This recipe offers an elevated take on chocolate strawberries, featuring puff pastry-wrapped strawberries baked until golden brown, served with a homemade spiced coffee chocolate syrup.
For the Spiced Coffee Chocolate Syrup: Chop up 4 bars of good quality semi-sweet chocolate and peel two thick chunks of orange zest. In a sauce pot, add one cup of coffee, one star anise, a sprig of thyme, and the orange peels. Heat on high until it boils, then kill the heat and let sit for 2 minutes. Discard the solids (star anise, thyme, orange peels). Add in the chopped chocolate and heat on medium-high until melted and smooth. Add a pinch of salt and sugar, stir, and remove from heat.
For the "Croissant" Strawberries: Using puff pastry, cut out squares slightly larger than the strawberries you are using. Make sure not to cut all the way through, slice 1/4" ribs in the square of the sheet to form a curtain. Place a strawberry diagonally on the square and gently lift up the cut corner side up and over the center of the strawberry, then roll it over to finish. Once rolled, tuck the not-cut side and press it into the top of the strawberry. Brush with egg wash and top with poppy seeds. Chill in the fridge for 15 minutes. Preheat an oven to 425°F. Add the prepared strawberries to the oven, immediately drop the temperature to 400°F, and cook for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Garnish with the spiced coffee chocolate sauce and fresh thyme leaves.
