Do I Frost A Cake Before Pouring Warm Ganache Over It?

Decorating By elicia1968 Updated 9 May 2012 , 3:41pm by elicia1968

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elicia1968 Posted 14 Dec 2009 , 1:06am
post #1 of 24

Do I first frost my cake with frosting before I pour the shiny warm ganache over the cake? I want my cake to have the shiny smooth look, but have never used ganache!

23 replies
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Rylan Posted 14 Dec 2009 , 1:15am
post #2 of 24
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elicia1968 Posted 14 Dec 2009 , 1:31am
post #3 of 24

Cool! Thank You...so I guess the answer is Yes....buttercream first!

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Rylan Posted 14 Dec 2009 , 1:42am
post #4 of 24

No problem. You really don't need a coat of buttercream. You can use a spreadable ganache and then your pourable ganache.

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Cakepro Posted 14 Dec 2009 , 1:47am
post #5 of 24

You can add shine to ganache by adding a tablespoon of butter to it. I ice my cake in buttercream and put it in the fridge. I use 8 ounces of chocolate to 6 ounces of heavy cream and a tablespoon of butter. I use ganache that is approx 100 degrees....it's not runny but it's not viscous. The chill on the buttercream sets it up pretty quickly but you still have time to spread it across the top of your cake without it leaving spatula marks, and at 100 degrees it makes perfect dribbles down the side of the cake.

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obabassa Posted 14 Dec 2009 , 1:48am
post #6 of 24

Like Rylan said you don't need the buttercream under ganache. I have Sharon Zambitos video for the Topsy Turvy cakes and she uses the ganache directly on the cake - no buttercream.
Done it myself several times. If you just want to have some buttercream use it as the filling.

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Cakepro Posted 14 Dec 2009 , 1:50am
post #7 of 24

Ganache on top of ganache is overkill, IMO.

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elicia1968 Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 3:02am
post #8 of 24

Thank you all so much. I am going to try my first ganache tomorrow. Rylan thank you for your blog post, that was very easy to understand. So, this leads to another question, I gather you can either pour it over the cake warm, or refrigerate and let harden and frost the cake with it? Why would you choose one over the other? Is it just the way it looks? Does ganache frost like buttercream?

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LaBellaFlor Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 3:06am
post #9 of 24

YOu do not use buttercream under ganache whether you use a poured ganache or a ganache frosting. They are also two different recipes, so which ever one you decide to use, make sure you are using the right ganache recipe.

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Cakepro Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 3:22am
post #10 of 24
Quote:
Originally Posted by LaBellaFlor

YOu do not use buttercream under ganache whether you use a poured ganache or a ganache frosting. They are also two different recipes, so which ever one you decide to use, make sure you are using the right ganache recipe.




There is no reason why she COULDN'T use buttercream under either poured or icing ganache. I have done it both ways quite successfully.

In fact, a cake would look pretty stupid WITHOUT buttercream under poured ganache.

Image

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LaBellaFlor Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 3:55am
post #11 of 24

Actually for the look I'm referring to and the one I think she is trying to achieve, is where your cake is completely glazed over. Not used as an accent as you've shown. No buttercream neccessary.

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JustToEatCake Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 4:02am
post #12 of 24
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cakepro

Quote:
Originally Posted by LaBellaFlor

YOu do not use buttercream under ganache whether you use a poured ganache or a ganache frosting. They are also two different recipes, so which ever one you decide to use, make sure you are using the right ganache recipe.



There is no reason why she COULDN'T use buttercream under either poured or icing ganache. I have done it both ways quite successfully.

In fact, a cake would look pretty stupid WITHOUT buttercream under poured ganache.

Image



yummmmmoooooo!! If I had that cake right now we'd all know what was in the middle!

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aundrea Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 4:07am
post #13 of 24

that cakes looks amazing!!! i want me some right now! wow-wow!
and as far as the buttercream under gnache. i too have done it both ways. i think it depends on the look you are trying to achieve.

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Cakepro Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 5:11am
post #14 of 24

Well, all the petit fours I have ever made or eaten have had buttercream under them because the cake itself isn't very smooth...and I've seen some pretty lumpy petit fours from a lack of icing underneath. icon_biggrin.gificon_redface.gif I guess a cake with the top and sides baked against the side of the pan would be smooth enough for just ganache.


