Easy Homemade Chocolate Fondue

Making fondue is surprisingly easy. It simply requires gently heating cream, chocolate, and some vanilla until melted and smooth, which takes less than 15 minutes. And you don't even need a fondue pot. Just pick your favorite brand of chocolate, as the flavor will be critical to the finished dip. Then grab your choice of dippers and dig in!

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This crowd-pleasing recipe serves 12 to 14 people, but if you have a smaller group the recipe can easily be cut in half. And if you have an even larger group (and a large enough pot), you can certainly double it too.

The Best Chocolate for Fondue

Chocolate fondue can be made with chocolate chips, chopped bars or blocks of chocolate, or chocolate wafers or discs.

This recipe calls for semisweet chocolate, which contains least 35 percent cocoa solids. It’s the most versatile chocolate, and you’ll see it called for in all kinds of baking recipes. It's also great for just eating.

Common Chocolate Types and Varieties

If you are looking for a more intense chocolate flavor, you can use bittersweet chocolate instead of semisweet. Bittersweet chocolate also has at least 35 percent cocoa solids. In Europe, it might be labeled dark chocolate. It’s usually (but not always) darker and less sweet than semisweet. It can also be used for baking and eating.

Fondue can also be made with milk chocolate or white chocolate if you prefer your fondue sweet and mild.

What to Dip in Chocolate Fondue

As for dippers, you can dip all kinds of things into the fondue—you ​​and and your kids or friends can have a pretty good time figuring out what to serve with your chocolate bliss. Here are just a few ideas:

• Sliced fresh fruit such as bananas, apples, and pears
• Orange segments
• Strawberries
• Dried fruit like pitted dates
• Marshmallows
• Savory snacks like pretzels and potato chips
• Cake or banana bread cubes
• Butter cookies, biscotti, or graham crackers
• Rice crispy treats
  

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How to Serve Chocolate Fondue

If you have a fondue pot: Once you've made your fondue on the stovetop, transfer it to the fondue pot to keep it warm. If you have an electric fondue pot, you can prepare the fondue right in the same pot—no transferring required.

If you don't have a fondue pot: If you don't have a fondue pot, you can just put the pot you made the fondue in on a trivet on the table. Warn everyone, especially the kids, that the pot is hot. Rewarm it over very low heat as needed. You can also use a slow cooker on the "keep warm" setting to keep fondue warm.

For the dippers: Find some great platters or cake stands to present your dipper choices, and make sure you have skewers. If you have a fondue pot, it often comes with skewers in different colors so everyone can keep track of whose is whose—or just put out some disposable wooden skewers.