Not your ordinary berries :)

Now I have to say... I have never really been a really big chocolate and fruit fan ... Not really sure why. Probably because of those disgustingly sweet cordial cherries we had as kids... my dad has always been a big chocolate cherry fan so we had those all the time at the holidays.  Fast forward to about 5 years ago, when my mom asked for some chocolate strawberries for Mother's Day :)

Oh the joy that is a fresh strawberry drenched in delicious chocolate.  Not the chocolate flavored "coating"... k... do we need to have another discussion about this? No? ... good...

Needless to say from that point on, I have been hooked.  And contrary to what you might think, they are pretty readily available all year round!! The sizes may vary mind you, during the end of winter, into spring and summer you get the HUGE ones... but you can still find some pretty darn decent ones during the winter.  They are super popular at Valentines Day of course, but anytime is a good time for one :) Just because you decided to get out of bed today... see? That's a good reason- and on top of that they are a pretty healthy treat!

And not just strawberries either! :) Raspberries are particularly delicious with chocolate- and also end up being quite healthy for you as well with dark chocolate involved... so how can you go wrong?! And they are also very readily available all year long- so what are you waiting for??? And if you love those chocolate cordial cherries? Just wait til you try one of mine... trust me... they are not even comparable :) And if you want a real treat- try fresh cherries dipped in chocolate... we have 4 cherry trees in our back yard so I couldn't believe I waited this long to try it!

My berries are always purchased just before dipping to ensure quality- strawberries especially decline in quality pretty fast after purchase.  Raspberries are more forgiving, but I still try to purchase them as close to dipping as possible :) I am thinking of you after all :)

Now I have a few options when it comes to chocolate covered berries.

For raspberries, I can dip individually, but because of the significant labor they are a little more expensive.  I recommend keeping those for the fancy things- like my bride and groom berries.  I have learned the hard way that these cannot be made in large amounts... so please... just trust me.   I can do the bride and groom berries as treats for the bride and groom- possibly the bridal party, then beautiful berry cups for the rest of the guests, or even do the bride and groom berries as anniversary gifts... just not in large quantities... I still have nightmares about it.  For cups, I take 2 (if they are particularly large) or 3 berries and stick them in a cute chocolate shell.  Then, depending on your preference, I can either cover said berries with chocolate to complete the cup, or drizzle them for a more elegant look.  I can even add a filling to the raspberries like cheeesecake, or lemon or vanilla marshmallow (so super yummy). Here is a pic of my Bride and Groom berries :)

For strawberries, I dip them in white or milk chocolate then drizzle them with the opposite chocolate- or add yummy toppings- like coconut, nuts, sprinkles, or mini chocolate chips.  For an extra elegant (and tasty) presentation, I dip them in white chocolate, then milk chocolate, then drizzle in white (or dip in dark, then white, then drizzle in milk chocolate) for a beautiful and delicious variation :).  Now for an awesome taste sensation... try my filled berries :) I take a cup of white or dark chocolate, add a half strawberry, then pipe in fluffy chocolate, white chocolate, or cheesecake filling and drizzle with chocolate or add toppings... This is something I started this year for Valentines Day and went over REALLY well!  Unfortunately, these, at least for now, can only be ordered locally.  I can ship regular berries, but the filled ones are a little more sensitive, so I am not comfortable with shipping them ... yet :) If anyone is interested, let me know, if you would like to pay shipping (it would have to be Priority or even overnight) I would be happy to send you some berries to see how they fare! :)
I know there is a picture of this already on my blog on an earlier post... but here is a picture of my deluxe berries anyway :). 

I can also do berry "bouquets" - fresh or chocolate dipped :) All kinds of fruit can be added, (except bananas or other such soft delicate fruits) or you can just keep it berries, but again, as these are very sensitive, they can only be locally ordered for now.  Here is one I did for Easter - I was trying to recreate an order for a customer - I really should have known better than to do that ;) so it ended up being more of a pain in the patootie than I expected - and me being the consummate perfectionist... yah... you can see where I am going with this right? Right. :)

 Well, since spring has sprung and summer is coming up on us soon... keep these delicious treats in mind for your next party! Or like I said... any occasion... really :) Nothing says "Yay me!" or "Thank you!" like a box of chocolate covered berries! :)  Ask me for details about other fresh fruit delights- like carved watermelon- and "cakes" made entirely of fruit!!! :)

Thank you for stopping by- and as always :) Sweet Dreamz to all of you lovelies out there!

Renee :D