Ganache

It all started one fateful afternoon.

My friend Nathan and I were going out to lunch to catch up and hang out, whine about boys, etc., when we were served the artsy nutjob's favorite dish -- fondue. I, personally, am not actually a fan of eating fondue, but I am a fan of making art on the plate with the leftover chocolate and skewers. And so it began:





Poor Danny, our waiter, was blown away by this (or, according to Nathan, the creepy, sensual way I [accidentally] explained the concept of paisley to him.), and Nathan was inspired. He insisted that for his next dinner party, I would be decorating his plates, for pay, and so, a couple weeks later, I did.

Having been forced to take home the leftover fondue chocolate, I had surmised that the chocolate was not simply melted chocolate, but was, instead, ganache -- a smoother, softer mix of chocolate and cream that stays liquid longer, and has the consistency of a thick pudding when chilled (and eaten for several days later by a chocoholic homebound girl with no impulse control).

You (or I) can make ganache by combining cream and chocolate in a one-to-one ratio (one cup of chocolate, one cup of cream, etc.) in a double boiler and heating them together, stirring constantly to mix the two together evenly and avoid burning. As I learned when making mine the first time, it is highly important that you both use baking chocolate and heat the cream with the chocolate. If you add cold cream to melted chocolate, you will get a settled out mess that tastes delicious (imagine an incredibly moist brownie), but is actually impossible to paint with.

Anyway, given this chocolate and a set of beautiful, crisp white plates, I went to town.




This was my first paid gig (a whole $25!), and it was highly satisfying.

All you need is a wooden skewer, a double boiler (or a sauce pan and a glass bowl, really), and some chocolate and cream. And maybe a plate. Then, pop a couple slices of fruit on your fancy new plates, or serve ice cream, or do something else. Any way you do it, it will be both beautiful and delicious.