a homogeneous emulsion. This piece can be stored under the lid in the refrigerator until you decide to make some kind of ganache cocktail.
It is important that rare ganache does not form bubbles, lumps or flakes. To achieve this result, follow these tips:
- Pour the cream into the chocolate only when hot.
- To make ganache sweet, use honey or glucose syrup, but never use pure granulated sugar.
- While cooking, stir the cream as gently as possible from the middle of the pot to the edges.
- If using a mixer, beat the cream so that the leg of the blender is always submerged in the chocolate and not partially raised above its surface.
Ganache cream recipes
As noted earlier, ganache is suitable for preparing a wide variety of desserts - you can fill a cake or candy with it, glaze profiteroles and eat it with a spoon like hot chocolate. We present several interesting recipes with this delicacy that you can cook yourself without being a professional pastry chef:
- Chocolate pie … Sift 140 g wheat flour and combine it with 80 g cocoa powder and 1/2 tsp. baking powder. Season the dry mixture with a pinch of salt. In a separate bowl, whisk 170 g butter and 200 g sugar using a blender. Gradually add chicken eggs (3 in total) to the butter. Continue whisking until the mixture is fluffy. Then add half of the flour mixture to the resulting butter cream. Beat the dough thoroughly, add 120 g of fat sour cream to it and beat again. Now add the rest of the flour to the dough and mix thoroughly. Grease a baking dish generously with butter and sprinkle with cocoa powder. Bake the cake for 30 minutes. You can check the readiness of baking in the standard way - using a match. Pierce the cake with a match, if there is no dough left on it, then the cake is well baked inside. Let the finished cake cool completely. To do this, place it on a wire rack so that condensation does not form on it and the cake does not get soaked. While the cake is cooling, cook the thick ganache and pour it over the surface of the cake later. Decorate baked goods with chocolate chips. Bon Appetit!
- Chocolate candies … Heat 180 ml of fatty sour cream and pour it over 200 g of chopped chocolate (at least 70%). Wait for the chocolate to melt and cool the mixture in the refrigerator. Use the finished ganache to form the chocolate balls. Breaded cocoa candies and serve!
- Pancakes "Double pleasure" … To prepare this dish, you will need thick ganache cream and chocolate pancakes. You already know how to make a cream, so let's start by kneading a fluffy and tender pancake dough. Sift 250 g of flour, stir in 20 g of cocoa powder. Please note that the better quality cocoa you take, the richer the color of your pancakes will be! Add 3 chicken eggs, 40 g granulated sugar and 500 ml cow's milk to the powder mixture. Stir the mixture vigorously as you add the ingredients, otherwise you may end up with lumps that can be difficult to stir later. When the pancake dough is almost ready, pour 20 g of melted butter into it (some housewives use raw sunflower oil instead). Let the dough steep for 1, 5-2 hours before baking the pancakes. In the meantime, prepare the chocolate sauce. Serve ready-made ganache pancakes on one plate. Garnish with fresh strawberries.
- Lush pancakes for a sweet tooth … Choose a deep bowl for this dish. Mix 1 tbsp in it. wheat flour, 1 tbsp. l. sugar and a pinch of baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl, mix 1 tbsp. cow's milk, 2 yolks and 2 tbsp. l. melted butter. Combine the dry mixture with the yolk. In another plate, knock down the remaining 2 squirrels until thick. Add the egg whites to the dough and stir thoroughly. Bake the pancakes in butter. To do this, you can use a regular frying pan or a special form for making children's pancakes. If you are baking dessert in a regular frying pan, serve the prepared pancakes with ganache cream and finely chopped banana. If you have a special form, you can stuff the pancakes with ganache and bananas (fill half of the form with the dough, pour the banana ganache over it and cover with the rest of the dough on top). Sprinkle with icing sugar on the finished dish.
Ganache drinks recipes
Did you know that ganache is considered to be the most ideal base for preparing a drink called "hot chocolate"? Such a delicacy is indispensable in the cold season, when you want not only to pamper yourself with sweetness, but also to keep warm.
Step-by-step recipe for making hot chocolate based on French ganache cream:
- Heat, but do not boil 150 ml of cow's milk.
- Remove the milk from the stove and start making the chocolate cream.
- Add 70 g of chocolate, broken into small pieces, to warm milk.
- When the chocolate has melted, add 300 ml of room temperature milk and 75 ml of cream to it (as mentioned repeatedly above, cream should be chosen with a high percentage of fat).
- Stir the mixture thoroughly, adding a pinch of salt and cinnamon.
- Heat the chocolate drink slightly and pour it into portioned glasses or mugs.
- Garnish the hot chocolate with white or colorful marshmallows.
Interesting! Salt is added to sugary drinks to enhance their rich sweet taste. You can also add a small amount of alcoholic beverage to the hot chocolate if desired. This should be done when the ganache is ready, but not cold yet.
Ganache is actively used in world cuisine for preparing not only warming, but also cooling drinks - very sweet milkshakes. Consider the simplest mint-flavored milkshake recipe:
- Buy 4 scoops of vanilla ice cream from the store. It is important that this delicacy is as fat as possible. If you do not have the opportunity to buy ice cream by weight, take it in a glass and separate the wafer from the ice cream. In this case, the total weight of the ice cream should be equal to 240-280 g.
- Grind the following ingredients with a blender until smooth: ice cream, 1/4 tbsp. cow's milk and the same amount of chocolate ganache.
- Add 1 drop of peppermint extract to make your cocktail more original.
- Whisk the drink until it swells.
- Pour the finished cocktail into glasses immediately and serve with a straw and a slice of lime to the guests.
Interesting facts about ganache
The most interesting fact about ganache is the history of its creation. As historians assure us, the recipe for the cream is a common mistake made by a student of a French chocolatier in the 19th century. An inexperienced pastry chef accidentally spilled some hot cream on the chocolate. The apprentice teacher got angry when he saw what happened and called his student a dummy. It is the word "blockhead" in French that sounds like ganache - "ganache".
A lot of time has passed since the creation of the cream, and confectioners still prepare ganache according to the original recipe. At the same time, fans of experiments create new variations of the cream - they prepare it on the basis of fruit juice, wine and even puree. To achieve an unusual and original taste, they can add various fillers to ganache: nuts, fruits, vanillin, alcoholic drinks and more.
How to make ganache - watch the video:
Ganache is a traditional French cream made from chocolate and cream. Differs in special calorie content, unique sweetness and versatility of use. It can both improve the human body and harm it. To experience only the beneficial properties of the cream, use it in limited quantities. Otherwise, you can quickly gain weight, raise your blood sugar and provoke a malfunction of your circulatory system.
