Dessert Chef Alice Medrich's Recipe for Chocolate-Dipped Fruit

June 04, 2012— -- The only thing better than a chocolate dessert is a chocolate dessert that is easy to make.

In her new cookbook, "Sinfully Easy Delicious Desserts," award-winning chocolatier Alice Medrich cuts the complicated out of baking and offers recipes that turn sophisticated homemade treats into something any chef can tackle.

Here is one of those recipes.

Chocolate-Dipped Fruit

Serves 15 or more

You can buy expensive chocolate-covered fruit, or you can make it yourself, with better chocolate and fruit that you know is ripe and flavorful. Choose a brand of chocolate that you love to nibble. (And choose a bar of chocolate rather than chocolate chips or anything called "chocolate coating," even if it is sold in the same aisle as the fruit. Chocolate chips won't melt well, and the chocolate coating is not delicious enough.) No need to "temper" the chocolate to keep it shiny: the secret to preventing the chocolate from turning gray and streaky is to dry and chill the fruit before dipping, then refrigerate it as soon after dipping as possible.

Ingredients:

About 2 pints small or medium strawberries (with or without stems), or up to 36 large strawberries with stems or figs, or 1 ¼ pounds cherries with stems 8 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped, or milk or white chocolate, finely chopped.

Equipment:

Cookie sheets

Fluted paper candy cups (optional)

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Directions:

Rinse the fruit gently and spread it out on a tray lined with paper towels. The fruit should be as dry as possible before dipping; if necessary, pat it dry or use a cupped hand to cradle each piece gently in a soft dish towel or a paper towel. Refrigerate until chilled.

Line the cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Put the chocolate in a small heatproof bowl, preferably stainless steel. Bring an inch of water to a simmer in a wide skillet. If using semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, set the bowl directly in the skillet and keep the water at a bare simmer.

If using milk or white chocolate, turn the heat off under the skillet and wait for 60 seconds before putting the bowl in the hot water. Stir dark chocolate frequently, milk and white chocolate almost constantly, until almost entirely melted, then remove the bowl, wipe the bottom dry, and stir to finish melting the chocolate. The chocolate should be warm and fluid, but not hot.

Grasp fruit by the stem or the shoulders and dip it about two-thirds of the way into the chocolate, or deeper if you like. Lift the fruit above the chocolate and shake off the excess, letting it drip back into the bowl, then very gently wipe a little excess chocolate from one side of the fruit on the edge of the bowl, set it on a lined cookie sheet, wiped side down, and slide it forward slightly to prevent a puddle of chocolate from forming at the tip. Refrigerate each tray as soon as it's filled, and keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Serve any time after the chocolate has set enough that you can peel the fruit cleanly from the parchment. Transfer each one to a fluted candy cup, if desired.