How to make Chocolate Covered Strawberries Into Teddy Bears! [video]

Strawberry lovers do I have a yummy Valentine's Day recipe for you! Let me show you how to make chocolate covered strawberry teddy bears. This fun twist on a traditional chocolate dipped strawberries recipe is super cute and oh, so sweet.

Looking for chocolate strawberries but with a fun twist? Then surprise your loved ones this Valentine’s Day with a plate or box of these adorable Chocolate Covered Strawberry Bears.

RELATED: See all my Valentine’s Day Recipe Ideas, here!

Wondering how to decorate chocolate covered strawberries? Well consider making them into adorable teddy bears. These aren’t your traditional stuffed animal teddy bears that we typically get for Valentines Day. These are even better!!

Awe!  That's all I can say every time I look at one of these Chocolate Dipped Strawberry Bears. How about you?

Each bear with it's fuzzy little face is just so sweet. These fun little desserts would make fun gifts or treats for Valentine's Day, a baby shower, a birthday party, or any day.

I had so much fun making these that I can't believe that this was the very first time I've ever decorated a chocolate covered strawberry to share with you here on Hungry Happenings. Now I have a zillion more ideas so I'm sure you'll be seeing more of them here very soon.

Chocolate Covered Strawberries Staples

You all know me and that I absolutely love to work with melted chocolate. Which means that I know all the good stuff that should be included in your very own chocolate dipped recipes, here are some of our must-have ingredients.

• pure milk chocolate or melted light cocoa candy melts
• strawberries
• optional decorations like candy eyes and M&M's

Best Chocolate for Dipping Strawberries?

These little chocolate treats are really simple to make using either pure milk chocolate and milk chocolate callets (wafers) or by using light cocoa candy melts and candy melt wafers. My favorite milk chocolate is Peter's Ultra Milk Chocolate. It has an amazing flavor with hints of caramel. I've been using it for over 30 years.

If you choose to dip your strawberries in pure milk chocolate {like I did in this tutorial} then you will want to temper the chocolate for the best results. You can read all about working with chocolate and candy melts on my chocolate making tips page.

Simple Chocolate Tempering Method:

I’ve already gone into great detail on what is tempered chocolate and how to temper chocolate properly so click that link if you need those instructions. Here’s a quick recap:

1. Chop ¾ of your chocolate into really fine pieces.
2. Heat the chopped chocolate in the microwave on 50% power for 15 second increments, stirring after each, and allowing the chocolate to rest for a minute, then stirring again.
3. Heat until almost all the chocolate is melted.
4. Remove and continue to stir until all the chocolate is melted.
5. Check the temperature of the chocolate.
6. If it hasn't gone above 89 degrees then your chocolate will still be in temper and it's ready to use.
7. If it has, then continue to heat the chocolate until the temperature reaches 115 degrees Fahrenheit.
8. Then add the remaining chunk of chocolate and stir continuously until the chocolate cools to 89-90 degrees F.
9. Remove the chocolate chunk and test the temper of the chocolate by dipping the tip of a knife into the melted chocolate and setting it on your counter. If the chocolate hardens within a few minutes and is shiny the chocolate is tempered and ready to work with.
10. If needed you can return the chocolate to the microwave and heat at 50% power for 5 seconds to keep it warm.

Can I use Candy Melts to coat my strawberries?

Yes you can. Melting candy melts or any other type of confectionery coating like Ghirardelli Melting Wafers (for a light color, mix the dark and white wafers together), Peter's West Chester, Merkens Coco Lite Coatings, almond bark, or Candi Quik is easier than hand tempering chocolate. It only requires being melted to about 110-115 degree Fahrenheit.

You will need candy melts wafers or chocolate callets to make the ears on these teddy bears.

How to melt candy melts?

1. Pour 16 ounces candy melts wafers into a microwave safe bowl.
2. Heat on high power for 30 second increments, stirring after each, until about 75% melted.
3. Allow the residual heat of the melted chocolate to melt the remaining wafers as you stir until completely melted.

Now that you know the basics, I am excited to share my super cute Teddy Bear chocolate covered strawberries recipe with you. I hope they become a staple in your home kitchen. They would be perfect to make for Valentine's Day, baby showers, birthday parties, or slumber parties.

Video: How To Make Chocolate Covered Strawberries Into Bears (Watch the video to see how!)

