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paulraphael

paulraphael

If you're looking for more intensity and a more "chocolate-forward" sauce, it's hard to beat a water ganache. There's no dairy to mute the chocolate flavor. This is one I adapted from James Peterson (he calls it "chocolate butter sauce.") It takes a bit more care in reheating than ganache-based sauces.

 

Use chocolate in the ~70% cocoa solids range. If the sauce will be featured in a dish, use a good one. 

 

120g / 4 oz bittersweet chocolate 
            (if liquid used is sweet, you can use 3-1/2 oz. bittersweet and 1/2 oz unsweetened)
90g / 3 oz liquid (water, strong coffee, liqueur, fruit brandy, fortified wine, whisky, etc.). Mix 'n match to taste.
45g / 1.5 oz butter, cool, in small pieces

 

-melt chocolate in the liquid over medium-low heat in a saucepan. keep liquid well below a simmer.
-lower heat or remove from heat, and swirl in the butter. if you do it a few chunks at a time and keep the temperature moderate, the butter and chocolate will stay emulsified, and you will have a glassy-smooth texture, like ganache but with a greater sheen.

notes: 
-amount of liquid can be varied to control consistency
-this is a more fragile emulsion than ganache, so be careful if you need to reheat it. let it come to room temperature slowly, without disturbing it. then heat in a water bath over water that's below a simmer.

 

paulraphael

paulraphael

If you're looking for more intensity and a more "chocolate-forward" sauce, it's hard to beat a water ganache. There's no dairy to mute the chocolate flavor. This is one I adapted from James Peterson (he calls it "chocolate butter sauce.") It takes a bit more care in reheating than ganache-based sauces.

 

Use chocolate in the ~70% cocoa solids range. If the sauce will be featured in a dish, use a good one. I used to use a blend of Valrhona chocolates (guanaja/manjari). Now I prefer a single origin Michel Cluizel, like los Ancones. Plain old Callebaut is still pretty good.  

 

120g / 4 oz bittersweet chocolate 
            (if liquid used is sweet, you can use 3-1/2 oz. bittersweet and 1/2 oz unsweetened)
90g / 3 oz liquid (water, strong coffee, liqueur, fruit brandy, fortified wine, whisky, etc.). Mix 'n match to taste.
45g / 1.5 oz butter, cool, in small pieces

 

-melt chocolate in the liquid over medium-low heat in a heavy saucepan. keep liquid well below a simmer.
-lower heat or remove from heat, and swirl in the butter. if you do it all right and keep the temperature moderate, the butter and chocolate will stay emulsified, and you will have a glassy-smooth texture, like ganache but with a greater sheen.

notes: 
-amount of liquid can be varied to control consistency
-this is a more fragile emulsion than ganache, so be careful if you need to reheat it. let it come to room temperature slowly, without disturbing it. then heat in a water bath over water that's below a simmer.

(adapted from Peterson)

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