A Christmas Bark That’s Good For A Bite
Salted Chocolate Bark with Macadamia Nut Brittle. Photo: Bruce Winland.
This holiday season seemed to creep up on me before I even had a chance to put away my Halloween decorations. The tree is up but the Christmas cards are still neatly stored in a box and the presents are just a thought. With one week left, there’s not a lot of time to sample new menus and spend hours in the kitchen making delicious cookies you’ll spend hours in the gym working off come January (or February… what’s the rush?!).
Sound familiar? Even if you’re not strapped for time, this recipe for chocolate bark with brittle is a simple but decadent dessert that’s fun to prepare, perfect for gift giving and open to your creative interpretation (or your family’s requests). I used bittersweet chocolate because the brittle is super sweet and the two pair nicely together. I decided on macadamia nuts in honor of my nephew and his family in Hawaii — who we all miss dearly over the holidays (and who we like to keep in our good graces so they send us more delicacies from their fine island)! Choose your own exotic nut (like marcona almonds or brazil nuts) or think outside the box and use pretzels or crushed candy canes or butterscotch candies, dried fruits (cherries or blueberries would be great) or nibs.
The bark bites make an excellent hostess gift when packaged with a unique chocolate “chipper.” This is an excellent tool for cutting slabs of chocolate into rustic, bite-sized pieces. I found the one pictured above at Pure Dark in NYC’s Greenwich Village. This tasty bark batch was presented to friends on a fruitwood plank, wrapped in cellophane and tied up with kitchen twine and a piece of holly from B’s park-like yard. A quick, simple but lovely presentation… and the fruitwood plank can be recycled and used on the grill to flavor fish or meat. It’s the gift that keeps on giving!
Happy Holidays!!
Recipe: Salted Chocolate Bark with Macademia Nut Brittle
Makes 2 8x8 slabs (about 2 lbs.)
Ingredients
1 cup plus 2 Tbs. sugar
9 oz. Macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped
1 lb. good quality bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/4th cup water
1 Tbl. sea salt
Prepare the Brittle
Line a heavy rimmed baking sheet with foil. Add the sugar to a 2 quart, heavy saucepan. Add 1/4 cup water and swirl (DON’T STIR). Cover and boil over high heat until starting to turn golden around the edges — about 4 - 6 minutes. Remove the lid and cook, swirling occasionally, until the caramel is a deep amber color — about 4 - 5 more minutes. Stir in half of the nuts. (You may also add a 1/2 tsp. sea salt at this stage.) Pour the mixture onto the baking sheet and spread to about 1/4 inch thick. Completely cool at room temperature. Peel the foil from the brittle and chop coarsely. Remove extra small pieces and brittle dust. (Can be prepared ahead and stored in the freezer for up to 1 week.)
Prepare the Chocolate Bark
Line two 8x8 pans with foil. In a 12-inch skillet, bring 1 inch of water to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and maintain a low simmer. Place the chocolate in a dry, stainless-steel bowl put it in the simmering water bath. Stir until most of the chocolate is melted — about 5 - 7 minutes. Remove the bowl from the water and stir until smooth. Stir in the remaining nuts and the chopped brittle and a 1/2 tsp. sea salt (optional).
Divide the chocolate mixture between the prepared pans, making sure that none of the brittle is exposed. Shake the pan to level the chocolate, sprinkle with the remaining sea salt (if desired). Refrigerate until firm — about 30 minutes. Turn the bark out and remove the foil. Cut into rustic pieces. Can be stored in an airtight container and refrigerated for up to 1 week.
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