Life Through the Lens: Holiday Treats-a-palooza: Chocolate Covered Everything

It has been tradition in my family ever since I was little to make chocolates. And by chocolates I mean melting yummy milk/dark/white chocolate & dipping everything & anything you can get your hands on into it. It's super easy & always makes impressive (& yummy!) holiday gifts! Here's how I do it:

I like to use Wilton Candy Melts. They're available at Michael's or other craft-type stores. I have used other bulk chocolate discs before, available at candy supply stores, but D.C. seems to be seriously lacking in candy supply shops.

The chocolate melts looks like this when they're dumped out of the bag (no, the irony is not lost in this picture - I am making chocolates, while Brad's protein powder, banana's & water bottle hang out in the background)

Before you get started with your chocolate-ing, prep your chocolate dipping area. This year, I covered our dining room table with waxed paper, which worked very well.

Melt your chocolate on a double boiler or the lazy way: in the microwave on 50% power, stirring every 15-30 seconds. When your chocolate is melted, it will look like this (resist the urge to lick the spoon).

Now you're ready to dip. Oreo's are always a hit, so I tend to make a whole bag or two of those.

You can keep melting chocolate & dipping Oreo's until your heart is content.

If you want to move onto something else, may I suggest nutmallow, or as Martha would call them, "rocky road bars." Melt a bag of chocolate discs, toss in a half a can of cashews, & 1/2 - 3/4 of a bag of mini-marshmallows (I went overboard this year & used almost the whole bag). Give the mixture a good stir, so it's evenly coated & dump the whole mixture into a baking dish lined with wax paper. Then stick it in the fridge!

White chocolate also presents lots of fun dipping opportunities. Just be careful when melting though, as it tends to burn more easily than milk or dark chocolate.

White chocolate is also good for drizzling over milk or dark chocolate. Melt some white chocolate, take a small fork & dip the ends in. Then shake the fork back & forth over whatever you're drizzling. If the chocolate isn't melted enough & sticks to the fork or comes off in big blobs, stick it back in the microwave (or over the double boiler) for a few seconds.

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Holiday Treats-a-palooza: Chocolate Covered Everything

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