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What kind of chocolate is good for melting?
The Best Chocolate for Melting – The best chocolate for melting contains 32 percent, or higher, cocoa butter, Here’s why: All chocolate will melt, but not all chocolate will melt the same. Some types lose their sheen and may become chalky looking when they cool and resolidify.
- That might not matter if you’re melting chocolate for fondue, but if you want to make chocolate-covered strawberries, for example, you want a chocolate that stays glossy when it hardens — a chocolate with a high cocoa butter content.
- Top-quality semisweet and bittersweet chocolates are good choices.
The best choice is couverture, which is favored by candy-making pros. Chocolate comes in solid bars or different size chips and discs. If you’re using chocolate bars, chop them into uniform pieces so they’ll melt evenly. Chocolate chips are already the ideal size for melting.
What to add to chocolate to make it harden?
Beta Crystals – Another way of making the chocolate hard is by using beta crystals that you can get from Amazon, This method is a bit more expensive but our favorite for chocolate tempering. Beta crystals are freeze-dried and tempered cocoa butter. To use beta crystals to harden your chocolate:
Use 2/3 of unmelted chocolate Heat it to 115 degrees Add the remaining amount of chocolate and agitate until the temperature sets at 95 degrees. Add beta crystals depending on the amount of chocolate (one tsp of beta crystals for seven ounces of chocolate). Keep stirring systematically until the temperature drops to 79 degrees.
Adding beta crystals which are basically dried cocoa butter, will allow you to melt the chocolate quickly to make the final product that will harden the way you want it to. Once the process is completed, you must test the temper the same way we did before.
What to put chocolate strawberries on so they don t stick?
Photo by Carolina Gelen Somewhere along the way, Edible Arrangements got a bad rap. Is it impersonal? I suppose. But is an arrangement spiked with melon wedges, chocolate-dipped strawberries, and fresh pineapple formed in the shape of flowers delicious and succulent? Absolutely. Homemade chocolate-covered strawberries are, however, both personal and delicious. Give me a dozen for Valentine’s Day, along with a diamond ring from Tiffany for each of my fingers like I’ve won the last 10 Super Bowls and I’ll be a happy camper. From Our Shop Food52’s Recipes Resident Caroline Gelen already won Valentine’s Day with her technique for making Marbled Chocolate-Covered Strawberries, If you decide to make these marble masterpieces too, a good technique is nothing without proper storage. So what’s the best way to store chocolate-covered strawberries? Before you do anything (snacking on chocolate wafers included), stick a baking sheet in the freezer.
The metal tray will get ice cold, which will allow the warm chocolate to quickly firm up as soon as you lay the dipped berries on top of it. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Once the tray is in the freezer, you can begin washing and prepping the strawberries and melting the dark and white chocolates.
And with the magic of televisionthe prep work is done! Time to pull the tray from the freezer (wear an oven mitt, so your fingers don’t stick to the metal). Next, line the baking sheet with wax paper or parchment paper (wax paper has more of a nonstick surface, which is preferred, but parchment will do in a pinch).
- Lay the dipped chocolate strawberries on top of the lined tray, leaving a little bit of room between each berry.
- Once the tray is filled, pop it in the refrigerator for about an hour to allow the chocolate to completely harden.
- As soon as the berries are set, wrap them with plastic wrap and leave the strawberries at room temperature for up to 24 hours, at which point you can arrange them in a bouquet for your sweetheart.
(Or just eat them yourself, I don’t judge.) How long do chocolate-covered strawberries last, anyway? If you plan to keep them around for at least 48 hours, put them in the fridge, but do so with caution. The fridge will create extra moisture, causing the berries to appear as if they are “sweating.” Not cute.
Once again, I will turn to the dependable Edible Arrangements for guidance as to how to navigate this new challenge: “You don’t want to store the berries in an airtight container, because this will cause decomposition and mold at a much quicker rate than if the strawberries are lightly covered.” Instead, E.A.
