Dark Chocolate Toffee Dipped Apricots

It’s my birthday and I was all psyched to go to yoga and then go out with my yogi friends for a celebratory birthday drink. But, it being January and “dangerously” cold outside, they cancelled yoga, along with any celebration I may have wanted for the anniversary of my alive-ness. Sigh. How so like every year on my birthday.

I remember another birthday like this, just a couple years ago. It was f-ing cold and blizzard-y outside and NOBODY was venturing out, but I was not having any of this “staying home” stuff. It was my birthday, dang it, and I was determined to go OUT to celebrate! My kids and I headed downtown to a restaurant I thought we would all like. (I’m just lucky  my kids are good sports!) The restaurant was deserted … there were only 3 tables of people in the whole place, but at one of the tables was seated our future mayor. He came over and introduced himself and shook our hands. I thought it odd that of all the people that would be out that night, it would be me and the mayor. I’m sure he doesn’t remember me, but I will never forget that particular birthday.

This year, I smiled when they brought me a cupcake at work and sang me happy birthday. I gave away the cupcake because it wasn’t chocolate (what’s the point of eating cake if it’s not chocolate?), but I saved the pretty purple ribbon and tied it around my plant because the lovely purple-ness of it made me happy. I frowned when I saw that they cancelled yoga tonight because it’s “too cold” outside (what wimps!) … but smiled when my kids said they were totally up to go out for dinner. … and then I was a little disappointed when the dinner was not so great, but we followed it up with good coffee and milkshakes at the diner which totally made up for it. So it was a day of ups and downs, little disappointments, but overall a good birthday with lots of well wishes from lots of wonderful people.

These chocolate dipped apricots are a little like my birthday … I thought when I dipped them in dark chocolate that it would be marvelous, but then I was disappointed that it really wasn’t all as great as I’d hoped, even with the really good soft apricots and the fine quality dark chocolate that I use. However, I was happy to discover that if you dip them in chocolate and THEN toffee bits, that little bit of toffee crunch at the end along with the creamy, bitter dark chocolate and the soft sweet-tart apricots totally turns them around and makes them delightful.

All in all, despite the tiny disappointments that I grumble about, I’m happy to be alive, happy to have friends and family who love me, happy that my kids are willing to brave the cold to celebrate with me, happy that I am able to make food that makes me happy inside and out, happy that I have friends and family and neighbors to help me eat it all. It’s a good day to be alive.

Dark Chocolate Dipped Toffee Apricots

• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 5 minutes
• Total Time: 20 minutes
• Yield: as many as you like!

Print Recipe

Pin Recipe

---

Ingredients

• Toffee bits, chopped fine
• Quality dark chocolate chips or dark chocolate, chopped
• Dried apricots

---

Instructions

1. Pour the toffee chips into a bowl. Line a baking sheet with a silicon baking mat or waxed paper.
2. Put the dark chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on high for 1 minute. Stir. Put the chocolate back in the microwave and cook for another 30 seconds. Stir and stir and stir and you will see the chocolate melting. If it still has lumps after lots of stirring, put it back in the microwave for another 30 seconds, then start stirring again. The chocolate should become nice and smooth and fully melted.
3. Dip the apricots in chocolate, then in toffee bits and set on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat until you run out of chocolate or toffee or apricots (or you just have enough).
4. Let the apricots sit until the chocolate is set. Store in an airtight container until serving time.

---

Notes

RECIPE SOURCE: http://www.sumptuousspoonfuls.com/

© Copyright 2015, Sumptuous Spoonfuls. All images & content are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If you want to publish any of my images, please ask first. If you want to republish this recipe as your own, please re-write the recipe in your own words or link back to this post for the recipe.

This recipe was shared at Tuesday’s Table, Let’s Get Real, Foodie Fridays, Freedom Fridays, Foodie Friends Friday, PureBlogLove, The Weekend Social and What to Do Weekends.