Chocolate Dipped Strawberries    

It’s pool time, so today is short and simple.  I finally found some good strawberries.  This year they have not been great here, those wonderful California berries don’t seem to be making the trip (or maybe they aren’t that great either).  In California we used to be able to get them straight from the field and so are spoiled I guess.  Anyway, I did get some good ones and promptly ate a few but decided to chocolatize the rest.  Very simple – melt the chocolate in a small deep bowl in 30 second increments until it is smooth, then dip the strawberries and place on a foil or wax paper lined cookie sheet to harden.  I use Ghirardelli Candy Making & Dipping Bar (Double Chocolate and White Chocolate) because it has a good quality taste and always melts and then sets up perfectly.   If you hide them, you can use them as a garnish for just about any dessert, although around here they don’t usually last long enough for that.