We're trying Baker's new baking chocolate flavor: bittersweet. The Baker's people tell us that this new product is "ideal for dipping, baking and frosting." The package contains six individually-wrapped 1-ounce squares and costs $1.99.
Nihla Lake (married, two children at home): "I can't eat chocolate so I let my husband test it. He said he'd never tried chocolate-dipped strawberries so this was a good excuse to indulge. He said, `What a delightful combination - sweet, juicy strawberries dripping with rich bittersweet chocolate. A great summertime treat while you're lounging by the pool sipping lemonade!' (He's a big dreamer!)"Edyth Jensen (married, one daughter and two grandkids at home): "This is good enough to eat right out of the box, especially if you are a `chocoholic.' We melted a block of it and without adding anything else, dipped strawberries and enjoyed. It was sweet enough without adding the syrup the recipe called for. It also worked well in a batch of brownies. It will be on our list for use from time to time."
Don Russell (married, five children at home, ages 6-16): "Since bittersweet baking squares are not real common, we expected to find more recipes on the box panels than we did. We finally decided to make some brownies that turned out rather flavorful and tasty. The chocolate squares are appealing and smack of chocolate essence. We were happy to try this product, but we'll likely use unsweetened baking squares in the future."
Linda C. Tingey (single mother, two sons at home): "To tell you the truth, I was hesitant to try this as dipping chocolate because the last time I melted chocolate squares, I hated the bitter taste. I've really been missing out! This is the most delicious, smooth chocolate. They've got enough sweetening in it that the bitter taste is gone. I didn't even use the cream and corn syrup called for in the recipe and it was delicious. I dipped fruit into it and it was wonderful. I would strongly suggest readers try the recipes. Chocolate lovers will go nuts."
Rich Firmage (married, four children, oldest 12 years old): "Congrats, Bill, on your marriage. Too bad all of us testers couldn't have gone to test something in Hawaii. Now, for the chocolate. We tried to figure out what was `new' about this stuff. The only thing we could figure is that the package is a bit different. It still seems to be the same chocolate - still good for the same things and still bitter."
Bill Allred (newlywed): "I've never been one to do much baking, but when I saw a picture on the box of strawberries being dipped into chocolate, I thought `there's the thing to do with these chocolate squares.' How can you go wrong? Just some corn syrup and cream in the microwave and then melt in the squares. Mighty good with strawberries and other fresh fruit."
Conclusion: If you think a hot fudge sundae tastes great - wait until you try cold strawberries dipped in this great chocolate! Then try some brownies. We think you'll like this new not-very bittersweet chocolate.