Dairy-Free Chocolate Glaze

Most chocolate glaze recipes contain butter, cream, or milk, but this version creates a thick and glossy glaze without any dairy at all. Sugar, cocoa powder, water, coconut oil, dark chocolate, and vanilla are cooked together until a ganache-like glaze is formed, which is perfect for drizzling over cakes and cookies, as well as dried and fresh fruit.

Necessity was the mother of invention for Giora Shimoni when he created this dairy-free chocolate glaze. He says he'd frequently bake a cake, only to find that he "lacked the powdered sugar needed to make the icing." Then he hit on this combination—a DIY cocoa powder-based chocolate syrup enriched with dark chocolate and vanilla.

This recipe will thicken considerably as it cools, so if you're using it to glaze a cake, try to work with it quickly while it is still warm. Note that if you refrigerate the frosting, it will become very firm and hard to spread—but it will be perfect for rolling into truffles, or for stuffing into dried fruit.

One of the ingredients called for is virgin coconut oil, which is coconut oil that is cold-processed (vs. heat-processed); this more natural way of production is said to retain the oil's health benefits. If you cannot find virgin coconut oil, you can use regular; either way, it will contribute a coconut flavor to the chocolate sauce.