Chocolate Ganache

Continuing on with my Charlie And The Chocolate Factory theme, I did mention we would talk ganache. Ganache we will talk.

I made a small Beatty's Chocolate Cake. I had leftover batter so I made cupcakes. Obvious choice. Then I smothered them in the Chocolate Frosting for Beatty's Chocolate Cake. Then I did something crazy.

I took some semi-sweet baker's chocolate...

I chopped it up.

And I made ganache!!

Measure out some heavy cream. 

The picture wasn't burry when I took it. I swear. 

Pour it in a sauce pan over low heat.

Bring it to a simmer but do not let it boil.

Then pour it over the chocolate!! 

Let this sit for about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, measure out some honey. 

And some corn syrup.

And finally, some vanilla extract.

I add them all to the same measuring cup. It's all going in at once anyway.

Begin stirring your cream and chocolate.

Keep stirring! 

Work your way out from the middle.

I had to switch to a wisk.

It worked a little better.

Oh yum! Look at that!

Isn't it pretty?

Wisk in the honey, corn syrup, and vanilla. 

Let this sit for about 15 minutes. Not too long though. 

We don't want it to get too firm. 

We're gonna spoon it over some delicious chocolate cupcakes!

So get them ready.

I put mine on top of a baking rack. 

I put the baking rack on top of a jelly roll pan covered in wax paper. 

Easier cleanup.

Get a spoonful of ganache.

Pour it on the cupcake!

Talk about chocolate overload. 

If there is such a thing. 

Let it run all over the cupcake. 

It's like... I'm not sure I can find words for this.

AAAHHHH-mazing!

Holy moly! 

That's crazy delicious looking.

Now, this is the part where you might be tempted to eat a cupcake. 

Just a little taste.

DON'T DO IT!

Even though it is hard to resist, put them in the fridge.

The ganache needs to set.

Otherwise you will be covered in a chocolaty, heavenly mess.

Not a bad thing but... It's much better once they've had time to chill out. 

Then, make sure you have lots of milk on hand. 

Chocolate Ganache

(By: Jamie, My Baking Addiction, "Heath Bar Cupcakes, Chocolate Ganache")

4 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped into very small pieces
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
2 teaspoons vanilla

In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the heavy cream until very hot, but not boiling. Place chocolate pieces in a heat safe bowl. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and allow it to sit for about 5 minutes. Whisk the cream and chocolate until smooth and thoroughly combined. Whisk in the honey, corn syrup, and vanilla. Allow to cool for about 15 minutes. Do not let the glaze sit for too long or it will harden up before you spoon it over the frosting.
Store cupcakes in the refrigerator. Remove them to room temperature one hour before serving."

Chocolate. That's pretty much it.

My parents went to the beach. They left me home. No hard feelings, I'm a responsible adult with adult responsibilities to take care of. My problem is, they've only been gone 2 days. I have another 4 to go. They're one of my entertainment sources. I get bored easily. What am I supposed to do with myself?

Bake.

Oh my! My kitchen is starting to resemble Charlie's Chocolate Factory. It's only DAY 2!! And even though I started today I already have a chocolate hangover. Like the kid in Grownups, I said, "I wanna get chocolate wasted!" Well, chocolate wasted I did get. 

It started with the Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins, see previous post. That was not enough, nooo siree! I made cake. Beatty's Chocolate Cake to be exact. I had buttermilk that I couldn't let go to waste. I think that's a good enough reason for cake. Right? Sure.
So I had to document the Chocolate Frosting that goes with Beatty's Chocolate Cake. If the chocolate frosting wasn't enough, I had to make ganache. But more about that later.

And since I made everything at night, sorry about the lighting.

I'm only commenting on this one because I think it looks like a slide out of a Rorschach Test.

What do you see here?

Goodness me that's a lot of chocolate. 

Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins

Just in time for Fall! It's almost here and man oh man do I love it! Now, I'm not a pumpkin fan. I get a hankering for it every now and then but that just means like once every 5 years. Today though I thought I'd make some chocolate pumpkin muffins. With cream cheese frosting of course. Can't leave that out, it's the most important part.
These muffins... Sooo chocolaty and super moist! You've never had such a moist muffin. And the best part, they're actually pretty healthy. Well, you'd have to take off the frosting but who wants to do that? Crazy right?
These are not you're average muffin. The recipe is from Weight Watchers! Yea! The original recipe calls for spice cake but I'd rather have chocolate. Everything's better with chocolate anyway. Ridiculously easy to make too. Unless you can't set a timer so you don't burn them, you can not mess these up.

Tres ingredients are all you need:
1 box of your favorite cake mix - Devil's Food. Or spice if you must.
15 ounces pumpkin pie filling (make sure to read the ingredients to make sure the spices are already added)
1 cup water

So like I said, you really can't mess this up.

Throw everything in a mixing bowl.

Start mixing it all together! 

Scrape the sides.

Continue mixing for another minute.

Doesn't that look yummy! 

Sneak a taste. Go ahead, you know you want to! There aren't any eggs! 

Line some mini muffin tins.

Mini muffins are more fun than big ones.

Fill them! 

I used about a tablespoon of batter for each liner.

Bake them at 350 degrees F. 

10-12 minutes will be perfect! 

Oh my oh my!

While I was at the store trying to remember what I needed to buy I forgot big muffin liners. 

I always forget something! 

So I buttered and floured the pan. 

I had to have some big muffins too! 

I used a large ice cream scoop so I would have uniform muffins. 

It's just the perfect amount.

Snug as a bug in a rug! 

But it's going in the oven.

 Bake these big boys for 15-18 minutes.

Chillin' out waiting to get frosty.

Perfectly round muffins! 

A generous dollop of cream cheese frosting and these babies are ready to go!

Like fluffy clouds of sweet, creamy deliciousness! 

Cream Cheese Frosting:

1 8oz package cream cheese

1/2 cup butter

2 1/2 cups confectioners sugar

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Cream the butter and the cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add the sugar one cup at a time. Add the vanilla with the last cup of confectioners sugar and beat until everything is incorporated.