I tried substituting coconut milk for cream in a chocolate ganache. The result was perfectly smooth, delicious chocolate frosting that did not taste of coconut and did not taste “dairy-free.”
You barely need a recipe. Heat 4 ounces of coconut milk (I used a microwave), and pour the hot liquid over 4 ounces of finely chopped chocolate (I used Callebaut 60/40). Wait a minute, and then stir until smooth. That’s it. The frosting stays soft and shiny even two days later.
Update: I should probably add, for those people who are not used to working with ganache, that the ganache might be quite liquid at first, depending on how fluid your chocolate gets when hot, and on how warm your ganache is. As the ganache cools, it thickens. When it is thin, it can be used as a glaze, and when it is thickened, you can use it more like a frosting. The Callebaut 60/40 chocolate is less fluid when melted than some other fine chocolate and my ganache was thick almost right away. Chocolate chips are also formulated to be less fluid when melted, and also might make a ganache that is thicker more quickly. Just remember to finely chop the chocolate with a knife or in a food processor before pouring over the hot coconut milk.
One more thing: of course, this will work with heavy cream instead of coconut milk, if you want a more traditional ganache.
Tags: chocolate, coconut, dairy-free, frosting, ganache, glaze, kosher, pareve
Pragmatic Attic 
May 23, 2011 at 2:41 am |
VERY COOL IDEA – and it doesn’t taste like coconut that’s great ,some of my family don’t love coconut flavor ,I want to try this. Thanks
May 23, 2011 at 10:40 am |
I’m always so impressed with the things you come up with to make baking easier. This is another one I’ll have to try!
May 23, 2011 at 9:32 pm |
What a brilliant inspiration. Coconut milk is a miracle ingredient. What a great use for it.
May 24, 2011 at 10:23 pm |
I like the sound of the dairy-free frosting; it’s better for folks like me:) The cake looks perfect for a birthday party!:D
May 25, 2011 at 10:36 pm |
[…] any event, the decadent ganache frosting more than compensates in terms of chocolate flavor. I replaced the cream in the frosting with […]
August 13, 2012 at 8:44 am |
This might be aactly what I’m looking for? But doesn’t the chocolate itself contain milk? I know Callebaut 60-40 isn’t milk chocolate but I thought even dark chocolate contains some milk. Thanks!! 🙂
August 13, 2012 at 10:16 am |
Nicollete, Callebaut 60/40 is certified as pareve, which means that it is dairy-free. Any chocolate that is labelled pareve is dairy-free. Not all chocolate contains milk. Many dairy-free chocolates are manufactured on lines which are also used for dairy chocolate, and that is why these chocolate are not certified as being completely dairy-free (cross contamination). But, Callebaut 60/40 in the large 11 lb. block form is (as far as I know) manufactured on a line that is not used for dairy chocolate. I think the callebaut pistoles/chips are manufactured on a dairy line and they are NOT labeled as being pareve. Schmerling and Alprose are other brands that have pareve dark chocolate.
June 6, 2014 at 6:07 pm |
[…] Glaze I usually like to use a chocolate glaze made from chocolate and coconut milk, but this is a nice variation. You could make a glaze just from the chocolate chips and coconut […]
April 24, 2015 at 8:39 am |
[…] Original Recipe […]