I have to say that I was a little disappointed when I read about the Toronto Eaton Centre replacing its traditional Santa Claus visit with a video-chat session by skype.
Enter the age of Cyber Claus.
Really?
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This may not be your mama’s bark. We like ours fully loaded.
I figure, why stop at half measures when you can work in so many delectable nutrients.
I found some gorgeous unsweetened dried strawberries at the health food store along with some dazzling mango.
I thought the festive fruit would pair nicely with the nuts and seeds: walnut, cashew, almond, pistachio, pumpkin, peanut – yup, fully loaded. You can play around with any topping combinations you like to create a beautiful, satisfying and delicious treat.
Small pieces will do.
Strawberry Tuesdays: Chocolate Bark All Dressed Up
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400 grams 75% cocoa chocolate (I generally use Lindt)
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2 cups mixed nuts and seeds, some chopped some left whole
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3/4 cup mixed dried fruit, sliced/chopped
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This recipe will make two large trays of chocolate bark.
Warm chocolate in a sturdy pot on stove over lowest heat, stirring until fully melted. Remove chocolate from heat and allow it to settle for a minute.
Meanwhile, cut two large pieces of waxed paper (about 18″ long and 12″ wide) and set each one over a tray or cutting board that will accommodate the size of the paper.
Spread the chocolate mixture over each piece of waxed paper (dividing the portion roughly in two). Using a spatula or cake knife, spread the chocolate out across the paper surface such that it covers as much surface as possible without becoming too thin (my bark is usually about 1/8″ thick).
While chocolate remains unset, sprinkle with nuts, seeds and dried fruit.
Place trays in the fridge for at least 2 hours to allow chocolate slabs to set.
Remove trays from fridge. Working with one tray at a time, break chocolate slabs into roughly shaped pieces of bark with your hands.
Store bark in a container in the fridge. Simply take out portions as desired, leaving the remaining bark in the fridge (the chocolate will begin to melt if left out at room temperature). The bark also freezes nicely but is best eaten thawed (or frozen) from the freezer. If you move the frozen bark to room temperature and into the fridge, the chocolate will begin to denature.
This bark makes a beautiful holiday gift (just remember to tell your friends and family to store it in the fridge).
That looks amazing! I love all of the colors and the chance to indulge in a bit more of a responsible manner.
Thanks Jeanette – they really are our favourites – I’m attracted to nuts/seeds and my husband loves the chewy fruit!
Thank you Elyse!
Love this special treat with all your favorite toppings, very festive!
This is so festive!
Thanks so much Jamie – happy you dropped in!
It’s a little disquieting for sure… cheers Ann.
what a nice compliment! thank you foodfashionflow –
Thanks so much Michelle :)
thanks Mandy – full of health-building nutrients – the trick is to not overeat it ;0
hee-hee… me 2!
Lame, lame, lame… reminiscent of a scene out of Scrooge – what have we done?!! ;0 yes, I’m so used to seeing fruit topped with sugar (as odd as that is… like natural fruit isn’t already full of it!) Thanks France!
Thanks Amalia – my husband particularly likes the fruit and I’m crazy about the combination of nuts and chocolate… ;0
hee-hee, well, I’ll take that as a big compliment Ms. Kay! :)
ha-ha!! Very good. I would still stand in line for Santa though :)
(my brother loves all the Christmas madness – the busier and noisier the better, so he thinks I’m a little weird too!)
Whoa. A helicopter landing? Now *that’s* decadent.
Ah, thanks Christy! I’m with you: hurray for strawberries ;) That’s so interesting that dried strawberries are popular in your part of the world… I think it is the first time I’ve come ax them here.
there are a few… glad you like – thanks for dropping by! :0
indeed… white chocolate = the non-chocolate sugar confection. Thanks Stephanie! :)
Thanks Yummy!!
ha-ha, I never kid ;0
Thank you Claire! :)
you know, I often take pieces from the freezer (I actually enjoy eating it frozen – it’s every bit as delicious!) – small batches work well in the fridge too.
thanks Lisa – our boys love dried fruit; particularly apricot!
thanks Elegant Eggplant – I just brought a packaged bundle to my mom… I think it went over well :)
ah, thanks so much Eva! My mama never made bark, so that was an easy one on this end :)
thanks Greg – small bites ;0
Thanks Reem – you know what’s neat about dark chocolate is that it really doesn’t feed the cycle of cravings. It satisfies without sending you on a sugar roller coaster ride.
