Chocolate Dipped Strawberries

I always thought that dipping fruits in chocolate required a great deal of effort or tasteless chocolate coating mixes. Here, however, is a delicious and easy recipe for dipping strawberries or any fruit you would like.These last 24 hours in or out of the refrigerator. The problem with non-refrigerated berries, however, is they will start to dehydrate and shrink away from the chocolate coating if allowed to remain at room temperature for a prolonged period of time.

Ingredients

• 18-20 large strawberries with leaves
• 8 ounces good quality chocolate, Scharffenberger or Lindt
• 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil

Preparation Instructions

1. Cover a cookie sheet with parchment or waxed paper.
2. Place the chocolate in a 1-cup measuring cup. Set this cup in a 1-quart saucepan containing at least 1 inch of water.
3. Heat the water until it simmers and melt the chocolate. Stir only once or twice to insure that it is uniformly smooth.
4. Stir in the oil and remove from the heat. Allow to cool until tepid.
5. Hold the strawberry by the leaves and dunk the berry into the slightly warm chocolate. Lift up and rotate the berry in small circles to help the excess drip off.
6. When the dripping slows down a little turn the berry upside down with the point in the air. This allows the cooling chocolate to coat the berry more rather than create a big pool of chocolate on the paper.
7. Lay the coated strawberry on the prepared pan and straighten out the leaves a little.
8. Proceed with the remaining berries. Store at room temperature or in the refrigerator for no more than 24 hours. These will always do better if made the same day. The longer they sit the more chance that the strawberry will give off some of its juice and dissolve some of the chocolate coating.