Sometimes, food can be the best gift. Especially if you’re giving a treat. Admittedly, getting a can of green beans or black olives probably wouldn’t have the same appeal as chocolate does… I particularly have a thing for treats dipped in chocolate. Fondue is my often my calorie splurge and I’ve got the extra padding to prove it… how long can I claim it as “baby fat” – it took 9 months to put it on, so I get 9 months to take it off, right?
Anyway, I combined my love of chocolate and some delicious strawberries to make a fun little gift for my sister-in-law for Mother’s Day. She likes chocolate too, so it was a hit. Ever priced a berry bouquet? They aren’t cheap, but I pulled mine together for under $10. These are my kind of flowers…
– Floral Tape
– Paper cups or floral foam to stick the skewers in while your chocolate berries harden
– Pre-packaged chocolate truffles. I cheated and used Godiva truffles rather than making them.
Directions:
– Wrap the skewers with the floral tape. Start at one end and wrap at a diagonal all the way down the skewer, pulling the tape tightly as you go. Don’t pull too tight, just keep it taut. Press the tape down on itself to seal it when you reach the other end.
– Melt the chocolate in 20-30 second increments in the microwave until it’s mostly all melted. Don’t overheat it or it will get grainy. Stir vigorously to melt the last few lumps.
– Stick a strawberry on a skewer and dip it in the melted chocolate. Rotate the skewer to even coat the berry.
– Poke the skewer into an overturned paper cup or the floral foam so the berry isn’t touching anything while the chocolate hardens.
– Repeat for each berry.
– Stick a skewer in the end of your truffles. I just untwisted one end, stuck the skewer inside the wrapper and into the truffle and then twisted the wrapper back up around the skewer. Worked great.
UPCYCLED TIN CAN VASE
Materials:
– Scrapbook paper
– Clean, empty tin can
– Tape
– Dried beans, rocks, glass marbles and such to use as filler in your vase
– Additional decor – like my heart skewers
– A Flower Frog (or Washi Tape – if you want to use Martha’s awesome cheat to help with holding up your arrangement)
Directions:
– Measure the can and cut a piece of scrapbook paper to fit around it.
– Use the tape to secure the paper where the edges overlap.
– Fill the can with your beans, rocks or whatever filler you are using.
– Set your flower frog in the bottom of the can or tape a grid across the mouth of the can with your washi tape to help hold your arrangement in place. If I’d had more time, I would have used the tape to decorate the can more so the tails from the grid on top wouldn’t have looked as out of place. But my recipient walked in as I was still arranging the bouquet…
– Arrange the berries and other skewered goodies in your vase.
Gift and watch the smiles… unless you eat them first. Then just enjoy those yummy berries and chocolate.
