Red, heart-shaped fruits covered in chocolate is one of the most romantic desserts for Valentine's day.
Match them with some champagne, and you have the perfect combination for this special day. I personally love everything about them. Juicy strawberry melted chocolate together in one sweet bite.
They are just merely undeniable, this is exactly why they make an excellent gift for your loved ones on any occasions. Not to mention how super easy and budget-friendly they are. I made a big bunch under 5£, how good is that right?
But, what I love the most in these luscious treats, that there are so many ways to decorate them.
For this project, I simply used a dark chocolate base and drizzled white chocolate on the top. Exactly how they say it: minimum effort maximum satisfaction.
However, to embellish these bites you can even add some edible gold leaf.
I will undoubtedly make some of those in the future.
Ingredients :
1 pack of medium sized strawberry, any supermarket strawberry will be fine
2 cups of dark/milk chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
1 teaspoon of coconut oil
For drizzling :
1/2 cup of white chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
How to make chocolate-dipped strawberries:
1) When buying the berries make sure to pick the right ones. The perfect berries for this project are the ripped without any sticky bruised areas. Once you have the right strawberries,
gently rinse them, then dry them on paper towels.
The main trick to make these delicious treats that the strawberries must be completely dry. If there is any water left on the berries the coating won't stick to your strawberry.
2) If you bought a chocolate bar, chop them to small pieces. If you are using chocolate chips, place them straight into a heatproof bowl.
Now, it's time to melt the chocolate. Place the heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir until the chocolate is smooth and velvety.
3) Another trick I have learnt while melting chocolate is to add some sort of vegetable oil as shortening. The reason behind this is to create a smoother, more manageable consistency than melted chocolate on its own. This helps to cover the strawberries evenly. However, do not use butter or margarine as both of these products contain water, which will ruin the dip.
4) Before dipping the strawberries into the chocolate, place some greaseproof paper onto a baking tray where you will put the dipped berries. Poke a toothpick or fork into the stem end of the berry and dip three-fourths of the way into the melted chocolate mixture. Allow the excess to drip back into the saucepan. Now, place them on the waxed paper.
5) Put the tray of strawberry in the fridge for about 30 minutes until the chocolate is firm. Once they are done place them on the side until you are ready to decorate them.
Keep in mind, if you used oil, the chocolate would soften quickly at room temperature.
6) As I mentioned above, I only decorated with drizzled chocolate. Super easy, just follow step 2 again to create the white chocolate mix. Then pour the mixture into a trusty squeeze bottle or if you feel confident enough just lift the spoon up, while the chocolate is dripping slowly move the strawberry left and right. If you need to soften the chocolate again just place the bottle/bowl back in the hot bath over the simmering water.
What's your Valentine's day gift idea this year?
Do you buy your present or you prefer to make a special surprise for your loved one?
Comment below xx
