The Steward House Chocolate Fondue
For my daughter's birthday celebration, I was trying to make it special for her. The birthday girl loves chocolate-dipped fruit and honestly I found this a little intimidating. I decided to try chocolate fondue instead. It seemed like a good idea. I served with fresh strawberries, apples, mandarin oranges, Ticket marshmallows and flat pretzels from Costco.
I wanted a really good chocolate fondue. I'm not particularly interested in one that tastes mostly like melted milk chocolate. I wanted something richer, with a pronounced chocolate flavor, but not so dark that it would be bitter.
We decided to try Valrhona Caraïbe 66% dark chocolate with Valrhona Jivara 40% milk chocolate. The combination gives us a rich chocolate flavor with just enough sweetness. You can certainly use other chocolates with similar cocoa percentages.
I purchased a fondue warmer with a ceramic insert to keep the chocolate warm while everyone enjoyed dessert.
The recipe below serves approximately 10–12 people. We were entertaining 26 guests, so I planned a double batch.
Apologies, I did not take photos. I was busy living in the moment.
A Note on Safety
Melted chocolate and heated cream can be very hot. Use care when transferring the fondue to the warmer, and supervise children around the hot chocolate, fondue forks and electrical cords. For children, I recommend putting some in a bowl and letting it cool to a safe temperature for them to dip. I have a four year old granddaughter so this is always on our mind.
Recipe Information
Serves: Approximately 10–12 as part of a dessert table
Preparation time: 15–20 minutes, plus preparing the dippers
Cooking time: Approximately 10–15 minutes
Best served: Warm, with fresh fruit, marshmallows, pretzels and cookies
Equipment
Medium saucepan
Silicone spatula or wooden spoon
Measuring cups and spoons
Fondue warmer with ceramic insert
Knife and cutting board
Serving platters
Fondue forks or skewers
Ingredients
For the Chocolate Fondue
12 ounces Valrhona Caraïbe 66% dark chocolate, or a similar dark chocolate
6 ounces Valrhona Jivara 40% milk chocolate, or a similar milk chocolate
1¼ cups heavy whipping cream
¼ cup whole milk, plus more if needed
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon espresso powder, optional
Small pinch fine sea salt
For Dipping
Fresh strawberries
Honeycrisp apple wedges
Mandarin orange segments
Marshmallows
Flat pretzels from Costco
Cookies
Choose whatever combination your guests will enjoy. You don't need all of them.
A Few Notes About the Ingredients
Chocolate: I chose Valrhona because I wanted excellent chocolate for this dessert. Other baking chocolates will work well too. Aim for approximately 60–70% cocoa in the dark chocolate and 35–45% in the milk chocolate. Avoid chocolate chips if possible because some contain stabilizers that can affect melting.
Cream and milk: The cream gives the fondue richness, while the milk helps keep it smooth and easy to dip into.
Espresso powder: Just a little deepens the chocolate flavor without making it taste like coffee. It's optional.
How I Make It
Preparing the chocolate
If you're using chocolate bars, chop them into small pieces so they melt evenly. Chocolate fèves or similarly sized pieces can be used as they are.
Measure the remaining ingredients.
Heating the cream
Pour the heavy cream and whole milk into a saucepan.
Warm over medium-low heat until hot and beginning to steam. Don't let it boil.
Remove from the heat.
Melting the chocolate
Add both chocolates to the warm cream and let them sit for a minute or two.
Stir gently until the chocolate has completely melted and the mixture is smooth.
If needed, return the saucepan to very low heat briefly, stirring constantly.
Add the vanilla, optional espresso powder and a pinch of salt.
The fondue should be smooth and thick enough to coat a strawberry, but still easy to dip into.
If it's too thick, stir in a tablespoon of warm milk at a time until you like the consistency.
Into the fondue warmer
Prepare the warmer according to the manufacturer's instructions.
Carefully transfer the chocolate into the ceramic insert and keep it on a low warming setting.
Stir occasionally so the chocolate stays smooth.
Avoid overheating it. The warmer should keep the fondue ready for dipping, not continue cooking it.
Serving
Wash and thoroughly dry the fruit. Cut the apples shortly before serving so they stay fresh.
Arrange the fruit, marshmallows, pretzels and cookies on serving platters around the fondue warmer.
Serve the chocolate warm with fondue forks or skewers.
Preparing Ahead
You can prepare the dippers and measure the chocolate earlier in the day.
I prefer making the chocolate shortly before serving, but you can prepare it ahead, refrigerate it promptly and reheat it gently over a double boiler.
Add a little warm milk if needed to restore the consistency.
For a larger gathering, the recipe can be doubled.
A Few Things I've Learned
Use excellent chocolate, it was worth it.
I prefer more dark chocolate than milk chocolate for a richer flavor.
Don't boil the cream or overheat the chocolate.
Add milk a little at a time if the fondue needs thinning.
A ceramic-insert warmer is convenient for keeping the chocolate warm while guests serve themselves.
Dry the fruit well before dipping.
Keep the selection of dippers simple. A few good choices are plenty. The Ticket marshmallows everyone raved about.
I covered the flame partway through so it went out, because I felt it was getting too warm for the chocolate.
Food Safety & Allergens
This recipe contains milk. Check chocolate labels for soy, nuts and other allergens. Cookies, pretzels and cake may contain wheat, egg, milk or nuts.
Wash fresh fruit before serving and supervise children around the hot fondue.
Follow the warmer manufacturer's instructions. Do not leave dairy-based fondue at room temperature for more than two hours, or one hour in temperatures above 90°F.
Use clean dipping utensils. Refrigerate uncontaminated leftovers promptly and use within 3–4 days. Discard fondue that has been contaminated by communal dipping or left out too long.