Hi, I’m Lorena from Green Healthy Cooking and Rachel was so kind to let me share a delicious healthy-ish recipe with you today on The Stay at Home Chef. Surprise your loved one(s) with this super delicious and gorgeous fruit treat that can easily be prepared ahead so you can focus on making a delicious chicken and rice dinner when it’s time for dinner. Then, just pull the beautiful dessert out of the fridge when you’re ready.Now let’s get to all the details….
How to Melt Chocolate for Chocolate Covered Strawberries
There are two things you need to pay close attention to when making chocolate covered strawberries. 1) correctly melt your chocolate. 2) make sure your strawberries are super mega ultra dry. So how does one go about melting chocolate the correct way? There is several ways.
How to melt chocolate in the microwave
Cut it or break it up into small chunks. Place the chunks in a wide, shallow bowl and put it in the microwave. Heat the chocolate for about 30 seconds on medium high. Remove and stir with a rubber spatula. Place back in the microwave and heat for 15-second intervals, stirring in between with your rubber spatula, until the chocolate is completely melted and has a smooth.
How to melt chocolate on the stove
You can either use a “double boiler” which is essentially a bowl on top of a pot which is filled with a little water. The pot I mean, not the bowl. Bring the water to a boil and put the bowl which contains only chocolate chunks on top. It’s important that the bowl does not touch the water. The steam alone should be the source of heat. Keep the pot with bowl on top on the hot stove but reduce heat to low to maintain a bare simmer. Stir the chocolate constantly. The stirring is important to avoid the chocolate from getting too hot in both cases, microwave and stove-top method. If the chocolate gets too hot it will curdle and there is no way to safe it. DO NOT overheat and DO NOT stop stirring. It’s important that you don’t walk away and keep an eye on your chocolate at all times.
Make sure your strawberries are very dry
Chocolate hates water and will curdle if you add water to it. When making chocolate covered strawberries it is super important that the strawberries are super mega ultra dry. Wash them, drain them and then take a paper towel to dry each strawberry individually. I recommend leaving the green parts on the strawberries for easier dipping into the chocolate. Make sure the green leaves are patted dry too, otherwise drops of water might run down the dry strawberries.
Can Chocolate Covered Strawberries Be Made Ahead of Time?
Yes! The wonderful thing about chocolate covered strawberries is they can be made up to a day ahead of time. It’s actually even advisable to prepare at least a couple of hours ahead of time to give the chocolate enough time to harden. Shortcuts with putting in the freezer are not a good idea. Make them the night before or in the morning for your romantic dinner and take stress out of dinner time. Which takes us to the next question:
How to Store Chocolate Covered Strawberries, How long will they last?
The best way to store them is on the same baking-paper-lined baking sheet you put them on to harden in the first place in the fridge. Leave them uncovered and in a single layer on a lined baking sheet to avoid from sticking to the baking sheet. Don’t use aluminum foil because it can easily tear and then you end up with bits of foil on your strawberries. Use either baking paper, a silicone mat or wax paper and store in the refrigerator! They will last as long as the washed strawberries themselves would last. All berries get moldy quite fast (a couple of days) so don’t keep them too long. 1-2 days max.Especially considering, chocolate covered strawberries taste best when choosing very ripe soft but not mushy strawberries. Basically the strawberries that would go bad within 48 hours. Those are the best.
Can Chocolate Covered Strawberries Be Frozen?
No. The chocolate covered strawberries have to harden in the fridge, not the freezer. If you risk the strawberries to freeze they will be rock hard and you won’t be able to give them a bite. PLUS, once they thaw they get mushy and release all their water into the chocolate and that’s not a nice thing to look at and the taste suffers from it, too. If for whatever reason you won’t be able to eat them all, mix them into this amazing fruit salad and enjoy for breakfast tomorrow 🙂 Δ Δ