(I have to give my crush a nickname, right?) recommends keeping the berries on the sheet tray but wrapping them with plastic wrap or aluminum foil, which will increase the airflow and prevent said condensation. Better yet, place a sheet or two of paper towels dusted with baking soda at the bottom of the container, which will absorb even more excess moisture.
- Lay the wax or parchment paper on top, followed by berries, and then wrap the whole tray with plastic wrap.
- When you refrigerate your chocolate-covered strawberries, they won’t taste as fresh or flavorful as keeping them at room temperature.
- But, of course, you’ll get more longevity out of them,” says Edible Arrangements on their website.
A simple edible bouquet filled with chocolate-covered strawberries always has been, and always will be, there for me and that’s the greatest Valentine’s Day gift of all. But I will take ten little blue boxes, too. Ingredients
| 1 | pound large ripe strawberries, at room temperature |
| 6 | ounces (170 grams) dark or semisweet chocolate, chopped (1 cup) |
| 1 | teaspoon refined coconut oil (optional) |
| 2 | ounces (56 grams) white chocolate, chopped (⅓ cup) |
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Share your pro tips for storing chocolate-dipped strawberries in the comments below!
How do you keep chocolate shiny when melting it?
The Secret to the Shiniest Chocolate Coating? Coconut Oil Chocolate Covered Strawberries Micah A. Leal If there is one thing in this life that we know to be true, it’s that makes everything better. From holidays to heartbreaks, chocolate has always been there for us. It’s one flavor that we adored as children and, over the years, have only grown to love more.
If we’re short on time but still want to make a special dessert, chocolate is the answer to our prayers. No, we’re not talking about a store-bought box of truffles (though we’ll admit, Russell Stover holds a special place in our hearts). When it comes to whipping up a quick dessert, we have a fool-proof strategy for you: coat something you already have in your fridge in chocolate.
Everything is better with a chocolate coating. Strawberries? Cover them in chocolate. Marshmallows? Add chocolate. A scoop of ice cream? Sounds like it could use a chocolate shell. You know where this is going Coating fruits,, or other sweets in chocolate is a dessert shortcut that requires no baking at all and results in a supremely special last course.
- Whether you’re or, we have a trick to make your chocolate really shine: mix the melted chocolate with coconut oil.
- Coconut oil is the secret to achieving a super-shiny chocolate coating.
- It brings a little extra luster to melted chocolate, which, on its own, can become matte when dry.
- Not only does coconut oil make your chocolate coating shine, but it also helps the chocolate harden.
Have you ever noticed that, if the temperature outside is particularly warm, your coconut oil liquifies right in its jar? Then, if it’s cold out, the coconut oil will solidify. That’s because coconut oil is very sensitive to temperature changes. When it comes into contact with something cold, coconut oil drops in temperature and hardens very quickly.
- Since coconut oil can solidify so quickly, it’s great to use in a coating that you want to harden, such as when making chocolate-covered strawberries.
- Coconut oil is also the secret ingredient in Magic Shell, the chocolate coating that firms up as soon as it makes contact with freezing-cold ice cream.
The next time you’re dipping treats in chocolate, add a dollop of coconut oil to the melting chocolate. The more coconut oil you use, the more liquid and smooth the chocolate coating will be. As a baseline, we recommend adding one tablespoon of coconut oil per one cup of chocolate.
Can I use aluminum foil instead of parchment paper for chocolate covered strawberries?
Simple Cooking: Chocolate Covered Strawberries Your mom called. She’s sick of your “hug coupons” and hastily purchased carnations. She wants you to show that you really care this Mother’s Day, so give the poor woman a break and give her the gift of chocolate. And strawberries. They are very easy to make, and we’ll show you how.
