Copycat Melting Pot Chocolate Fondue - In the Slow Cooker

Gosh, do I love me some chocolate fondue.

I used to love going to The Melting Pot and getting their chocolate fondue - they have so many yummies to dip into it!  I'm talking marshmallows, pound cake, rice crispie treats, brownies, strawberries, bananas, etc.  They also have different types of chocolate fondue: some with peanut butter, some with liqueurs - everything is delicious.

What I didn't realize: I can make chocolate fondue that tastes just as good as the restaurant...at my home! 

I'm not kidding.  This copycat fondue tastes just as good as The Melting Pot's fondue.  Plus, it's veganized!  You can choose to use the slow cooker or make it fairly quickly on the stove.  I'm the type of person that likes to put it in the Crockpot and leave it alone for 45 minutes.  You can probably make it in less than 10 minutes on the stove though!

For this recipe, I chose to use Grand Marnier.  Not only is it vegan-friendly, it adds a subtle orangey flavor to the chocolate - YUM! You can buy a mini bottle of Grand Marnier at the liquor store and it will suffice.  No need to buy a giant bottle...unless you want to ;-)

The real trick - choose good quality chocolate, in chip form.  It melts quickly and uniformly.  As you know, I'm a fan of Guittard chocolate.  This process can take from 30-45 minutes in the slow cooker.  That means that you can cook a dinner for your special someone and let this melt during dinner.  By the time you're ready for dessert, your fondue will be ready.

My large Crockpot came with a "Little Dipper" - a small slow cooker for dips and fondues.  This recipe fits perfectly in there!  This recipe serves four people; if it's just you and your sweetie, you might want to halve the recipe.

Copycat Melting Pot Chocolate Fondue - In the Slow Cooker*
Lightly adapted from Crockpot365

1 1/2 c. vegan chocolate chips
1/2 c. coconut cream***
1 tsp. vanilla
2 T. Grand Marnier, or other type of liqueur

Fixins'
vegan marshmallows, like Dandies
fresh strawberries, preferably organic
sliced bananas
fresh pineapple, cubed (this is SERIOUSLY the best)
pound cake, cubed
brownies, cubed

*You can make this on the stove top if you have no "Little Dipper"; add the ingredients in the order that I suggest and heat it in a small saucepan over medium low heat.  Stir regularly until everything is melted.  You can then transfer it to a different heat-safe container for serving.

***Coconut cream can be skimmed off the top of a can of full-fat coconut milk which has been refrigerated for 24 hours.  The cream and the milk will separate.  Be careful to get mostly cream.

Directions
Load your ingredients into the Crockpot in this order: coconut cream, vanilla, Grand Marnier, and then the chocolate chips.  Place the lid on it and let it all melt together.  Stir the mixture occasionally.  As I said before, it can take anywhere from 30-45 minutes.

I'm not going to lie - after this photo shoot, I literally stuffed all of this in my mouth.  Hubby was out and I just couldn't wait for him.  It's fruit, so it's basically healthy, right?

Please make this for your sweetheart for Valentine's Day or for a crowd at your next get together - everyone will be thoroughly impressed.  And the hardest thing you will have to do is slice a banana or pineapple ;-)

Cheers!
-Aileen