Are you ready for the festive season? I think I am not yet. Temperatures are still quite high, except for a few days last week. When outside, I feel more like going hiking than staying at home and baking Christmas cookies the whole day. Weather-wise we had such an awful summer here in Luxembourg, that I am excited to go outside whenever the sun is shining.
This weekend however, I'll also meet with a friend that I haven't seen for such a long while. As my friend is from the Balkans and brings me delicious Ajvar very often, I thought it would be a nice idea to share some delicious chocolate bars with him this time. Little side note: he is a real chocoholic, so I am sure he will love this gift.
I do love chocolate. I love it so much that I could barely do without. Lately I've discovered my love for black chocolate as well. I tried some delicious versions with dried fruits, popped quinoa or nutty chunks. That's when I thought that offering homemade chocolate barks would be a lovely idea.
The essential thing when making these barks is that you really have to be careful what chocolate or what additional produce you choose. Always opt for good quality ingredients. The more you check on that, the healthier these little treats become. The black barks introduced in this blog posts are quite healthy: dried cranberries with no added sugar, good quality black chocolate and raw pistachios. For the milk chocolate it gets a bit harder indeed. But still, ensuring that you choose the right products is still a plus.
For about 2 boxes you'll need:
200g dark chocolate
200g milk chocolate
1 handful walnuts
1 handful pistachios
1 handful banana chips
1 handful cranberries
Line a baking tray with a sheet of parchment paper. Melt the black chocolate over a double boiler until totally liquid. Pour the chocolate onto the baking tray and spread it out into a thin layer. Then sprinkle the pistachios and cranberries on top of the chocolate and press it them in lightly. Refrigerate the bark for 20-30 minutes to let it harden. Break the bark into uneven pieces. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.
For the milk chocolate barks, proceed the same way as for the dark chocolate ones. Chop the walnuts and banana chips before sprinkling them on the chocolate layer.
Enjoy!!!