Friday, 14 January 2011

Blackberry & Violet Ganache

I love the colour purple especially the dark rick black purple of blackberries.  Round, luscious, plump jewels glistening in the light just begging for someone to pick them up and savour them...
As blackberries are in season, I was inspired to make a ganache which had depth of flavour and colour and so a blackberry and violet ganache was born.  I used fresh berries but if these are unavailable substitute with frozen.


BLACKBERRY & VIOLET GANACHE




INGREDIENTS
200g Lindt White Chocolate (placed in a stainless steel bowl)
200g pouring cream (minimum 35% fat)
25g unsalted butter (room temperature)
1/4 cup of fresh blackberries (washed)
Few drops of violet essence


MAKE THE GANACHE
1.  Gently heat the cream and fresh blackberries in a small saucepan until it reaches  boiling point and remove from the stove.  Add the violet essence.
2.  Pour 1/3 of the cream and blackberry mixture over the white chocolate.  Using a whisk blend the chocolate and cream by hand, using circular motions starting from the centre of the bowl.
3. After, most of the chocolate has been combined add the remaining cream and then the butter.
4. Continue to use the hand whisk to emulsify the ingredients then finish off by using a Bamix or hand held mixer.  When using the mixer, tilt the bowl and use short pulses as we don't want to add to much air.  The purpose of blending the ganache with the hand held mixer is to make it thicker with a silken melt in the mouth texture.
5. Cover the surface with cling film and refrigerate until ready for use -  should be firm but not solid.
The colour of this ganache is natural and hence, no food colouring is required at all.

If you find it difficult to obtain violet essence from your local gourmet deli, you can order it soon from http://bakingpleasures.com.au/ss/violet-essence 
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4 comments:

  1. Zack Miller12/01/2011

    Hi there ladymacaron20ten,
    I would like to ask if it is possible to substitute the blackberries for strawberries.. will it go well with the violets?
    Also, will it be firm and not very watery? i'm all out of blackberries... sorry for asking a lot of questions.

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  2. LadyMacaron20ten12/02/2011

    Hi Zack, you could try them but personally I wouldn't pair strawberries with violets. If you think about some wines they might have chocolate, blackberry and violet undertones - I was thinking along these lines. I think strawberries are better paired with something a little spicier like basil or pink peppercorns or even sichuan peppers to bring out their flavour. If you can get your hands on some frozen blackcurrants however, these would be a perfect replacement. Thanks for taking the time to ask questions:)

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  3. Anonymous6/12/2012

    Hi
    I started making these and had only finished making the ganache when a power strike hit. How long will the ganache last in the fridge or should I throw it out and start again? (I really dont want to waste the expensive white chocolate I bought!)
    Nigel

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LadyMacaron20ten6/12/2012

      Hi Nigel - Thanks for leaving a message. According to a chef that I trained with you can make the ganache a few days before actually filling the macarons so don't worry it will still be fine to use. Bring the ganache back to room temperature before filling your macarons and consume within a week. Although, I have had some keep for a couple of weeks and they have been absolutely fine. Macarons do seem to get better with age but be mindful that if there is a lot of water content in your ganache it decreases the shelf life as bacteria can start to grow. Hope this helps:)

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Little macaron kisses for leaving me a comment. I may not reply to each one but I certainly do read them - thank you.

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