Happy Chocolate Day!

Did you know that October 28 is National Chocolate Day? If you needed an excuse to indulge in this delicious treat, you're welcome. ;)

And with Halloween just a few days away, you've got one more reason for treating yourself to a delicious chocolate fondue, particularly with the left-over candy bars you'll have on November 1. As such, this month I decided to share a few chocolate fondue recipes along with a few tips to make sure your next chocolate fondue is a success!

Note: If you've left comments on bestfondue.com at some point between July and now, I wasn't able to read them. There was a bug with the Facebook code. It should be fixed now. I apologize if I missed your questions or comments. Feel free to email me directly at [email protected] or post your questions on our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/bestfonduerecipes where I'll gladly answer any fondue-related question you may have.

Fondue Tip of the Month

How NOT to Mess Up Chocolate Fondue

When making chocolate fondue, you must be careful with your melting temperature. While it may be tempting to put chocolate in a microwavable bowl and cook it on high for a few minutes or put it on direct heat on the stovetop, you’ll end up burning your chocolate or you'll turn it into a lumpy and grainy mess.

Once burnt, you can’t fix it. It's done. Burnt. Bad. You’ll need to get new chocolate.

So…. How do you melt chocolate? Three ways: in a double-boiler, in the microwave, or in your fondue pot.

Double-Boiler

A double-boiler is basically a pot within a pot, with water in the bottom/larger pot. The upper/smaller pot is where you put the chocolate you want to melt (broken up in smallish pieces). Because the chocolate is heated indirectly, you can't burn it. You'll need to use a dry spoon to stir your chocolate. You can keep re-using the same spoon (and leave whatever chocolate is on it), but don’t rinse your spoon or do anything that would ‘add water’ as it will make the mixture clumpy.

Microwave

If you want to use your microwave, do it slowly and on low-power.

• Break it into chunks (the smaller the better, but no need to go crazy)
• Melt it on ‘low’ for about 30 seconds at a time
• Check, stir and repeat until fully melted (last intervals will likely be shorter)
• Time will vary depending on your microwave and how ‘low’ you can go. Some people may be able to get away with ’60-second intervals’ (especially for the first couple of times), but as your chocolate starts melting, reduce the time, and go with 10 second bursts (always on low power).

No matter which way you choose to do it, it’s important to ‘stir’ your chocolate even though a quick visual inspection may indicate that your chunks haven’t melted much. It’s because chocolate can melt from the inside-out in the microwave, so looks can be deceiving.

As with the double-boiler method, stir your chocolate with a dry spoon. You can keep re-using the same spoon (and leave whatever wet/dry chocolate is on it), but don’t rinse your spoon or do anything that would ‘add water’ to your chocolate as it will make the mixture clumpy.

In Your Fondue Pot

The tealight can burn your chocolate, so if you want to melt it directly in your fondue pot (or in a sauce pan on the stovetop), start by adding the "liquid" the recipe calls for, which is normally cream. By warming the liquid first (just under boiling) and then adding the broken-up pieces a little bit at a time, you won't risk burning your chocolate. But keep stirring!

Monthly Recipe Idea

Depending on your left-over Halloween candy, you may want to try one of these recipes:

Toblerone Fondue & More

Toblerone: https://www.bestfondue.com/toblerone-fondue.html

Mars Bar: https://www.bestfondue.com/caramel-chocolate-fondue.html

Dark Chocolate: https://www.bestfondue.com/dark-chocolate-fondue-recipe.html

You can experiment with pretty much any type of chocolate bars. The basic recipe is the same:

• You melt your chocolate slowly, on low heat (see tips above).
• You add a little bit of dairy (milk, condensed milk, cream, etc.) to adjust for consistency and sweetness.
• You can add a little bit of liqueur or non-alcoholic flavoring as well (vanilla, orange, mint...) (optional).

You'll obviously need dippers to dunk into the delicious melted chocolate, so choose whatever fruits/breads/nuts/desserts you like and cut them into bite-sized pieces. You’ll find lots of fruit and other dipper recommendations if you click on the recipe links posted above.

With experience, you'll discover that certain dippers go better with certain types of dessert fondue.

Have fun and experiment!

Food For Thought

- Ernestine Ulmer

That's it for now. Want more fondue tips and ideas?

Visit the site and browse through my collection of fondue recipes or explore my fondue site in French.

You'll hear back from me in a few weeks.

Until then, be careful with open flames, and have fun with fondue!

Regards,

Caroline Begin
Fondue Fan and Novelist

P.S. If you haven't heard, BestFondue.com's Volume 3 is out. Get the complete guide to hosting a French-Inspired beef oil fondue dinner today!