Help with a Coffee Ganache Recipe

[Bentley]

I had a request for a coffee flavored bon bon.  I am not a coffee fan, so I've never made anything with it.  I've seen two types of recipes - one that infuses the cream with the beans and one that uses brewed coffee.  I'm curious which type of recipe is used by most people here.  If you infuse the cream, are you straining the beans out or are you using a fine enough grind to not create textural problems in the ganache?  If you use brewed coffee, are you reducing the cream by the amount of the coffee liquid on a one to one basis?  Thanks!

[gfron1]

I use Jean Marie Auboine's recipe. In that one we very lightly toast/warm the beans to re-ignite the oils, then steep them whole in the cream, straining after an hour steep. 

[Jim D.]

I use recipes from Greweling, Notter, and Shotts that use more or less the same technique.  I grind the coffee coarsely, steep it in the warm cream for about 15 minutes, then strain it out (the coarse grind makes it easier), pressing on the grounds (if a little finely ground coffee gets through, that's even better).  Finally I add enough additional cream to reach the original weight of cream.  I think a coffee layer is great paired with a vanilla one or a caramel one (including dulce de leche, as in Greweling).

[Bentley]

I made my coffee ganache - infusing the cream with coarsely ground dark roast beans then straining them out with cheesecloth.  I do not even like coffee, but this stuff was delish!!!!  Paired it with a white chocolate hazelnut gianduja, and it's one of my favorite bonbons that I've made so far.  

[pastryani]

I should've read this thread earlier.  Long story short,  I *finely ground* whole coffee beans in cream and found myself straining a coffee/cream SLUDGE (NOT easy, took forever, and the saving grace was when the bowl slipped from my hand and 3/4 of it fell out).   With the remaining 1/4 that was left, I finally got the cream to be free of coffee granules and made the ganache, and the flavor was really good and strong (much better than instant coffee or trablit).  So the question is, would you get this same great flavor from coarsely ground coffee?  And @gfron1 - will steeping whole beans impart a strong flavor anywhere near that of ground coffee?

 

 

[Tri2Cook]

I've never used finely, or even coarsely, ground beans (I've found both require more effort to strain out than I want to spend) and always been happy with the results I get. I toast the beans ala Rob's suggestion above and then put them in a towel or Ziploc and give them a quick crush with a rolling pin or something just to crack them a bit and proceed as usual. I've never tried Rob's method with the whole beans but I'm going to. If he says it works, I have no doubt that it does and that's one less step in the process I'd have to mess with.

[gfron1]

4 hours ago, pastryani said:

And @gfron1 - will steeping whole beans impart a strong flavor anywhere near that of ground coffee?

I believe so. I very lightly roast/warm the beans first to bring them back to life (I do that with almost all spices too). And I did that for exactly the reason you suggested. I've tried coarsely ground but prefer whole bean - which btw, is how Jean Marie Auboine taught me.

[pastryani]

Thanks - I'll definitely try this method out! 

[AnythingButPlainChocolate]

I strain mine (cream and fine ground coffee beans) through muslin which I sit in a large sieve or colander over a pan.  Takes a bit of the pain out of the process.  I normally only make coffee if I'm going to make another ganache, so while it's straining I can get on with the other flavour.