Chocolate Sundae Cups

This is a fun refreshment that we served at a recent baby shower for a really good friend of mine. I love it because it looks super complicated and fancy, but is just not that big of a deal... once you get the kinks worked out. :) I had a few kinks and am here to share what worked for me, so sorry for the length. It really is a simple recipe. :)

You need:

chocolate chips

foil cupcake liners

cupcake pan

pastry brush

measuring cup (I used a glass 2 c or 4 c one)

freezer

Put one cup of chocolate chips in your measuring cup and microwave for one minute. They will still be somewhat formed. Stir together. Line your cupcake pan with the six foil cupcake liners. You probably don't really need a cupcake pan, but it helps keep the shape you want. Spoon chocolate into the bottom of each cupcake liner. Work quickly to use your pastry brush and brush chocolate up the sides of the liner. Place in the freezer to set up. The recipe I consulted said to do this three times. With a thick enough coat, you only need to do it once.

One cup of chocolate chips works for six sundae cups. Do not try to do more than this at once. The chocolate chips are more likely to burn in the microwave (a very hard smell to get out of your house, trust me!), and the larger quantity may harden before you can apply it in the cups the way you want.

Experts may also say that microwaving chocolate is totally taboo. It worked fine for me though, and I didn't have the patience to use the double broiler melting technique one cup at a time when I was making such a large number. Microwaving proved much better for me and my needs. I ended up forming somewhat of an assembly line with two of my wonderful Young Women who shared part of their MLK Jr Day making these lovelies with me. I kept with the microwaving and spooning out and measuring-cup washing. They brushed the chocolate up the sides. What a team! :)

After the chocolate has set up, pull away the foil liner to reveal your dainty and beautiful little chocolate cup. We waited until just before serving to remove all the foil liners, but it could probably be done further in advance. Scoop in some yummy ice cream. Top with a squirt of whipped cream and a piped chocolate heart. Again, I microwaved some chips in the same fashion to melt, put them in a Ziploc bag, cut off the corner, and piped some "artistic" hearts onto a wax-paper lined cookie sheet. Put the cookie sheet into the freezer to set up the hearts. The hearts pop right off.Serve and enjoy!

Notes (based on experience):

* Although a ganache mixture (heavy whipping cream and chocolate) tastes better than plain chocolate chips, it does NOT set up enough to hold its shape. It is impossible to peel away the foil. The chocolate is too malleable. Believe me; I tried it. :)

* Do NOT try smoothing out the chocolate with water. Big no-no! Everyone in the world probably already knows that and I probably had heard that before. Heck, I probably even read that that morning on the Internet when researching all things chocolate. But, I tried it. It does NOT work. Now I know and will never forget. :)