This white chocolate ganache recipe for drip cakes is the perfect solution if you want to decorate cake quickly. By choosing white chocolate you can easily colour it with edible food colours to achieve any cake decorating style you want.
I love making drip cakes because they are so forgiving. You can make any design you want, add any decoration in what looks like a random arrangement and get away with minor cake decorating disasters.
You can finish your cake with fresh fruit, make chocolate shards, whole chocolate bars or use modelling chocolate to add detailed decorations to your cake.
Why make this recipe?
- Great white chocolate ganache consistency and fluidity
- Easy to to add colour to suit your cake style
What exactly is white chocolate ganache?
Ganache is usually made from chocolate and something liquid. In this case we are going to use cream, but you could also use water, double cream or plant based cream etc. This white chocolate ganache will be pourable, which makes it easy to use for cake decorating. It will also set fairly easily to stay on your cake even if it’s not in the fridge.
My top tips on making this recipe successfully the first time round
Don’t overheat the chocolate when you are melting it
Let the chocolate melt without stirring it (otherwise it might split)
Chill your cake before you use the ganache to drip down the sides and on the top of the cake
Do the side drips first and then the top of the cake
Make sure that the chocolate ganache is still at pourable temperature – around 32-37C (body temperature is perfect). If the white chocolate ganache is warmer than your hand, then it’s probably too hot.
What makes this recipe work
The ratio between the cream and the chocolate is very important. You will also need to check the cocoa solids content – the lower the cocoa solids content the less cream you might need as the white chocolate contains other ingredients (like vegetable oils etc.), which will make it thinner (more runny)
Any specialist equipment needed?
No, not really, but if you are new to this, you might like to check your chocolate ganache with a digital thermometer before you pour it. Most people don’t realise how ‘cold’ the chocolate needs to be before they start to decorate their cakes. You can check the temperature with your hand. If the piping bag or the chocolate feels hotter than your inner elbow then it’s probably too warm.
Time saving tip
My time saving tip is more about not rushing this job. If your chocolate is too warm and you use it, it will only drip down and you will end up re-doing the cake or not achieving the result you want. Take your time!
Pro tip
Use good quality chocolate to achieve flawless finish.
If you want your white chocolate to be actually white, you will need to use white chocolate colour. Make sure that it’s suitable for chocolate use (e.g. it has to be in a powder form or oil based if it’s liquid – anything else will split the chocolate and make it look unsightly)
Ingredients & Possible Substitutions
White chocolate
White chocolate is still chocolate, but white chocolate bars can vary in quality. It’s not so much about the taste in this recipe, but more about the ingredients. The cheaper the white chocolate the less cocoa butter there is and more milk powder, sugar and oil forms the chocolate bar.
This means that the chocolate is less stable and melts a lot quicker, it’s easier to burn and takes longer to set.
With a bit of practise, you can make ganache suitable for cake dripping from any white chocolate, just be prepared to adjust the recipe a little depending on what type of chocolate you have.
Type of white chocolate to use
- White chocolate coverture, such as Callebaut Callets
- White chocolate bar – any quality bar, such as Green & Blacks White Chocolate
- White (or coloured) candy melts, such as Wilton Pure White Candy Melts
Cream
I usually use double cream, because it’s thick and adds to the flavour.
The cream to chocolate ratio
Depending on what type of white chocolate and cream you use I find that 1: 2,5 is about right.
This for example means 100 ml of cream and 250 grams of white chocolate or 50 ml of cream and 125 grams of chocolate.
The method – Instructions
Chop the white chocolate bar in to smaller pieces
Bring the cream to boil
Pour over the chocolate
Let the cream to melt the chocolate
Stir gently (when cold)
Add colour if using and gently stir in
Use to drip over your cake (sides first then the middle of the cake)
How to use the white chocolate ganache to drip your cake
Crumb coat your cake and apply the final layer of buttercream (or whatever finish you are using – fondant, modelling chocolate or naked/semi/naked cake finish)
Chill the cake in the fridge (the longer the better, but at least until the outside of the cake feel cold to touch
Start at the ‘back’ of your cake in case you make a mistake (by the time you get to the front of the cake you’ll be a pro!)
Start on the side of the cake and make the first drip. Judge how quickly the ganache runs down the cake and then either warm up the ganache (if it’s too thick and doesn’t run) or leave to cool down even more if it’s too hot.