This chocolate dipped strawberries recipe is easier than it looks! {pinky swear} So don’t worry, I’ve hooked you up with a video on what’s the best chocolate to use, all my expert tips and tricks, and even how to store the strawberry fruit for later.

Recipe Variation Idea:

If you want to make Chocolate Dipped Strawberry Polar Bears use white chocolate instead.

Some of the ingredients needed to make these chocolate strawberry teddy bears can be found on amazon.

Recipe: Chocolate Covered Strawberry Teddy Bears

5 from 1 vote

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Chocolate Covered Strawberry Bears

Prep Time

20 mins

Total Time

20 mins

 

Sweet little chocolate dipped strawberries decorated with candy to look like teddy bears.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: bear themed desserts, chocolate covered strawberries

Servings: 16

Author: Beth Jackson Klosterboer

Ingredients

• 16 ounces melted and tempered pure milk chocolate or melted light cocoa candy melts*
• 16 strawberries, wiped clean and patted dry
• 32 (½ inch) candy eyes
• 16 brown M&M's
• 32 milk chocolate callets or light cocoa candy melts wafers, cut into ¾ moons.
• * See the Chocolate Making Tips page for melting/tempering instructions.

Instructions

1. Pour the chocolate into a small bowl or glass.
2. Dip one strawberry into the chocolate then set it on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
3. Take a fork and press it into the chocolate, then pull up and away quickly creating spikes.
4. Repeat this process until the entire chocolate strawberry looks furry.
5. Immediate press two candy eyes and an M&M nose onto the chocolate.
6. Dip the cut edge of two chocolate wafers in chocolate and attach them to either side of the top of the strawberry creating the bear's ears.
7. Let the strawberry air dry.
8. Repeat dipping all 16 bears.
9. If desired, brush a second layer of chocolate over the bottom of each strawberry to seal in the berry.

This post was originally published in January 2018 and was updated in January 2019.

 Did you make this recipe? Let me know by leaving a comment and rating the recipe below.

Recipe Tips & Tricks

If you have never dipped chocolate strawberries, below are a few notes about the process.

Cleaning strawberries to be dipped in chocolate...

• Get a paper towel wet then ring it out so it’s just damp. Wipe the strawberries clean then pat dry with another paper towel. This will keep your strawberries fresher longer and keep them from seeping (losing their liquid) too much.

Eat the chocolate strawberries today!

• Chocolate covered strawberries are best eaten the day they are made.
• If you plan to keep the strawberries longer, then it’s a good idea to double dip the bottom of the berry to avoid the juice from the berry leaking out the bottom.
• You can leave your berries at room temperature after dipping if you plan to eat them within 24 hours.

Decorating tips:

• Dip one strawberry at a time, allow the chocolate to thicken just enough that you can create the spikes of fur using a fork.
• Immediately add the candy eyes and M&M nose.
• Dip the cut edge of the chocolate wafers in chocolate then attach them to the top of the strawberry then make them look furry too.

Time Saving Ideas:

• Grab a family member or friends to help out!
• One of you can dip and create the fur while the other adds the decorations.
• By doing this you won't have to continually clean your hands between dipping and decorating.

Issues You Might Encounter:

• Aack, I dropped a strawberry into the chocolate!
  • Use a fork to lift it out then just save that chocolate covered strawberry for a snack.
• Help the chocolate on my chocolate dipped strawberry cracked!
  • Just cover the crack with a bit more chocolate using a food-use-only paint brush or a toothpick. Then create more spikes and you won't even notice the crack.
• My chocolate strawberries have juice oozing out the bottom.
  • See the tips below to avoid this issue and learn how to fix it if it does happen.

How to Avoid Strawberry Sweat:

• If you refrigerate the chocolate covered strawberries know that condensation (tiny beads of sweat) will form on the chocolate unless they are stored properly. To avoid this follow the storage instructions below.

How to Store Chocolate Covered Strawberries?

If you’ve been wondering how to store store chocolate covered strawberries in the refrigerator then I’ve got you covered. Here’s what you do.

Step 1. Place a paper towel in the bottom of a corrugated cardboard box. Sprinkle baking soda on top of the first paper towel then set another paper towel on top.

Step 2. Place your strawberries on top of the clean paper towel, close the box lid and place in the refrigerator.

