Strawberry petits fours is really simple and effective, but you must use really good strawberries – get the ripest you can find that aren’t squishy – and really good chocolate (a cocoa solids content of 70%).
Ingredients
- 100g bitter chocolate, broken up
- 1 tsp Cointreau or a similar liqueur (don’t use any more than this)
- 15 ripe strawberries, stalks on
Method
- 1. Line a baking sheet with some baking paper.
- 2. Put the chocolate and Cointreau into a bowl and melt in the microwave on a low-ish power for short bursts – it is easy to overwork dark chocolate. You can melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Either way, don’t stir!
- 3. As soon as the chocolate has melted, start to dip the strawberries. The trick to a posh-looking petit four is to have no bald patches and no drips, so carefully dip and rotate the fruit. Once it has been coated two-thirds of the way up (you want to see some red), pull it out of the chocolate and let it drip. Then hold it upside-down for a few seconds before transferring it to the tray with the baking paper. Repeat with the rest and leave to set in a cool place – not the fridge.
Nutritional info
Per petit four: 38kcals, 1.9g fat (1.1g saturated), 0.4g protein, 5g carbs, 5g sugar, trace salt
Chef's tip
You’ll need a generous roll of baking paper.
Wine Recommendation
Wine note: crack open a luscious, Australian sweet Semillon to match with these little mouthfuls. Serve chilled in small glasses – pop them in the fridge for a bit with the wine.