Easy Caramel Ganache Recipe

What caramel ganache is

Ganache is a mixture of chocolate and warm cream. Caramel ganache adds caramel, usually as a sauce, so you get a smooth, rich topping with a sweet-salty flavor. Depending on the proportions and how you handle it, the same mixture can be:

a pourable glaze while warm,
a spreadable frosting or filling once cooled,
a light, whipped frosting if you chill it and whip it.

Several popular recipes use white chocolate with salted caramel, which gives a pale, buttery ganache. Others use dark or milk chocolate for a classic chocolate-caramel pairing.

Ingredients (the 3-ingredient version)

Chocolate: chopped bars or good-quality chips or wafers. White chocolate with real cocoa butter tends to melt more smoothly than very cheap versions, which can turn waxy or oily.
Heavy cream: use heavy whipping cream. Half-and-half is too thin to give a stable ganache.
Caramel sauce: homemade or store-bought. Homemade lets you control the salt.

A pinch of flaky or fine salt and a little vanilla extract are optional extras. A tablespoon or two of cold butter stirred in at the end can make a ganache extra glossy.

Easy caramel ganache recipe

This makes about 1 1/2 cups, enough to glaze a 9-inch cake lightly or fill a small cake. Because brands of caramel sauce vary in thickness, treat the amounts as a starting point.

6 oz (170 g) white chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy cream
1/4 to 1/3 cup (60 to 80 g) caramel sauce
Pinch of salt (taste first, since many caramel sauces are salted)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)

Method

Put the chocolate in a heatproof bowl.
Warm the cream and caramel sauce together in a small saucepan or microwave until steaming at the edges and just beginning to bubble. Do not let it boil hard.
Pour the hot mixture over the chocolate. Let it sit for 2 to 3 minutes without stirring.
Stir gently from the center outward until completely smooth and glossy. Stir in the vanilla and salt.
Use warm as a glaze, or let it cool and thicken at room temperature, or chill it for a firmer texture.

If any small lumps of chocolate remain, you can warm the bowl gently over (not in) simmering water, or blend with an immersion blender.

Adjusting thickness for glaze, drip, filling, or frosting

The balance of chocolate to liquid is what sets the texture.

More cream or caramel, less chocolate: looser, better as a pourable glaze or sauce.
More chocolate: firmer, better for truffles, fillings, and sturdy frosting. White chocolate typically needs a higher proportion of chocolate than dark chocolate to firm up, because it contains more cocoa butter and less cocoa solids to help it set.

A few practical guides:

Glaze or drip: use it warm, once it has cooled slightly but is still pourable. Test on a small area first.
Filling or spread: let it cool at room temperature until it thickens like soft frosting, stirring occasionally.
Pipeable frosting: chill, then whip (see below).

If it is too thick, stir in a spoonful of warm cream. If it is too thin, let it cool longer or stir in a little more melted chocolate.

Whipped caramel ganache frosting

Whipping makes ganache lighter, paler, and fluffier, more like a mousse-style frosting than a dense glaze.

Make the ganache as above and cover the surface with plastic wrap.
Chill until completely cold, usually 3 to 4 hours or overnight.
Whip with an electric mixer on low to medium speed, only until it turns fluffy and holds soft peaks, typically a minute or two.

Whip gently and stop as soon as it thickens. Over-whipping can make ganache grainy. If the ganache is too cold, it can stiffen quickly, so let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes if needed. A whipped caramel ganache pairs well with the lighter frostings in our two-ingredient icing guide for contrast on a layered dessert.

Making the caramel yourself (4 ingredients)

If you want to avoid the jar, a basic homemade caramel sauce uses four ingredients: sugar, butter, heavy cream, and salt. Many recipes use around 1 cup sugar, 6 tablespoons butter, and 1/2 cup cream, plus a pinch of salt.

Heat the sugar in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. It will clump and then melt. Stir gently with a heatproof spatula as needed.
Cook until it turns a deep amber color.
Carefully whisk in the butter. It will bubble.
Slowly add the warm cream and salt, stirring until smooth. Be careful, as the mixture is very hot and may splatter.

Let it cool slightly before mixing into ganache. Hot sugar can cause burns, so keep children away from the stove while you make it.

Dark and milk chocolate versions

For a classic chocolate and caramel ganache, replace the white chocolate with semi-sweet, bittersweet, or milk chocolate. Dark chocolate typically gives a firmer set, so you can use somewhat less chocolate relative to cream. Using equal weights of chocolate and cream is a common starting point for dark chocolate ganache, and you can add caramel to taste. Milk chocolate is softer and may need a bit more chocolate relative to cream.

Ways to use it

Pour over cakes, bundt cakes, brownies, or cheesecake. It also suits banana cakes, such as our hazelnut banana cake.
Use as a drip on a layer cake.
Fill cupcakes, doughnuts, or macarons.
Spoon over ice cream.
Pipe whipped ganache on cupcakes.
Layer into parfaits with crushed cookies, as in our vanilla pudding parfaits.

If you are building a fruity dessert, caramel ganache also goes with the sweet-tart notes of a blood orange sauce or a pineapple dessert sauce.

Storage

Room temperature: keep covered for a few hours if it will be used the same day.
Refrigerator: store in an airtight container for up to about 4 days, with plastic wrap pressed against the surface to prevent a skin. Some recipes with whipped ganache suggest not freezing it, as texture can change.
Reheating: warm gently in short microwave bursts, stirring each time, until pourable again.

Because ganache contains dairy, keep it refrigerated for longer storage.

Troubleshooting

My ganache separated or looks oily. This usually means the mixture got too hot or was stirred too hard. Stir in a spoonful of warm cream, a little at a time, until it comes back together, or use an immersion blender.

My ganache is grainy. Grainy ganache can come from overheated chocolate, over-whipping, or from caramel that crystallized. Gentle warming and stirring, or a quick blend, often helps. Chopping the chocolate finely helps it melt evenly.

My ganache isn’t hardening. It may simply need more time to cool, or it may have too much cream or caramel for the amount of chocolate. Chill it longer, or melt in more chocolate. Remember that white chocolate ganache sets softer than dark.

Can I freeze it? Some recipes say unwhipped ganache can be frozen, while others advise against freezing the whipped version. If you freeze it, thaw in the refrigerator and gently rewarm or re-whip as needed.

Can I use store-bought caramel? Yes. Choose a pourable caramel sauce rather than a very thick or hard caramel candy, and taste before adding extra salt.