- 300 g dark chocolate
- 250 ml heavy cream
- 40 g unsalted butter
- 30 g cocoa powder
- 80 g powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 200 g mascarpone
Chop the dark chocolate finely and place it in a heatproof bowl. Measure cream, butter, cocoa, sugar, vanilla, and salt before beginning the emulsion, and keep all ingredients measured nearby.
Warm the cream until steaming but not boiling, then pour it over the chocolate. Let the bowl stand briefly so heat reaches every piece evenly before stirring the ganache slowly.
Stir from the center outward until the chocolate melts into a glossy ganache. Add butter gradually, incorporating each piece before introducing the next one. Continue until smooth and shiny throughout.
Sift cocoa and powdered sugar into the warm mixture, then whisk until no dry pockets remain. Keep the texture thick and free from lumps before filling cakes, pastries, or cookies.
Cool the ganache until barely warm, then fold in mascarpone gently. Stop mixing once cream becomes uniform, because overworking can loosen its structure and reduce its ability to hold layers.
Refrigerate the cream until spreadable, stirring once halfway through chilling. Bring it briefly toward room temperature before piping or layering it onto pastries so the texture remains smooth and stable.
Use the chocolate cream between cooled cake layers, inside pastries, or beneath fruit. Keep finished desserts chilled so the filling remains glossy, stable, and cleanly cut for consistently clean slices.
