If you're looking for a way to add an impossibly decadent chocolate coating to your cake, ganache is the way to go. Ganache, which is different from regular frosting, is a simple yet versatile mixture of melted chocolate and heavy cream that, when combined, can be used as everything from a frosting to a truffle filling.
The most common ratio of chocolate to cream is 1:1, at which point the ganache is still somewhat spreadable while cooling and becomes much thicker when set, perfect for dense, fudgy cake filling. You can customize the consistency based on your needs, adding a bit more cream for a looser ganache or more chocolate to thicken your ganache. However, these variations mean it can be a little tough to work with - if it's loose enough that it can easily be spread between your cake layers, you also run the risk of those layers sliding around on the not-quite-set ganache. Luckily, TikTok creator Madi Chilcott had a genius hack to solve that issue.
In a brief video, they demonstrated how they set their ganache - prior to the layers ever touching the cake. They simply use parchment paper to line the same tins used to bake the cake layers, pour in the ganache, and then wait for it to set. This essentially creates hardened ganache discs that can be placed on each cake layer, providing a more solid foundation and allowing you to move on to frosting the cake's exterior without any worries.
This pre-setting technique prevents you from tearing your cake layers, which is a possibility when trying to spread thick ganache over a more delicate cake crumb. The method was highly praised on the social media app, with one user commenting, "This could really be a game changer!" If damaging your cake is a concern, another cake step you don't want to be missing is to chill the cake layers so they're a bit easier to work with. In fact, when it comes to frosting a flawless cake, chilling is definitely your friend in general. Even if you use this TikTok ganache hack, you may still want to chill the crumb-coated cake prior to spreading the frosting all over the cake's exterior for the most professional-looking final product.
If the idea of waiting for your individual ganache discs to set sounds like too much effort, several TikTok users suggested an alternative approach in the comments section. They recommended using some type of frosting or whipped ganache to create a border along the exterior of each cake layer in order to prevent the ganache filling from slipping out and causing the cake layers to slide.
Read this next: 30 TikTok Food Hacks That Are Total Game Changers