How To

Chocolate-Covered Strawberries

There’s no better way to celebrate Valentine’s Day than by surprising someone with chocolate. We have great chocolatiers in the Kansas City area - just ask anyone who has tried Christopher Elbow’s creations - but don’t let this stop you from preparing a great chocolate dessert on your own.

There are a lot of people who place chocolate as the world’s most perfect food, and according to some medical journals, eating a little bit of dark chocolate everyday is actually healthy. So I want to simplify a couple of techniques and point out a couple of things that you should remember when working with chocolate.


Chocolate-Covered Strawberries
Ingredients:
Long stem strawberries, as ripe as possible.
Semisweet, bittersweet, or dark chocolate chips or broken pieces; this is really up to you.

Preparation:
Line a baking sheet with plastic wrap or parchment paper.

Wash strawberries and pat dry thoroughly with paper towels; set aside. Make sure the strawberries are completely dry. Even a drop of water in the melted chocolate can cause it to "seize" and turn the entire mixture into a grainy mess.

If you use refrigerated strawberries, it’s very important that you allow them to come to room temperature before dipping in the melted chocolate. If you use cold strawberries, condensation will form and that will prevent the chocolate from sticking.

Melting the chocolate chips/pieces:
In the top of a double boiler over simmering hot water, not boiling water (don't let the bottom of the bowl touch the water); melt chocolate, stirring until smooth. Be careful not to let any steam droplets get into the chocolate, which can result in seizing.

If you don't have a double boiler you can improvise by placing a glass or stainless steel bowl over a pot of simmering water (again, don't let the bottom of the bowl touch the water).

Remove from heat and let the chocolate cool slightly, but it should not set.
The chocolate may appear formed and un-melted after heating but will become fluid after stirring. If you have a lot to dip you can remove the whole double boiler from the heat, but leave it over the hot water until you are done.

Dipping the Strawberries in Chocolate:

Grab the stem or green leaves of the strawberry, dip into the chocolate, and swirl to partially cover. I always leave some of the red from the strawberry showing for the beautiful contrast in color.
      
Give the strawberry a little shake as you withdraw it from the chocolate and actually run it lightly over a wooden spoon (this is how I was taught) to help the chocolate drip off.
      
Place on the prepared cookie sheet. Repeat with the rest of the strawberries. Leave some space between them so they won’t stick together as they cool.

Set strawberries aside to allow the chocolate to harden, about 30 minutes. Transfer fruit onto a platter to serve.

The chocolate dipped strawberries are best if eaten within the next one to three hours. If you refrigerate them you may find perspiration (sweat) forming on the chocolate.