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Crisp Chocolate Covering

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  • 18-03-2010 7:21pm
    #1
    kerash
    Registered Users Posts: 6,688 ✭✭✭


    Has anyone got a good recipe for a shiny, crisp(when cut) chocolate covering for a chocolate cake, I'll be covering it in chopped hazelnuts also!

    Thanks.:)


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    #2
    Little Alex
    Registered Users Posts: 1,302 ✭✭✭Little Alex


    Hi kerash

    Not sure what you mean by "crisp": do you want it to be brittle or soft and easy to cut through or bite into?

    I might be wrong, but I think what you are looking for is a "ganache", which is melted chocolate with some cream added. When it cools down it remains slightly soft or molten, depending on how much cream you add. It will also look glossy.

    I'm making a Rice Krispie cake later with a chocolate topping. I'll let you know how I get on!


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    #3
    Faith
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 30,657 Mod ✭✭✭✭Faith


    He's looking for a crisp topping, and a ganache is soft. I can't imagine that's it.

    Maybe just a thin layer of chocolate? That would harden, and crack when you cut it. I really can't think of anything else.


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    #4
    Toto Wolfcastle
    Registered Users Posts: 25,005 ✭✭✭✭Toto Wolfcastle


    You can achieve this by tempering the chocolate. Linky.


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    #5
    Little Alex
    Registered Users Posts: 1,302 ✭✭✭Little Alex


    Faith wrote: »
    He's looking for a crisp topping, and a ganache is soft. I can't imagine that's it.

    Maybe just a thin layer of chocolate? That would harden, and crack when you cut it. I really can't think of anything else.

    Yeah, I guess you're right. He wants crispy, not soft.
    janeybabe wrote: »
    You can achieve this by tempering the chocolate. Linky.

    That's definitely the way to go. I would never be able to pull that off, though! :D


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    #6
    neuro-praxis
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,184 ✭✭✭neuro-praxis


    I'd just pour melted chocolate on top of the cake and spread it with a wide, flat knife...


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    #7
    Malari
    Registered Users Posts: 18,150 ✭✭✭✭Malari


    What about making chocolate flavoured icing, with just water, a bit of cocoa powder and icing sugar? Ok, it wouldn't be dark chocolate looking, but it would be crispy!


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    #8
    kerash
    Registered Users Posts: 6,688 ✭✭✭kerash


    Tempering Chocolate that's what I want to do! Thanks Janey! But it looks scary!

    "you need chocolate couverture: the kind with real cocoa butter" - Where should I buy suitable chocolate? It recommends using chocolate chips so can anyone recommend a good brand of chocolate chip? I must invest in a thermometer...

    I'm a she btw :P


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    #9
    Magic Monkey
    Registered Users Posts: 1,068 ✭✭✭Magic Monkey


    Using just tempered couverture chocolate by itself isn't usually done to coat a cake. A more effective way is to make a sugar syrup first, then add your chocolate; this will give a coating similar to that of Sachertorte, which is both glossy and crisp to cut.

    There's a video method and recipe at Epicurious, which doesn't require the use of tempering or a thermometer, just follow the video method with the recipe's amounts. And when they say bittersweet chocolate, it means 70% minimum cocoa. Any good-quality brand will do, Green & Black's Dark Chocolate is 70% and excellent.

    It is possible to temper the chocolate/sugar mixture for extra glossiness, but you really need a marble or stone slab, or the back of a large metal baking sheet, and a thermometer to do it.


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    #10
    The Sweeper
    Registered Users Posts: 10,658 ✭✭✭✭The Sweeper


    All I know - and OP I wish you the best of luck with it - is that this thread needs to drop off the front page, because every bloody time I see the title of it it triggers images of that chocolate crack you get when you bite into a magnum, or when you carve a slice of really good cake, and seriously, I'm like Pavlov's dog, and I need to STOP CRAVING CHOCOLATE.


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