??? on making chocolate covered strawberries

[AnnetteF]

I hope someone out there can answer this question for me. I am looking at a recipe on the Hershey's website for making chocolate covered strawberries and it calls for 2 tablespoons of shortening and then in parentheses says "do not use butter, margarine, spread or oil". A note at the bottom of the page says that "Butter, margarine and spreads contain water which may prevent chocolate from melting properly; oil may prevent chocolate from forming a coating."

I don't understand what they want you to use - Crisco, perhaps? What else would be considered a shortening?

 

[Beth76]

Yes, Crisco is shortening. Butter, margarine and oil are not the same as shortening. Crisco is just a brand name though.

 

[Disneyglobegirl]

Yep Cisco - or you could use Almond Bark to dip the strawberries in - I use that to make Choc covered Peanut Butter Crackers and pretzals. It is usually in the baking aisle and you can get it in Vanilla or Choc flavor.

 

[TheOtherVillainess]

ANd please,for the love of Pete, whatever you do..DO NOT refrigerate them! Period.

Refrigeration=death for choc. dipped strawberries.

It's also best t hat you consume the strawberries on the same day you make them.

TOV (ex-Godiva Chocolatier employee and strawberry dipper extroidinaire)

 

[AnnetteF]

ANd please,for the love of Pete, whatever you do..DO NOT refrigerate them! Period.

Refrigeration=death for choc. dipped strawberries.

It's also best t hat you consume the strawberries on the same day you make them.

TOV (ex-Godiva Chocolatier employee and strawberry dipper extroidinaire)

TheOtherVillainess - I was planning on making these to be part of a tower of treats I am making for Christmas gifts. I was planning on refrigerating them for a day or so just before giving them. I've had Godiva's strawberries before and they are wonderful, so I trust your advice, but what would happen to them if I did this?

 

[TheOtherVillainess]

If you refrigerated them, what would most likely happen is that the strawberries would begin to ooze and the choc. would seperate from the berry. It'd be a mess all around, not looking or tasting too terribly fabulous. Refrigeration can also sometimes cause the choc. to 'bloom' which means all the fat comes to the top and causes it to look like somebody blew baby powder all over your dessert. "Bloomed" choc also doesn't taste too good because the fat/cocoa has seperated from each other.

TOV

 

[Jockaroo]

You could try the candy melt wafers available at most craft/hobby stores. These melt well, are smooth and you don't need to worry about adding additional oils or shortenings. They taste pretty good also. My mom makes 30-40 pounds of molded candies each year and these work great. Don't get any water in the chocolate or coating mix though--make sure your berries are dry.

 

[LightBurnsBlue]

My mom and I make chocolate covered strawberries every year for Easter...we don't add any type of shortening to them. We just melt some dove chocolate in the microwave and start dipping! We have never refrigerated them (we just make them the nigth before), so I can't tell you what types of problems arrise when that happens.

 

[AnnetteF]

Thanks everyone for your replies. I think I am going to substitute something else for the strawberries.