Mousse Ganache

[EsaK]

As Martin and Gwbyls above, I'd also love to have the recipe for this if it's still available (Tri2Cook?), Thanks!

[Tri2Cook]

Orange Caramel Mousse Ganache
Boil:
250 gr cream 35%
10 gr orange zest

Strain, re-weigh, then add:
45 gr sorbitol powder
1 gr fleur de sel

Heat to 60 degrees Celsius

Dry caramel using:
155 gr sugar

Deglaze caramel with cream, boil and pour over:
125 gr cacao Barry Guayaquil 64%
250 gr Cacao Barry Ghana 41%

Blend, then add:
150 gr butter 83%
20 gr Grand Marnier

Cool to 14-17 degrees Celsius, whip to a mousse-like consistency.

[Jim D.]

Thanks to Tri2Cook for reposting the recipe.  I had grand plans for making it and, mindful of posted concerns about the ganache's shelf life, was going to test the Aw, then keep some pieces for a time and  post what happened to them (whether the shells eventually collapsed, for example).  But I was thwarted by not one but two failures in making the ganache.

 

Both times I followed the recipe exactly.  Both times when I mixed the caramel with the chocolate, the mixture became grainy.  When I added the butter, the ganache immediately separated into a chocolate-caramel mass and a liquid (which I assume was the butter).  Absolutely nothing I tried brought it back together.  I tried heating it, I tried letting it cool, I used a food processor, an immersion blender, a hand mixer, and a whisk.  I tried mixing one part into the other slowly.  I tried adding skim milk (on the guess that the fat content might be too high).  Nothing worked.  I tried beating the mess in the bowl; it did not lighten in color and was obviously not mousse-like.  I give up.  I might try a ganache without the caramel, since I know that will whip properly, but I imagine the added sugar provided by the caramel helped with the shelf-life issue.

[Tri2Cook]

Hmmm. Not sure what the issue would be. It's been quite a while since I did it but I keep thinking I may have cooled the chocolate mixture before adding in the butter. It doesn't say to do that in the recipe but I seem to recall thinking at the time that that was standard procedure for a butter ganache and assuming I should. But it's entirely possible I'm thinking of something else. I don't remember having any issues with it being grainy. I'm looking at the recipe file right now and I didn't add any notes, which I usually do when I make changes to something.

[Jim D.]

Continuing my adventure with the mousse ganache:  Contrary to what I said above, I did not give up.  I read Rose Levy Beranbaum on whipped ganache and saw that her proportion of cream is much higher than in the recipe I was using.  So I heated some cream and mixed it into the failed ganache.  The mixture smoothed out.  I kept stirring vigorously, added the butter that had separated out, and the ganache got lighter in color and in texture--similar, I guess, to what the recipe described.  Of course there is the issue of shelf life; now there is even more liquid in the ganache.  In any event I piped it into shells and will see how it lasts.

 

The finished product looked very much like a butter ganache, so the thought occurred to me:  why not just make a butter ganache?  Greweling says that for piped butter ganaches, they can be beaten to make them lighter.  And since butter ganaches have a much longer shelf life, that issue would be much less of a concern.  So I think I will make Greweling's orange butter ganache and see how that goes.  It might even be possible to add some caramel to get that flavor.

[Tri2Cook]

I found a paper copy of the recipe in one of my kitchen notebooks that has notes I added. I did indeed treat it like a butter ganache. I'm thinking it probably seemed to me at the time like it was a large enough proportion of butter going in that that would be the right thing to do. According to my notes, I cooled it to around 40 C before adding the butter. I didn't add the Grand Marnier at all (or infuse the cream with orange). It's entirely possible I was just lucky it even worked... but it did.

[Jim D.]

I too thought that waiting to add the butter is the usual way of making a caramel (although I have used recipes that don't mention waiting and they work fine).  Ewald Notter has a recipe with chocolate and caramel combined, and he says to wait to add the butter until the caramel-chocolate mixture is 32.2C/90F.  If I were to try the recipe again, I would wait and see if that made a difference.  It may be significant that in the mousse recipe the amount of butter is approximately 16% of the entire ganache, whereas in Notter's recipe, it is only 5%.  This would support your idea of treating the mixture like a butter ganache--though butter ganaches usually have a lot more butter than 16%.

Edited January 26, 2016 by Jim D. (log)

[Tri2Cook]

Yeah, I wouldn't consider anything I say on this subject scientific information anyway. Molded chocolates and their fillings is not something I'm well-versed in or do often. I know a true butter ganache has a much higher percentage of butter involved but this had a lot more butter than most ganaches I tend to work with for what I do so I went with it.

[lebowits]

If you're looking to add caramel flavor to a ganache, consider this...  Cook sugar (with glucose if you like) to caramel and spread onto a silicon mat and let it cool.  Breakup the hard caramel into pieces and take them for a spin in a food processor until you have a powder.  The powder can be added to a ganache and will provide flavor without adding water or fat.  If you've got a whipped ganache which has a lighter texture, you can add some of this powder for flavor.  It will also add a slight "crunchy" texture.  You can also alternatively add some of the powder to the liquid you use the make the ganache.  You'll just have to account for the added sugar in your formula as it will bind some of the water.

[Jim D.]

Thanks for that good idea.  I use powdered caramel in a "creme brulee" piece I make--actually I think I may have gotten the idea from you.  I assumed the powder would liquefy eventually in the liquid of the ganache.  In the creme brulee, I put the powder in the bottom (eventually the top) of the mold, then pipe in a little white chocolate to cover it before the ganache is added.  If the powder does not in fact liquefy, I could save that step.

[Kendi]

On ‎3‎/‎2‎/‎2013 at 2:44 AM, Mjx said:

Yes, please!

I also would love to try the recipe, Thank You!

[lebowits]

23 hours ago, Jim D. said:

Thanks for that good idea.  I use powdered caramel in a "creme brulee" piece I make--actually I think I may have gotten the idea from you.  I assumed the powder would liquefy eventually in the liquid of the ganache.  In the creme brulee, I put the powder in the bottom (eventually the top) of the mold, then pipe in a little white chocolate to cover it before the ganache is added.  If the powder does not in fact liquefy, I could save that step.

 

The caramel powder will absorb any available water in the ganache.  This can be good as it binds more water and reduces the water activity.  If you want the "crunchy" texture that the powder provides, then covering it with chocolate is a good idea. 

[Kerry Beal]

On January 28, 2016 at 9:00 PM, Kendi said:

I also would love to try the recipe, Thank You!

It is above - posted Jan 19th

[Kendi]

On ‎1‎/‎29‎/‎2016 at 7:42 PM, Kerry Beal said:

It is above - posted Jan 19th

Thank You!