How to Make Chocolate-Covered Strawberries

Is there a better pairing than strawberries and chocolate? I don't think so, especially when they are giant strawberries and melted chocolate truffles.

The strawberries are almost as big as plums, and they're perfectly ripe and juicy all the way through. They're simply the best strawberries on the planet (and probably would be on Mars, too, if we ever get there). The truffles are exactly what chocolate should be: smooth and creamy on the inside with a thin but crisp shell of chocolate on the outside. Put the two together into a truffle-dipped strawberry dessert, and you've got the best combination possible.

For this recipe, I mixed all the truffles together to make the dipping sauce for the strawberries. Since Harry & David truffles come in so many flavors, it's easy to try out different combinations. Half almond and half cherry truffles is a great duo, or you could stick to all milk chocolate or all dark chocolate. Try adding a few espresso truffles to the mix; the earthy coffee flavor makes the chocolate even richer. Or, for a double hit of fruity flavor, use all the raspberry truffles.

The best part about this recipe is that you don't need anything besides the truffles for dipping. Normal chocolate bars and chocolate chips have stabilizers in them to prevent a smooth melt, but truffles are made with plenty of heavy cream that helps them melt into a rich, smooth dip.

How to make the chocolate-covered strawberries

Since chocolate can be temperamental, I recommend using a double broiler. You'll need seven truffles per one dozen strawberries you would like to dip.

First, wash and dry the strawberries very well. You don't want any water clinging to the surface of the berries when you dip them because the chocolate won't stick to it.

Melting the chocolate

To make the chocolate sauce, start by chopping the truffles and placing them in a heat-resistant bowl, such as a glass bowl or metal bowl. Place this bowl on top of a saucepan filled with two inches of water, but make sure the bottom of the bowl doesn't touch the water -- this could scorch the chocolate!

Bring the water to a simmer, stirring the chocolate occasionally. Because chocolate can burn easily (and cannot be saved once it burns), turn off the heat once the water boils or once half the truffles have melted. Since the residual heat from the bowl will continue to melt the chocolate, continue to stir the truffles occasionally until they melt completely. When you have a smooth melted chocolate mixture, stir it together very well to blend the flavors, especially if you're using more than one kind of truffle.

Dipping the strawberries

It's now time to dip the strawberries! I like to lay each berry in the chocolate mixture on one side, then flip it to the other. This will create the "V" design on the berry.

After you dip each berry, place it on a piece of wax paper to let the chocolate harden. In my experience, the melted truffles won't harden on the strawberries unless the room is cold. You can place the freshly dipped strawberries in the fridge to help speed the process along.

If you have a small amount of melted truffles left over, let the first layer of chocolate harden on the strawberries, then use a spoon to drizzle the leftover chocolate over the top to make a swirly pattern.

After all the chocolate has hardened, the strawberries are ready to eat! Serve these for an easy weeknight dessert, date night in, or spring occasion like Mother's Day. And any leftover strawberries can be sliced up for strawberry crepes!