by Megan As Well

Created on: July 08, 2008   Last Updated: July 17, 2008

Considering that at bakeries and candy shops chocolate-covered strawberries can cost around $40 for a very small package, making them yourself will make a seemingly expensive gift or a classy dessert.

Things you will need:

-strawberries (however many you want to dip)
-a variety of chocolate wafers (found by the pound at at art supply store or WalMart's craft section)

-two medium saucepans (the same size or about the same size)
-1 or 2 cookie sheets
-wax paper
-1 or 2 Ziploc (or any zippered bags
-scissors
-stove top

1. Cover cookie sheet(s) with a single layer of wax paper.

2.Fill one saucepan about halfway with hot water. Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium.

3. Pour one bag of chocolate wafers into the second saucepan, and place the saucepan into the first. This way, the heat from the boiling water will rise and melt the chocolate wafers, without burning them.

4. Stir frequently, until the wafers are completely melted and smooth. Note that once melted, chocolate can still burn, but if taken off the heat, the chocolate will start to harden. Keep the melted chocolate over medium-low heat (closer to medium) o

5. Rinse strawberries with cold water. Leave them whole, do not cut them or cut off the leafy part.

6. One at a time, dip the strawberries into the chocolate, sort of rolling them around to cover every surface, except for the leafy part that you should be holding on to.

7. Place dipped strawberries in rows on the wax paper, cautious of any drips. If you do drip, you can either wipe it up immediately or wait for it to harden and then scrape or pick it off.

8. Once they are all dipped, place the cookie sheet(s) in the fridge, uncovered, for about an hour.

9. Meanwhile, clean and chocolate residue out of the top pan. Boil new water in the bottom pan.

10. Repeat steps 2 through 4 with a different color chocolate wafers. (A chocolate or dark chocolate base with white, red, or green accents are the nices

11. Once melted, pour the chocolate into a Ziploc bag. (This usually requires an extra set of hands.) Carefully snip one small corner off of the bag.

12. Remove the strawberries from the fridge, a drizzle the new melted chocolate over them, creating designs. (You may want to experiment a bit on a piece of scrap wax paper to get the hang of how it pours.)

13. Return them to the fridge and let them cool for about three hours before serving or packaging.

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