Step 3. At least 1 hour before you plan to plate, package, or serve the chocolate coated berries set the closed box on the counter and let them come up to room temperature while in the box.

Step 4. Remove the berries from the box and enjoy.

Taking these steps will help keep the chocolate coating on the strawberries dryer than any other storage method.

Now that you know the details about making chocolate dipped strawberries, watch the video above to see how to turn them into these adorably cute chocolate strawberry bears.

Chocolate Covered Strawberries FAQ

I’ve gotten lots of questions over the years about dipping strawberries into chocolate so I've listed below some of the answers to the most common questions.

What is the best chocolate for dipping strawberries?

• Pure melted and tempered dark, milk or white chocolate but confectionery coating (Candy Melts, Merkens, Ghirardelli Melting Wafers, Candi Quik, and Almond Bark) also work, as well.

Can you make chocolate covered strawberries with chocolate syrup?

• Only if you plan to dip the strawberry in the chocolate syrup then eat it immediately.
  • Chocolate syrup will not harden or even set up so your only option is to dip and pop the chocolate covered strawberry in your mouth immediately.
• Strawberries taste amazing dipped in chocolate ganache which can be made thin or thick.
  • Ganache made with a 2:1 ratio of chocolate to heavy whipping cream will firm up a bit but will still remain soft.
  • If you dip your strawberries in chocolate ganache, set them on a non-stick tin foil lined baking sheet then allow them to dry at room temperature until you are able to peel them off the tray. This may take several hours.
  • I used this method to make Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Bunnies. They are furry too!

Can you make chocolate covered strawberries using the microwave?

• Yes, you can melt and temper chocolate or melt confectionery coating (candy melts) using the microwave.
• See the melting instructions above.

Can chocolate covered strawberries be made ahead of time?

• You can make chocolate dipped strawberries up to 24 hours in advance.

Can chocolate covered strawberries be frozen?

• No! Chocolate covered strawberries should not be frozen.
• When strawberries thaw they seep moisture which will ruin a chocolate coated strawberry.

Can chocolate covered strawberries stay out overnight?

• Yes, strawberries that have been wiped clean and dipped in chocolate can sit out at room temperature for about 24 hours, perhaps longer depending on the freshness of the berries.

How long can chocolate covered strawberries last?

• This will depend the freshness of you strawberries.
• If you dip a strawberry that was freshly picked then they might last up to several days.
• Most grocery store berries will keep for about 24 hours once dipped in chocolate.

Why do chocolate covered strawberries leak?

• Strawberries dipped in chocolate often leak because as the chocolate dries it contracts around the strawberry putting slight pressure on the berry, thereby squeezing out some of it's juice.
• Also if strawberries are washed and not thoroughly dried they will also leak.

Did you make this recipe? Let me know by leaving a comment and rating the recipe below.

What Did I Miss?

I tried to answer all of the questions that you've asked over the years, however, if I’ve missed yours then be sure to leave it in the comments as I want you to be able to make these too! I also take requests, so if you’re looking for something specific let me know in the comments.

More chocolate recipes here…

If you love the taste of chocolate and berries be sure to check out my recipe to make these beautiful Chocolate Mousse Cup Hearts. Each is topped with a fresh raspberry.

Plus, check out these Valentine recipes…

For a fun twist on a chocolate covered strawberry you might also like to make these fun chocolate covered or plain Fruit Pizza Strawberries.

or these dairy free Chocolate Drizzled Strawberry Mousse Hearts.

Other strawberry recipes you’ll love:

• Strawberry Kiwi Fruit Pizza Watermelon Recipe
• Strawberry Cheesecake Heart Surprise Cake Recipe

See all my Valentine’s Day Recipe Ideas, here!

What Valentine’s Day treats do you make?

Fun food for special occasions or every day! Cuz I love being in the kitchen more than scrubbing my house. {giggle}

~ Beth

P.S.  Sign up for my newsletter and get your FREE amazing printable here!

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Beth

Hi, I'm Beth Jackson Klosterboer, a professional chocolatier & baker, cookbook author, and event planner. I love sharing recipes for happy occasions here on Hungry Happenings. I also create easy fudge recipes to share at HowToMakeEasyFudge.com, rice krispie treat recipes at HowToMakeCerealTreats.com, and easy cookie recipes at HowToMakeEasyCookies.com

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