Thanks for the kind words about that cake. icon_smile.gif As you can see, it was from my days before I figured out to stiffen the BC for the dam (the cake was done in May of 2002). LOL

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sugarcheryl Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 9:53pm
post #15 of 24

The way they taught us in school we ice the cake with either buttercream or rich ganache and then pour the ordinary ganache on top. The ganache needs to adhere.

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KitchenKat Posted 18 Dec 2009 , 1:28am
post #16 of 24

That's the way I've been taught too - bc under poured ganache. Otherwise the ganache would follow every bump and lump of the cake's surface. You need a smooth coat of bc under the ganache to achieve a smooth finish. This goes for both for ganache accents (as in the picture above) and for fully glazed cakes.

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elicia1968 Posted 18 Dec 2009 , 5:58am
post #17 of 24

I made the ganache today and I would say I did fairly well for my first time. I had to do it twice though because I put "spreadable butter" in and the canola oil in the butter separated and left pools of oil on the top of the cake. The second time I didn't use butter and it is not as shiny as I want it, so I will try again with butter. I assume that doesn't happen with pure butter.

Fortunately I made little tiny practice cakes so I could play with it. The ones I put buttercream under the ganache taste sooooo good! For that reason I would use buttercream first.

Thanks everyone! I am new to Cake Central and I love it!

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bigmama1961 Posted 18 Dec 2009 , 6:29am
post #18 of 24

Any body got MILK lol. my mother likes just the ganache only she doesnt like the butter cream buut i do sperate the layers and add a moose..and also did it like the pics.both yummmie

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TexasSugar Posted 18 Dec 2009 , 3:53pm
post #19 of 24

Every ganache covered cake I have done has had buttercream under it. If you cake surface is not smooth, such as where you torte it, then those will show through when you do poured ganache on a cake.

I also like the chocolate icing under the ganache since it is just a thin layer of chocolate shell on the outside.

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elicia1968 Posted 24 Dec 2009 , 3:18pm
post #20 of 24

Thank You everyone for your help. My first try I made the mistake of using spreadable butter that has canola oil in it, which did not work because the oil separated from the chocolate and pooled on top. Last night I did it with butter and it is nice and shiny.

I did frost the cake with buttercream first only because I think it tastes great with the two layers, and my husband went crazy for it!

I am trying to duplicate the delicous looking strawberry cake for my xmas eve dessert. It is looking good so far!

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elicia1968 Posted 24 Dec 2009 , 3:21pm
post #21 of 24

oops, sorry I posted the same message twice. I couldn't find my other post from last week, but now I see it showed up!
Thanks!

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JustToEatCake Posted 24 Dec 2009 , 3:35pm
post #22 of 24
Quote:
Originally Posted by elicia1968

oops, sorry I posted the same message twice. I couldn't find my other post from last week, but now I see it showed up!
Thanks!



Hey no problem I did this myself when I joined because I couldn't find my post but I was alerted to the tab at the top on the left that says "my forum posts". That helps me alot!!! Hope your cake turns out great, they all look yummy.

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wyowolf Posted 9 May 2012 , 12:13pm
post #23 of 24

I know this is an old topic, but if anyone can answer I would appreciate it! What type of buttercream do you use under the pourable ganache? American Buttercream (powdered sugar, butter, cream and vanilla)? Or SMBC? Or another kind? I tried SMBC under ganache once, and it melted - but I didn't put the cake in the fridge before pouring the ganache. Would it have worked if I would have let the SMBC set up on the cake?

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elicia1968 Posted 9 May 2012 , 3:41pm
post #24 of 24
Quote:
Originally Posted by wyowolf

I know this is an old topic, but if anyone can answer I would appreciate it! What type of buttercream do you use under the pourable ganache? American Buttercream (powdered sugar, butter, cream and vanilla)? Or SMBC? Or another kind? I tried SMBC under ganache once, and it melted - but I didn't put the cake in the fridge before pouring the ganache. Would it have worked if I would have let the SMBC set up on the cake?


I use the Wilton butter cream recipe, which I guess is American butter cream, and I let it set in the refrigerator before pouring it. I have never used SMBC put I would imagine it would be too soft even if it was chilled.

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