With only 2 ingredients, this Chocolate Ganache recipe is as simple as can be. All you need to make it is dark chocolate and coconut milk. I’ve been making this dairy-free dessert topping for years and the boys absolutely love it!
Traditional chocolate ganache is made with chocolate and heavy cream. My dairy-free Chocolate Ganache recipe uses coconut milk instead of heavy cream. I haven’t tried making Chocolate Ganache with other types of dairy-free milk so I’m not sure if that will work. If you do find a substitute, please leave a comment and let us know about it!
- ¼ cup full fat coconut milk
- 2½ ounces chocolate chips
- Combine coconut milk and chocolate in a saucepan
- Heat over very low heat
- Stir until melted
- Remove from heat
- Drizzle over ice cream, brownies, or cake
I love using this vegan Chocolate Ganache on baked goods. When cooled it firms up and hardens into a chocolate shell type topping. The boys and their friends love my Paleo Caramel Brownies which use this incredible topping along with my Vegan Caramel Sauce loaded on top of my Paleo Brownies.
Drizzle this velvety dairy-free topping over these dairy-free dessert recipes:
Katherine of Texas says
Hi! I have made this using homemade almond milk, and it works so well! Thank you!!!
Elana says
You’re welcome Katherine!
Marey says
I used coconut/almond blend (Silk Brand) with Baker’s Chocolate. Delicious, texture is a bit gritty. I am wondering how long is it good? Does it spoil?
Elana says
Marey, mine lasts around 3 days in the fridge. Thanks for your comment!
Wendy S says
Yum! Made with whate I had on hand…..Silk Almond -Coconut milk
Elana says
Thanks Wendy!
eleni says
When you say coconut milk are you referring to canned coconut, the cooking kind or the carton drinking kind?
Elana says
Eleni, thanks for your question. Just click on the green text in the ingredients portion of the recipe for that info :-)
ash says
Have you ever added almond butter to this ganache recipe? If so how much? Thanks!
Elana says
Ash, I haven’t tried that. If you do experiment please let us know how it goes :-)
Andrea says
Made the ganache yesterday to frost brownies, also your recipe. My daughter was having a chocolate emergency… The brownie/ganache combo was perfect!
Thank you for your recipes, love them. And thanks to your boys for their tough job of recipe testers. ;)
In addition to gluten intolerance and RA, I also have diabetes, so I am very strict with sugar. To that end, I use Chocoperfection dark chocolate in the ganache recipe. It was perfect! I purchase Chocoperfection online, directly from the maker.
To the commenter asking about coconut milk fat, I use canned coconut milk, the same brand that Elana linked to in her blog post. When the can sits undisturbed for some time, the fat rises to the top, separating out of the milk. Refrigerating the can may speed this process up. Open the can with a can opener, and scoop the fat right off the top. The remaining fat and milk may be mixed together again in a blender or by hand, and is great in recipes, in coffee, tea, etc.
Elana says
You’re welcome Andrea :-)
Jean walnridge says
What is coconut milk fat? How does it come? Where do I find it? I want to make your Paleo brownies. Where do I find vanilla stevia? Only powdered stevia is at whole foods.
Elana says
Hi Jean, I link to all of the ingredients in the green text highlighted in the ingredients portion of the recipes. Coconut milk fat is at the top of the can of the coconut milk that I link to :-)
Juli says
Excellent! I’ve used this delicious recipe over 10 times! It is a MUST to try this!
Elana says
Juli, so glad to hear that this was excellent :-)
Erin says
Recently I’ve been thinking about good old childhood trips to Dairy Queen. So I have been wanting to find a nice (healthy version) of hard shell chocolate to pour over some dairy-free ice cream, this sounds like it might just work perfect!!
Elana says
Thanks Erin!
MLR says
To all who use almond milk,coconut milk and water as subs-please write which chocolate u use also because the ingrediants and different brands vary-and therefore have in impact on the way it all turns out….
Elana says
MLR, thanks for your comment! Lots of folks have experimented with good results and left the details in their comments. I hope you love this recipe as much as we do!
albina says
Hi Elana,
I have made this ganache with almond milk and it’s delicious- works great! Love your blog…..I used to read your recipes before discovering my gluten intolerance- who knew!!! Thank you Thank you!!
Elana says
Albina, you’re welcome!
Tia says
I’ve used almond milk and even water. I think any liquid will do. If you increase the liquid, the final product stays softer. Increase the chocolate, and it stays more firm. I’ve used a bag of chocolate chips with 1/4 cup of almond milk and a teaspoon of vanilla, microwaved in small increments just till smooth as a layer of ganache in a bar cookie recipe. It comes out gooey and soft – like using sweetened condensed milk in the old days!
Elana says
Thanks Tia!
Elle says
This looks really delicious. I love all things chocolate so I am sure I would enjoy this too.
I like how using coconut milk as a cream substitute still leaves the ganache with a thick and rich texture.
I have tried substituting cream with almond milk, but it turned out far too thin and it didn’t really end up tasting like a ganache.
I can’t wait to give this a try. Thank you for sharing your recipe!
Elana says
You’re welcome Elle!
Kiran @ KiranTarun.com says
I love using coconut milk in place of cream. This looks delectable!
Elana says
Thanks Kiran!
Nicola says
In terms of whether other kinds of nut milks will work, I use almond milk and it works great!
Elana says
Thanks Nicola!
Sara says
Hi
I haven’t tried this yet….would it be possibly to turn this ganache into truffles? Perhaps add some orange essence?
I have only ever made dairy truffles but can no longer eat them, and would love an alternate for Christmas .
Lynette Lea says
I live in the UK, over here we get coconut cream and coconut milk. I’ve made chocolate truffles using coconut cream, they turn out great. I recon if you allow a can of coconut milk to separate in the fridge and then use the coconut cream from the top this should give you the best results. I add a some coconut fat to mine too, it makes them smoother and they stay firm for longer out of the fridge. A little vanilla is nice too.
Experiment and enjoy – its difficult to go far wrong and you can always eat the experiments ;-)
Catherine says
We make this kind of ganache waaaaay too often :) A spoonful or two all by itself is a pretty common dessert for us.
Lianne @ EAT and get MOVING says
Delicious! I love chocolate ganache made with coconutmilk! I make this all the time… didn’t know it had such a fancy name ;-) But you’re right! It does taste like regular ganache! I make mine with a tsp sunflower seed lecithin to keep it from separating, which happens rather quikly with the brand of coconut-milk I use… so that might be a helpful tip to some of you who want a smoother texture too :-)
Linda says
Thanks Elaine, but what about the
Coconut milk…?
Mia says
Thank you Elana for this simple and yummy recipe!
I will make it with Dagoba baking chocolate. I will sweeten it to my taste with some powdered xylitol.
elaina says
is this made with a chocolate bar like a lindt or dagoba or just plain unsweetened chocolate bar like you bake with??
Linda says
Which coconut milk do you use? I assume you mean the canned coconut milk used for Thai cooking. If so, do you use the full fat or the light version?
Kiah says
Is the coconut milk straight from the can or is it the stuff the is on the top when the canned coconut milk is refrigerated?
Christi Hamburger says
YUM!!! Thanks Elana!!!
Karen says
Awesome thanks!!
Do you have a simple recipe for a plain vanilla ice cream?
Anne Hudson says
http://www.elanaspantry.com/vegan-vanilla-ice-cream/