DIY - DIP It Yourself

For Valentine's Day, the bakery where I work sold chocolate dipped strawberries.  We do them every year and every year those of us who make them are amazed at how much they are selling for out at the counter.  We probably dip hundreds of berries and at $2.99 each they fly out of the case.  I think people usually buy several. 

I believe in paying a little extra for gourmet foods that I could not produce at home but I want to tell you all... don't pay $2.99 each for a strawberry.  You can do these yourself.  I swear.  They are easy and way more economical to do at home.  For the cost of one or two berries you can probably dip a dozen of them at home.  Berries are often on sale this time of year and all you need for chocolate is a bag of chocolate chips.  Spend a little extra money on a better chocolate chip than you might normally put in your cookies if you want but don't sweat it.

Wash and dry your berries just before getting ready to dip them.  Put the chocolate in a microwavable bowl and pop it in the microwave for 30 seconds.  Pull the chocolate out and stir.  Microwave an additional 15 seconds at a time and stir until the chocolate is smooth.  Holding the berry by the stem, dip into the chocolate.  I usually scrape a little of the extra chocolate off the bottom of the berry on the side of the bowl and place the berry on a piece of parchment or waxed paper to harden.  Additionally, before the chocolate hardens, you can dip the chocolate strawberries in nuts, sprinkles, coconut or anything else that sounds good to you.  Customization is the big advantage of doing them yourself.  There are tons of packaging options at your local craft stores but you can also just use the small foil muffin papers and any box or container that you pretty up with a little tissue.

For this Valentine's Day, ironically, my boyfriend bought chocolate covered strawberries online and had them delivered to me.  I appreciate the time and thought that went into him making sure to order them to be delivered to the door on the holiday.  A surprise package is always fun but who wouldn't also appreciate the time and thought that would go into you making them a gift by hand?  So, next year, take back the holiday... print out a card on your computer, color it in by hand, use a little glue and glitter to make it pretty and then give it to your Valentine with some homemade chocolate covered strawberries.