Chocolate-Covered Strawberries With Nutella Cream Cheese

I used a disposable piping bag with a star piping tip to get the pretty swirls. Feel free to use a zip-top bag sans piping tip for a more straightforward presentation.

Makes 18 strawberries

18 strawberries

1 cup premium dark chocolate wafers

10 wafers each of colored candy melts for decorating (red, pink or white)

4 ounces (half package) Neufchâtel or regular cream cheese

1⁄4 cup Nutella hazelnut spread with cocoa

1 teaspoon Dutch-process cocoa powder or natural unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon powdered sugar or 1:1 powdered sugar substitute (use more for a sweeter filling)

Rinse and thoroughly pat dry the strawberries. Place on a towel-lined baking sheet. Line a second large rimmed baking sheet with waxed paper, a silicone mat or baking parchment. Set aside.

Fill a saucepan with 1 inch of water. Place a stainless steel or glass bowl on top of the pan, ensuring it doesn’t float or touch the water. Turn the heat to medium-high and bring the water to a gentle simmer, providing it isn’t simmering so much that it touches the bowl. Add the chocolate and wait 45 seconds before stirring with a rubber spatula until most of the chocolate has melted. Transfer the bowl of chocolate to a work surface, drying the bottom before setting it down. Continue stirring until the chocolate is smooth and completely melted. Poke a strawberry with a skewer and dunk it into the chocolate two-thirds of the way, swirling the strawberry to coat. Lift out and gently tap the skewer on the side of the bowl to remove excess chocolate. Slide the strawberry off the skewer onto the prepared baking sheet. Nudge the strawberry forward a quarter inch to ensure that the tip of the berry isn’t sitting in a puddle of chocolate. Repeat with remaining strawberries, returning the chocolate bowl to the simmering water as needed to keep the chocolate fluid.

Melt 10 colored candy melts in a clean, dry double boiler. Transfer melted candy to a resealable sandwich bag.

Massage candy into a corner and snip off the tip. Drizzle over the strawberries to decorate. Let the coated berries harden at room temperature for about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, beat the cheese, Nutella, cocoa and sugar of choice with a hand mixer until thoroughly combined and fluffy. Prepare a disposable piping bag with a star tip; add the Nutella filling to the bag and refrigerate until ready to use.

Pick up a strawberry, avoiding touching the chocolate. Use a paring knife to slice off the top, then use the blade’s tip to make a well for the filling. Repeat with remaining berries. Once you’ve prepped all the berries, pipe the filling into the hole. Then, starting at the outer edge, pipe, swirling toward the center, finishing with an upward motion to create a tip; repeat with remaining berries. Refrigerate them for up to two days, removing them 20 to 30 minutes before serving.

Place a bowl over a saucepan containing 1 inch of water, ensuring the bowl doesn’t float or touch the water. Bring water to a simmer. Add the chocolate; wait 45 seconds before stirring.

Melt 10 colored candy melts in a clean, dry double boiler (do this for each color if using more than one color). Transfer to a resealable sandwich bag.

After dipping the berry, slide it off the skewer onto the baking sheet. To get a clean tip, nudge the berry forward a quarter inch.

Massage candy into a corner; snip off tip. Drizzle over the berries. Let berries harden at room temperature for 30 minutes.