Easy Whipped Chocolate Ganache Filling

Chocolate is good. Chocolate frosting is better. Whipped chocolate ganache filling is the best! Some links in this post are affiliate links that earn me a commission if you purchase from them.

When my daughter asked for her birthday cake this year, she wanted a yellow cake. Easy! With pomegranate frosting. Ok… I can do that. And a whipped chocolate ganache filling. Now that’s my girl.

Looking for more fun cake ideas? Check my favorite recipes at the end of this article.

Chocolate ganache is so easy to make. It takes just two ingredients, but the ratio of those two ingredients change the ganache texture and purpose completely.

For a whipped chocolate ganache, you want to use a 1:1 ratio, which makes it easy to remember.

As easy as this is to make, remember you need to give yourself some time. Before you can whip up your ganache, it needs to cool to room temperature – which means this comes together faster in January than it does in August!

Whipped Chocolate Ganache Pro Tips:

Use quality chocolate.

Those cheap chocolate chips in a bag from the grocery store? They have a lot of ingredients, and some of them make melting smoothly more of a challenge. Don’t use them if you can help it.

When you taste quality chocolate, it’s almost a different food group. If you’re going to go through the effort of making this ganache, you want it to taste as good as possible, right?

Don’t burn your cream.

Use a heavy saucepan to heat your cream. Milk and cream burn easily, and it doesn’t taste good when it does. A thick bottomed pot ensures heat conducts evenly and doesn’t scorch your cream.

Related: don’t turn your burner all the way up. You only want to heat the cream to scalding – just when you start to see the little bubbles appear on the edges. It doesn’t take a high heat to do that.

Be patient.

First, be patient as your cream heats. It isn’t much cream and won’t take long. Did I mention that you don’t want to turn the heat too high already?

When you pour the cream over your chocolate, don’t stir it. Wait for the residual heat of the cream to melt it.

I know. It’s hard. It’s so tempting to just “check” after a minute or so. Keep waiting. Leave it be entirely for two minutes, then stir to ensure you get a smooth consistency in your whipped chocolate ganache.

Chop your chocolate finely.

Quality chocolate tends to come in blocks. You can also find callets, which are like small chocolate discs. 

Regardless of which kind you choose, use a knife to chop your chocolate. If you use a sharp chef’s knife, just cut near the edge of your block, and the chocolate will shear off easily. For callets, just chop them roughly to get them slightly smaller.

The smaller your pieces, the more surface area to your chocolate. The more surface area, the more your hot cream touches, and the faster it melts. Win win!

If necessary, yes, you can make chocolate ganache in advance.

It isn’t ideal, but it’s possible. Mix the chocolate and cream together, then refrigerate it.

When you’re ready to use it, gently heat it just until it softens, stirring as much as you can to encourage it to warm up throughout without fully melting. Remove it from the heat, and cool it to room temperature, as needed.

From there, follow the whipping instructions, and use it for your cake. If you heat the already whipped chocolate ganache, you lose the air you incorporated and have to go through this process again, as it doesn’t work to whip cold ganache.

How to Make Whipped Chocolate Ganache

Use a sharp knife to chop your chocolate. Place this in a mixing bowl, and set aside.

In a heavy saucepan – I prefer enameled cast iron – add your cream. Turn your heat to medium low and let it heat without stirring.

As soon as small bubbles start to form on the edge of the pot, turn off the heat. Your cream should not have a skin on top of it.

Pour the cream over your chopped chocolate, and let it sit for two to three minutes. Do not stir during this period.

Use a spatula to gently stir the chocolate and cream together. It starts pretty separate, but continue to slowly stir, and it comes together in a glossy, smooth finish.

Set the ganache aside for 20-30 minutes to come to room temperature. If you need it sooner, you can place it in the fridge for five minutes, then stir it thoroughly. Repeat until it has thickened slightly and is room temperature.

Use your stand mixer or hand mixer to mix the chocolate. Start on a low speed to avoid spatters, then turn it up slowly until you reach the highest speed.

This is where it’s important to use a stand mixer that automatically has a fairly deep bowl or to ensure you have a larger mixing bowl than you think you’ll need.

Beat for two to three minutes, until the mixture lightens in color and changes texture. 

Use it immediately to fill or frost a cake. I use my regular spatula to scoop it on, then use an offset spatula to smooth it into an even layer.

What’s your favorite use for whipped chocolate ganache?

More fun cake recipes:

• KitKat cake
• Perfect light white cake
• Lemon filling
• Mango filling
• Strawberry curd (yep, another fab filling)
• Strawberry lemonade icebox cake
• Molten chocolate cakes
• Green tea cupcakes
• Italian lemon olive oil cake
• Wicked chocolate bundt cake
• Lemon blueberry dump cake

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