Strawberry Chocolate Cream Pies

2 cups sliced strawberries

1/4 cup sugar

1 cup water

1 ready-made pie crust roll

4 oz. cream cheese (half a block), softened

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

1 tsp. shortening

1. Place strawberries in bowl or container, sprinkle with sugar and add water to cover.  Place in refrigerator to soak (this can be done the night before).

2. Pre-heat oven to 350° F. Grease and flour a cupcake pan (I use powdered sugar instead of flour). Roll out pie crust to about a 1/8 inch thick.  Using a scalloped edged 4″ – 6″ cookie cutter, cut out 6 – 8 rounds (if you don’t have a fancy-dancy cookie cutter, just use a bowl and a knife).  Place rounds in cupcake pan, and poke holes in the bottoms with a fork (be sure to actually make HOLES, not just indentations!).  Bake until golden brown (10 – 12 minutes).  Remove and let cool.

3. Meanwhile, blend cream cheese and sugar until smooth and creamy.  Set aside.

4. Over a double boiler, melt shortening and chocolate chips, stirring constantly (I don’t own a double boiler, so I just improvise by using either piece of my rice maker or a glass bowl that fits securely over a smaller pot).  Once smooth, spread chocolate over the bottoms of the pie crust cups.  Allow to cool.

5. Once cool, and at least slightly hardened, drop 1 – 2 teaspoons of the cream cheese mixture over the chocolate, top with strawberries, and drizzle more chocolate on top.  Place in refrigerator until ready to serve!