Chicagoist’s Simple Chocolate Covered Strawberries You’ll need: 1 container strawberries 12 oz. chocolate chips (semi-sweet, dark, or milk, you know your mama best) Paper towels Wax paper, parchment paper, or aluminum foil Microwave-safe bowl Spatula
Directions: 1. Rinse the strawberries. Lay out the paper towels in a double layer and line the strawberries to dry. It’s very important to have dry berries, or the chocolate won’t stick right. Let the berries dry for 30 minutes or more. They need to be DRY.
- While they’re drying, grasp the leaves at the top of the strawberry and pull them up – you need a handle to hold while you are dipping.2.
- There are lots of tips out there for, but let’s do it in the microwave because it’s easier.
- Better living through technology or whatever.
- Place the chocolate chips in the microwave safe bowl (like a large Pyrex bowl) and put in the microwave for 90 seconds on half power.
Remove and stir with the spatula. Return to the microwave and heat again for 30 seconds at a time, stopping to stir after every 30 seconds. Be careful not to scorch the chocolate with too much heating. Stop when the chocolate is smooth and glossy and no lumps remain.
It is berry important during this stage to make sure that no water comes into contact with the chocolate. It will seize up and become a thick, sticky texture.3. Line baking sheets with the wax paper, parchment paper, or aluminum foil. We tried all three of these, and they all work fine. One at a time, grasp each dry strawberry by the leaves and dip it into the chocolate.
Use your fingers or the spatula to remove excess, so you have a thin layer coating each berry. Lay it on the paper to set.4. When you’ve covered all the strawberries, set the baking sheets in the refrigerator. Allow the chocolate to set for at least an hour, but preferably up to 4 hours.
Can I use tin foil instead of wax paper for chocolate covered strawberries?
How to Store Chocolate Covered Strawberries, How long will they last? – The best way to store them is on the same baking-paper-lined baking sheet you put them on to harden in the first place in the fridge. Leave them uncovered and in a single layer on a lined baking sheet to avoid from sticking to the baking sheet.
Don’t use aluminum foil because it can easily tear and then you end up with bits of foil on your strawberries. Use either baking paper, a silicone mat or wax paper and store in the refrigerator! They will last as long as the washed strawberries themselves would last. All berries get moldy quite fast (a couple of days) so don’t keep them too long.1-2 days max.Especially considering, chocolate covered strawberries taste best when choosing very ripe soft but not mushy strawberries.
Basically the strawberries that would go bad within 48 hours. Those are the best.
Can I use plastic wrap for chocolate covered strawberries?
How to Keep Chocolate Covered Strawberries Fresh Cavan Images/Getty Images By Heath Goldman for Food Network Kitchen Chances are, if you’re reading this article you’ve mastered, or you’ve received a chocolate covered strawberry delivery (lucky you).
- Now that you’ve got the strawberries, you need to figure out how to keep those beauties fresh.
- The fact of the matter is: chocolate covered strawberries are best the first day you make or receive them.
- Many recipes will ask you to transfer them to the refrigerator to speed up the chocolate-setting process.
But if you plan on eating them the first day, you’ll want to then remove them from the refrigerator and store them on the counter at room temperature. This way, they won’t sweat or weep. Chocolate covered strawberries keep best stored on the counter with a loose draping of plastic wrap.
Given that chocolate covered strawberries are the best stored at room temperature, you might be wondering how long they can be kept that way. You can leave them on the counter for about one day. If you’re planning on saving your chocolate covered strawberries for more than one day, yep, they’ll need to be refrigerated.
Unfortunately, this means that they will sweat a little bit. To minimize sweating, place a couple sheets of paper towels into the bottom of an airtight container. Store the strawberries on top of the paper towels. If you need to store multiple layers of strawberries, place pieces of wax paper or parchment paper between the layers.
- They will typically last for up to two days in the refrigerator.
- They may last longer though.
- Simply inspect the strawberries: if the chocolate has fallen off or the tops of the strawberries appear mushy, you’ll probably want to toss them.
- We don’t recommend you freeze these strawberries because honestly? The strawberries will become mushy when they thaw.
And no one wants that. Related Links: : How to Keep Chocolate Covered Strawberries Fresh