Bowls of Chocolate

As previously documented on Maren and Kelli's blogs, our Sunday-after-Valentine's family dinner was extra fun. That is always the case when Kelli comes to town. We thought an attempt at chocolate bowls would be a fun way to celebrate the holiday of love. The process involved lots of laughing, and a good amount of frustration as well. Here's the how-to:

Chocolate Bowls

10 ounces finely chopped dark chocolate, divided
Small balloons, filled with air

Grease a cookie sheet or line it with parchment paper.
Place 5 ounces of the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir until completely melted. Remove it from heat and stir in the remaining 5 ounces chocolate until thoroughly smooth. Spoon 1/2 teaspoon melted chocolate onto prepared pan to form a small disk. Dip the balloon into the bowl of chocolate, coating about a third of the balloon. Place the dipped end of the balloon on the chocolate disk. Repeat with remaining chocolate and balloons. Place in the refrigerator to set, about 30 minutes.
In order to release the air from the balloon, pinch the balloon just under the knot and cut a small hole in the surface between fingers and knot. Very gradually release air; if air is released too quickly, the bowls may break. Carefully peel the deflated balloons from the chocolate bowls.

And here's what we learned through the process:

*These are best suited to be made for a smaller group. Eight? Yes. Six? Even better. Thirty? We won't be doing that again.
*The chocolate canNOT be too hot- the balloons pop easily. It must be barely melty and barely warm. It will be thicker this way, too, which is good because the balloons will come out easier if the chocolate is thick and sturdy.
*