Icings for cakes: Whipped ganache and Swiss buttercream
Whipped Chocolate Ganache
Enough for one single layer 9" round cake. This recipe can be doubled or halved. Ganache can be kept at room temperature for two days, but longer in the refrigerator. You can freeze ganache for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the fridge and let it come to room temperature before doing anything with it.
Ingredients
1 C heavy or whipping cream
8 oz semi-sweet or milk chocolate
Instructions
1. In a medium saucepan, heat up 1 cup of cream to boiling over medium heat
2. While the cream is heating, chop 8 oz. of semisweet chocolate, or use chocolate chips and place in a medium bowl. Milk chocolate is also okay to use.
3. When the cream begins to boil, pour the cream over the chocolate and cover for 5 minutes.
4. A tip from Erin at Bake It Up a Notch: Stir into the middle of the mixture in small circles. Be patient: keep the circles very small when stirring until some of the melted chocolate changes the "trail" of the stirring from pale to dark. When the darker color emerges, begin to widen the circles when stirring. This helps combine the chocolate and cream. You know you are nearly done with this step when the ganache is shiny, smooth, and thick.
5. Cool to room temp, not in the fridge.
6. In a standing mixer, use the whisk attachment to stir and whisk the cooled ganache at medium speed, until it lightens in color but doesn't become too stiff.
Swiss Buttercream
Ingredients
6 egg whites
400g caster sugar (same as baker's sugar)
350g butter, cut into pieces and softened to room temperature, but still cool to the touch
2 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp salt
Other flavors to taste
Instructions
1. Combine sugar and egg whites in a metal bowl or double boiler until combined.
2. Whip over a low heated bain marie or double boiler until the sugar is dissolved, about 160 degrees.
3. Place in a standing mixer with the whisk attachment and whip on medium-high speed until you've got stiff peaks, 15 minutes or more. Let the mixture cool so that the bowl isn't warm anymore. Do not refrigerate.
4. Replace the whisk with a paddle. Set the mixer to medium and slowly add the butter, one piece at a time, getting the butter mostly integrated until you add the next piece.
5. Once all the butter is added, increase to high and whip until light and fluffy, about one minute.
6. Fold in vanilla and/or other flavors such as citrus zest.
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