It’s about time you dipped your toes into the “chocolate balloon bowl.”

You may have heard of the concept before; the technique entails dipping an inflated balloon into melted chocolate, letting it set and harden, and voila, you’ve got a petite chocolate vessel that simultaneously cradles your snack of choice and requires no dishwashing nor disposal—just indulgence.

But the thing is, there are nuances that you MUST know before diving head first into this tricky cacao creation. Here’s what’s what:

1. When it comes to the chocolate, use a tempered couverture, which is essentially chocolate made with extra cocoa butter—anything else will melt at room temperature. We used a dark chocolate couverture with 64% cacao.

2. Make sure the melted chocolate isn’t too hot before you dip the balloon(s) into it.

3. Water balloons = ideal for perfect single-sized portions. (Note to self: test out a weather balloon for the next family function).

And of course, what you choose to fill those bowls up with matters! We paired ours with Planters’ mixed nuts and cashews because that salty/sweet combo is utterly delish. You could even add yogurt and cherries to the mix if you like to make a lil’ low-fat sundae!

All in all, don’t stress too hard if you plan on trying these out for the holidays—simply watch the video above... and don’t blow it! (balloon pun)

Created in partnership with Planters