Chocolate Covered Strawberries Recipe – Valentine’s Day Recipes

Valentine’s Day is fast approaching. Many of you might have started thinking about gifting ideas and to make some special recipes on Valentine’s day. Before 10 years,when our marriage date was fixed, 2005 Valentine’s day was very special to us. He gifted me ruby stone gold stud with a chocolate box and I gave him a T Shirt. From then, every year on Valentines day, he gives me some special gifts like Camera, mobile phones, dress, jewelleries, handbags etc whereas me as a wife shower all my love by making some interesting, new dishes for him as he loves to eat varieties of food. 

This year, when I was thinking about Valentines day recipes, my friend Shalini told me about this Chocolate covered strawberries ( Strawberries dipped in chocolate sauce). I browsed for this yummy dessert recipe & found it is a traditional gift for Valentine's Day in the United States. I became double happy & tried it this morning to start off Valentines day special recipes in my blog.

For this recipe,i referred few youtube videos for tips and tricks. I won’t say I made it perfect but still as a first timer,Iam happy with the outcome.Here i have showed you how to melt chocolate using microwave but i’ve discussed the other methods of melting as well. I used dark sweetened compound chocolate for melting.You can use white compund chocolate too. Even though the preparation is easy,there are few points you should keep in mind. 

Please refer “Notes” section for tips before you start. For variations,you can make homemade chocolate covered banana and other fruits like blueberries, prune, chocolate covered almond and even chocolate covered oreos. I decorated them with sprinklers,rice crisps. Run your imagination and play with it. Lets see how to make chocolate covered strawberries at home easily. 

Chocolate Covered Strawberries Recipe

How to make Chocolate Covered Strawberries at home using microwave 

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Sweet

Serves: 4

Prep time: 10 Minutes

Cook time: 5 Minutes

Total time: 15 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

Compound Chocolate - 100 gms ( I used Vanleer brand, sweetened) Fresh Strawberries - 10 nos Sprinklers,rice crisps - for decoration **Please refer”Notes”section before you start..

HOW TO MAKE CHOCOLATE COVERED STRAWBERRIES - METHOD

Wash & pat dry the strawberries completely. Make sure strawberries are completely dry because chocolate will not be coated over wet strawberries. Break the compund chocolate into small pieces. Take them in a clean, dry, microwave safe bowl ( make sure there is not even a single droplet of water). Heat in medium power ( I kept 450W) for 30 seconds. Remove the bowl and stir it with a clean, dry spoon. Again microwave in medium power for 1 minute. Remove and stir well. Repeat this process until the chocolate is melted. No issues if there are minute pieces of chocolate. It will melt in the residual heat. Remove the bowl and keep mixing to melt completely. It took approximately 2.5 minutes to melt in my microwave. But this time may vary. So keep an eye. Over doing may stiffen the chocolate.Take care !! Now take the dry strawberries and insert a toothpick in the head part. Hold the toothpick and dip 3/4th or whole strawberry ( as per your wish) in the melted chocolate. Swipe it in the rim of bowl or pat it to remove the excess chocolate. Arrange the strawberries on a plate. Do this process quickly before the chocolate hardens. Suppose if the chocolate is hardened before you finish the work, microwave them in medium power for 30 seconds to melt them. If you are not able to bring the correct consistency for chocolate, add 1 tbsp of odourless cooking oil  for 100gms of chocolate and then melt in microwave. Chocolate will melt properly. Serve after few minutes once the chocolate sets.Enjoy ! Other methods of melting chocolate Direct heat: This method is easy and convenient. Place the chocolate in a heavy saucepan over very low heat, stirring constantly till the chocolate begins to melt. Immediately remove the pan from the heat and stir the chocolate until it is smooth. Be careful while using this method because there are many chances for the chocolate to scorch. To avoid this,do the process in very low flame with constant stirring. Double boiler: This method takes a little longer than the direct-heat method but eliminates the possibility of scorching the chocolate. Place water in the bottom of the bowl  and chocolate pieces in another bowl that fits the water bowl.The top of the water should be 1/2 inch below the upper pan. Then place the double boiler over low heat. Stir the chocolate constantly until it is melted. The water in the bottom of the double boiler should not come to boiling while the chocolate is melting.Stir chocolate occasionally as it softens. When you have just a few small unmelted chunks, remove bowl from heat (residual heat will melt the rest).

Note

Points you should keep in mind 1. There should be no water in strawberries or chocolate. So pat the strawberries and dry them completely before you dip them in the chocolate. Make sure all equipment is completely dry. Any moisture on the utensils or in the container may cause the chocolate to seize/stiffen. If this happens, stir in 1/2 to 1 teaspoon shorteningor odourless cooking oil (not butter) for every 30 gms of chocolate. Be careful to keep water from splashing into the chocolate. A single drop will cause the chocolate to seize. Keep heat low to avoid scorching if using double boiler method. Always stir chocolate during melting. 2.Melt the chocolate very carefully. Be patient and stir the chocolate every 30 seconds for best results. If the chocolate becomes rock hard before completing the dipping process,add a tbsp of cooking oil  for 100gms of chocolate and melt to bring it to the right consistency.

Enjoy this easy, yummy deseert for your special day ! Have a fun filled celebration !!

Technorati Tags: how to make chocolate covered strawberries,how to make homemade chocolate covered strawberries,easy way to make chocolate covered strawberries,chocolate covered strawberries recipe,how to make chocolate covered strawberries at home,valentines day recipes

Very good recipes Tags: how to make chocolate covered strawberries, how to make homemade chocolate covered strawberries, easy way to make chocolate covered strawberries, chocolate covered strawberries recipe, how to make chocolate covered strawberries at home, valentines day recipes