Chocolate Covered Strawberries

I like to consider myself a romantic, but not overly romantic. I like flowers, but love chocolates. I can do without all of the sappy romance movies too (fun fact: I was not a fan of The Notebook). My husband and I don't normally celebrate Valentine's Day. Prior to having our son, we had date nights regularly, vacations, and just loved spending our time together. Now with our son in the picture, we enjoy having parties of three, and occasional date nights just the two of us. We both love venturing to new places to eat, exploring cultures and other areas around where we live. We also really love classic foods too, so these chocolate covered strawberries fit the bill on multiple accounts. I don't think there's anything quite like a chocolate covered strawberry. A chocolatey snap on the outside, a crunch of the strawberry on the inside. They're romance's favorite treat and I am here for it, sans Valentine's Day.

Dipping fruit into chocolate is not a new concept, but it is always so much fun to do! There are a variety of different things that can be chocolate dipped: bananas, oranges, pretzels...I'm sure there have been other interesting combinations too. The original chocolate covered strawberry was created by Lorraine Lorusso, who was working at a local grocery store in Chicago. She dipped some strawberries into chocolate, let them harden, and sold them off to her patrons. Little did she know how infamous her innocent fruit endeavor would become. Today, chocolate covered strawberries represent love, romance, and are common at receptions including weddings. Nothing says "I love you" quite like chocolate, so grab a container of strawberries and start dipping!

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Ingredients:

• Strawberries: I mean, you really could dip any fruit in chocolate and it would be a hit. Strawberries, though, are classic.
• Melting chocolate: you don't necessarily want to use chocolate chips here, as chocolate chips are made to retain their shape. Using melting wafers or baking chocolate works well. I highly recommend Hu Kitchen for chocolate baking gems: they're incredibly clean, organic, and made with great ingredients. Plus, they melt perfectly.
• Oil: mixing the oil with the melted chocolate gives the coating a nice shine.

Have Fun with the Toppings:

• You can melt a little white chocolate and drizzle on top of the already dipped chocolate if you want to get a little fancy.
• Garnish with some themed sprinkles on top like red hearts, confetti, or edible sugar pearls.
• Mix in other fruits, and maybe some pretzels. You can create a gorgeous chocolate board with the dipped chocolate fruits for your next girls day or a family function. Guaranteed, you'll impress everyone!

Recipes that are this easy yet so delicious and crowd pleasing are my absolute favorite. You'll never go wrong with a beautiful batch of chocolate covered strawberries, no matter the occasion. It's also a super fun way to get kids involved too! Have them rinse the berries and pat dry, practice dipping a few strawberries too. Making memories in the kitchen is an incredible thing, and this is a perfect way to do that.