This mother recipe is a breeze as long as you follow the steps and understand when ingredients are added and why. Melted together, the white chocolate and butter create a basic bond. The addition of glucose, needed for the texture it imparts, then breaks that bond. Cold heavy cream comes to the rescue, emulsifying the broken bond and forming a new, stronger bond. The pumpkin puree and seasonings are added last for flavor and additional body. Note that you must use a hand blender in this recipe, and for the other ganaches in this chapter.

　　

Ingredients

Makes about 340 g (1 1/4 cups)

　　150 g white chocolate (5 1/4 ounces)

　　25 g butter (2 tablespoons)

　　50 g glucose (2 tablespoons)

　　55 g cold heavy cream (1/4 cup)

　　75 g Libby’s pumpkin puree (1/3 cup)

　　4 g kosher salt (1 teaspoon)

　　1 g ground cinnamon (1/2 teaspoon)

　　

Step 1

Combine the white chocolate and butter in a microwave-safe dish and gently melt them in the microwave in 15-second bursts, stirring between blasts. The result should be barely warm to the touch and totally homogenous.

　　

Step 2

Transfer the chocolate mixture to a container that can accommodate an immersion blender—something tall and narrow, like a 1-quart plastic deli container. Warm the glucose in the microwave for 15 seconds, then immediately add to the chocolate mixture and buzz with the hand blender. After a minute, stream in the heavy cream, with the hand blender running—the mixture will come together into something silky, shiny, and smooth.

　　

Step 3

Blend in the pumpkin puree, salt, and cinnamon. Put the ganache in the fridge to firm up before using, at least 4 hours, or, ideally, overnight. Stored in an airtight container, pumpkin ganache will keep fresh in the fridge for 1 week. Serve cold.

　　

notes

Step 4

In a pinch, substitute 18 g (1 tablespoon) corn syrup for the glucose.

　　Reprinted with permission from Momofuku Milk Bar by Christina Tosi with Courtney McBroom. Copyright © 2011 by MomoMilk, LLC. Published by Clarkson Potter, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.Christina Tosi is the chef and owner of Momofuku Milk Bar, called "one of the most exciting bakeries in the country" by Bon Appètit. As founder of the desserts programs at Momofuku, including Noodle Bar, Ssäat;m Bar, Ko and Má Pêche, Christina was most recently shortlisted for a James Beard Foundation Rising Star Chef Award. Christina and her confections have appeared on The Martha Stewart Show and Live! with Regis and Kelly, among others. She lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her three dogs and eats an unconscionable amount of raw cookie dough every day.