Finish the cake by filling the top with the ganache, making sure that you gently spread the ganache or tap to get an even layer.
Leave to set in the fridge before adding the rest of your decorations.
What type of cake finish can you use the white chocolate ganache on?
- Buttercream cake finish
- Fondant cake finish
- Semi-naked cake
- Naked cake finish
- Chocolate modelling cake finish
- Set chocolate ganache finish (for example dark chocolate ganache)
How else you can make this recipe?
- Make it dairy free – use plant based or dairy free cream
- Make it more fluid – add more cream
- Make it less fluid – add more chocolate or use less cream
- Infuse it with flavour – add food flavouring or infuse the cream with herbs, teas before you add it to the chocolate
What else you can you use white chocolate ganache with ?
Just because this is a recipe made for drizzling on cakes, it can be also use for making chocolate truffles, drizzle on puddings, ice-creams, cakes or even breakfast yeasted pancakes. If you end up with an extra white chocolate ganache, keep it in the fridge and use it later.
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Batch size
The basic recipe is fine for 6 inch round cake.
Scaling up this recipe
Simply double or triple the ingredients amount to make enough for large cakes.
Troubleshooting tips
What to do when your white chocolate ganache splits
This usually happens when you start to stir your chocolate too quickly and too soon when the mixture is still too hot.
- Leave the mixture to cool down completely
- Add tablespoon of cold double cream
- Gently stir in
- The ganache should return back to being smooth
if this doesn’t work
- Heat up a tablespoon of glucose, honey or golden syrup in a microwave for about 10 seconds at a time, until it’s nearly boiling
- Mix in a tablespoon of the split white chocolate ganache
- Return the glucose/honey/golden syrup mixture back to the split ganache
- Very gently and slowly blend the mixture in
- The ganache should return back to being smooth
What to do when your white ganache burns
Depending on how burned the chocolate is you might be able to save the chocolate around the burn (if the burning happened for example in the microwave). If you rescue any chocolate that way, use it for something else, like baking chocolate brownies, chocolate cakes, add it to your breakfast chocolate porridge or even just making hot chocolate drink.
White chocolate absorbs the burning ‘flavour’ quite a lot, so it won’t work for any delicately flavoured recipe.
If you are using microwave and you notice the white chocolate starting to burn, you might be able to save it by taking out the middle chocolate and carrying on with the recipe. If in doubt, taste the chocolate. If it taste burned, use it for something else.
Questions & Answers
White chocolate is actually not white, so if you want to make sure that it does come out white, use a little bit of white chocolate colour. It has to be a product suitable for chocolate use, either specific chocolate white colour or white powder colour.
You can make the ganache any colour you like. Adding a tiny bit of food colouring will go a long way and using gel colours will ensure that you are not going to add too much water in.
Bear in mind that because of the slight yellow tint to the white chocolate, you might end up with a green colour when you use blue. You can counteract this by using the white colour first.
Yes, of course! If you want the white chocolate ganache to compliment the cake itself, you can easily use food flavouring or even infuse the cream before adding it to the white chocolate. Flavours that work well with white chocolate include: lemon, coffee, vanilla or other more delicate flavours.
Can this recipe be made in advance?
Yes, you can make this white chocolate ganache in advance. Make it and keep it in the air tight container for up to a week in the fridge. Warm up the chocolate ganache very gently before use.
How to store white chocolate ganache
Store in air tight container and re-heat gently before you use it. Once on the cake, keep in the fridge and eat within 3 days or so.
How to re-heat chocolate ganache
2-3 times 10 seconds burst in a microwave will be fine to loosen up the ganache, so that’s usable again.
Why not stay in touch…
I hope you enjoy making this recipe and if you do, I’d love to know what you think! Let me know in the comments below or find me on Instagram or Facebook and add the hashtag #cocoaandheart so that I can see your post.
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Magdalena
White chocolate ganache for drip cakes
Ingredients
- 100 ml double cream
- 250 grams white chocolate
Instructions
- Chop the white chocolate bar in to smaller pieces
- Bring the cream to boil
- Pour over the chocolate
- Let the cream to melt the chocolate
- Stir gently (when cold)
- Add colour if using and gently stir in
- Use to drip over your cake (sides first then the middle of the cake)
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