These festive little strawberry penguins are the perfect healthier snack for holiday parties! If you’ve been looking for a fun edible Christmas craft to make with your kids, this is the one. Super simple, a classic flavor combination, and pretty darn cute, too!
Elysia’s Recipe Recap
Taste: A classic combination of rich dark chocolate and juicy, tart strawberries (with some crunchy candy eyeballs)
Ease: There are a few steps here, but this is a super simple project even kids can do! Younger kids may need some support assembling the smaller details.
Nutritional Benefits: Although this is definitely more of a dessert, it’s an easy way to get everyone to eat more fruits this time of year. Plus, strawberries are a fantastic source of fiber, vitamin C, and antioxidants, and the dark chocolate will offer an extra boost of antioxidants to help boost your immune system, heart health, and mood.
Serving Suggestions: Try serving these as a healthier appetizer or dessert along with your holiday meal. They also fit nicely into lunch boxes (without the skewer) and would be such a fun surprise for Christmas brunch!
Ingredient Notes
- Fresh strawberries: Look for strawberries that are firm, ripe and free of blemishes.
- Dark chocolate: Dark chocolate is lower in sugar and higher in polyphenols. Even if your little ones aren’t a fan of dark chocolate, the sweetness of the strawberries will balance it out.
- Coconut oil: Helps the chocolate melt and coat the strawberries more smoothly.
- Candy eyeballs: You can play around with different types of eyes if you’d prefer.
- Dried apricot: Cut into small triangle wedges to make the penguins beaks.
- Wooden skewers: For easy dipping and serving.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Give the strawberries a quick rinse under cool water, then let them dry completely. If you want to speed up the process, gently pat them with a paper towel until no moisture remains.
- In a small, microwave-safe bowl, combine the dark chocolate chips and coconut oil. Microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring after each interval, until the mixture is fully melted and smooth.
- Insert a skewer into the stem end of a strawberry. Holding the skewer, dip the strawberry on a diagonal into the melted chocolate so the upper portion is nicely covered.
- Tilt the strawberry to the left and then to the right, rolling it gently so each side gets an even coat. Be sure the back is fully covered, but leave a neat triangle of the red berry showing in the front—this will form the penguin’s belly.
- While the chocolate is still soft, press two candy eyes just above the uncovered section. Add a small dried apricot triangle underneath the eyes, but still above the exposed berry, to create the beak. Continue decorating the remaining strawberries the same way.
- Stand the skewers upright to let the chocolate dry. A foam floral block works perfectly since you can poke the skewers right in. The chocolate will set in about 20–30 minutes at room temperature, or a bit faster if you pop them in the fridge.
- Once the chocolate has hardened, they’re ready to serve and enjoy!
Scroll to the recipe card below for the full printable recipe!
Expert Tips
- If your strawberries aren’t completely dry, the chocolate will not stick to them. Be sure to let them air-dry or pat them well with a paper towel.
Storage Guidelines
Store any leftover chocolate-covered strawberry penguins in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. To keep them dry (and the chocolate crisp), it can help to arrange them on a paper towel to absorb excess moisture.
Recipe Variations
- Coat the belly: If you want your penguins to have a white belly, you can dip them in white chocolate first, then dark chocolate. Just bear in mind this will increase the sugar content, fat, and calories quite a bit.
More Holiday Treat Recipes
If you love getting your kids involved in the kitchen, this is a great time of year! These healthy Christmas snacks for kids include many other projects like this one, including Banana Snowmen, Santa Pancakes, and more.
For a sweeter treat, these Snowman Truffles are basically white chocolate truffles with shredded coconut. Absolutely delicious (and super cute)!
Did you make this recipe? Scroll down to leave a star rating and review!
Strawberry Penguins
Ingredients
- 15 fresh strawberries
- 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
- 1 teaspoon coconut oil
- 30 candy eyeballs
- 1 dried apricot, cut into small triangle wedges
- Wooden skewers
Instructions
- Give the strawberries a quick rinse under cool water, then let them dry completely. If you want to move things along, gently pat them with a paper towel until no moisture remains.
- In a small, microwave-safe bowl, combine the dark chocolate chips and coconut oil. Microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring after each interval, until the mixture is fully melted and smooth.
- Insert a skewer into the stem end of a strawberry. Holding the skewer, dip the strawberry on a diagonal into the melted chocolate so the upper portion is nicely covered.
- Tilt the strawberry to the left and then to the right, rolling it gently so each side gets an even coat. Be sure the back is fully covered, but leave a neat triangle of the red berry showing in the front—this will form the penguin’s belly.
- While the chocolate is still soft, press two candy eyes just above the uncovered section. Add a small dried apricot triangle underneath the eyes, but still above the exposed berry, to create the beak. Continue decorating the remaining strawberries the same way.
- Stand the skewers upright to let the chocolate dry. A foam floral block works perfectly since you can poke the skewers right in. The chocolate will set in about 20–30 minutes at room temperature, or a bit faster if you pop them in the fridge.
- Once the chocolate has hardened, they’re ready to serve and enjoy!
Notes
- If your strawberries aren’t completely dry, the chocolate will not stick to them. Be sure to let them air-dry or pat them well with a paper towel.
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