February treat: Chocolate-covered Strawberries To Die For!

It seemed like we needed a February treat, so here's a sweet recipe for CHOCOLATE-COVERED STRAWBERRIES TO DIE FOR! from playwright, editor and blogger, Janet Rudolph. She's immersed herself in two fields that happily often collide: Mystery & Chocolate. Janet blogs daily at MysteryFanfare.com and DyingforChocolate.com. You can find out more about her AND get two more recipes--TEQUILA TRUFFLES and CREAM-CHEESE BROWNIES--on Pots & Pens.

CHOCOLATE-COVERED STRAWBERRIES

TO DIE FOR!

INGREDIENTS:
1 quart fresh large fresh strawberries, with tops
1 cup Dark Chocolate 60-65% cacao, broken or chopped
1/2 cup Dark Chocolate 72-85% cacao, broken or chopped
3 Tbsp. heavy cream
White chocolate, melted for Drizzle


DIRECTIONS:
Rinse strawberries and dry thoroughly, keeping tops on. In top of double boiler or a stainless

steel bowl atop a pot of simmering water, combine chocolate and heavy cream. Stir until

chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.
Dip strawberries 1/2-3/4 way up in chocolate mixture and place on wax paper or parchment-

lined cookie sheet to allow chocolate to harden. When hardened, drizzle with melted white

chocolate.

Hints:
Wash strawberries and pat dry with paper towels; set aside. Make sure strawberries are

completely dry. A drop of water in melted chocolate can cause it to "seize" and turn the 

entire mixture into a mess.

How to smooth out the chocolate: I just saw a chef add a tiny bit of honey and stirred. It 

worked!

How to dip:
Grasp stem of strawberry and dip into chocolate, swirling to partially cover with chocolate.

Give the strawberry a small shake as you pull it out of chocolate. When strawberry is

completely out of chocolate, swirl it in quick, clockwise motion to let excess chocolate drip off.

Place on cookie sheet lined with waxed paper or parchment.

Repeat with rest of the strawberries. 

White chocolate swirls: Melt white chocolate in the microwave and put in pastry bag and 

decorate one side of strawberries.