Thanks Junia! :)
thanks Laura – agreed. What we call white chocolate is actually not chocolate at all. It is a sweet confection that does not contain cocoa solids. Similarly, what we think of as ‘chocolate bars’ must be labeled ‘candy bars’ because they lack sufficient cocoa to qualify as a true chocolate derivative.
I know, I was so happy when I found the dried strawberries – especially when I saw that they hadn’t dumped additional sugar all over tem (which is very common). Thanks Sissi!
Isn’t it silly? It makes me sad too.
I really don’t know where the name bark derives from – it’s possible that in the recipe’s first iterations it looked like tree bark. There are so many variations now, it hardly looks like the same twice. This one is quite hearty… ;0
ha-ha! I like how you think Chris :0)
Hi Aria, thanks for dropping by!
OMG, that looks amazing. That would be a great thing to hand out as a holiday gift! Seriously, beautiful….I am sure its also delish!
The chocolate bark is terrific. I’m sad they replaced Santa with Skype….but it’s a sign of the times!
Wow! This is the most unique bark recipe I have ever seen. This looks yummy!
That looks absolutely gorgeous! Nice gift idea.
Fashion Great
Oh boy, fully loaded all right and just plain decadent!
:-) Mandy
This is definitely my type of bark! The more toppings, the better =)
Cyber Claus! Really? That is lame. Really Lame. But the good news is that your bark looks amazing. What a treat to find dried strawberries that have been left with their natural flavors. Funny that’s not a common thing. Cashew, mangoes and strawberries…sound heavenly.
What a great idea to mix things up and add dried fruit to holiday bark! It looks amazing and I’m sure it tastes even better! Beautiful recipe :)
Right this moment, I will take chocolate lol.. so this chocolate bark would be eaten in a flash if it was in front of me lol
—replacing its traditional Santa Claus visit with a video-chat session by skype—
Omg, what’s next…buying Christmas gifts online? HAAaaaaa
This bark looks deLISh…just like EVERYTHING you make, dearest.
My Inner Chick http://myinnerhick.com
Well I know the kids would totally love this – chocolate, fruit and nuts. Yep, they’d love it. :)
Cyber Claus – LOL! Now that’s sad. Oye. What’s next?! Last year Mike and I saw Santa land in a helicopter at the grocery store. Very cool. Unfortunately the kids weren’t with us – didn’t stop us from standing around watching though. ;)
Hurrah for strawberry Tuesdays, although for me, everyday is Strawberry day :p What a lovely tree bark this is; and just so reminiscent of Christmas (coz most of my Christmas cakes have this too :)
Oh, dried strawberries are pretty popular in one of the highlands in my country; everything there is made of strawberries; jam, sauces, ice-cream, drinks, and even toys!:D
Love all the goodies in your bark!
This is beautiful, Kelly! I don’t typically like bark as a lot of people make it with white chocolate and then with all the peppermint candy, it’s just too much. I love dark chocolate though and with the nuts and dried fruits, it makes for a more nutritious and delicious bark!
Your chocolate bark looks festive and tasty!
You aren’t kidding. This IS fully loaded. This looks delicious!
Looks SO GOOD!!!!
Another concoction I’ve never made, and want to at some point.
Good tip to store it in the fridge, and bring to room temperature as needed. Perfect for this time of the year, no doubt…
Beautiful, we made some too but kept the dried fruit simple for the kids! Lovely!
Oh my, I just LOVE chocolate bark and yours is so beautiful!! Such a great gift.. love it!
Kelly, these are not only gorgeous, but I’m certain the flavours are out of this world. I love the exotic combo you’ve done; no it’s not my Mama’s bark, it’s a hundred times better!
I heard that too about the Santa at the Eaton Centre…sounds like a cop-out to me.
This really is loaded. Looks great!
Beautiful!!!
I love love love chocolate,
This is just perfect for my insane cravings…
chocolate bark – yum! i love the touch of the dried strawberries and nuts :)
Beautiful bark! I love that you used cocoa chocolate – I’m not a fan of white chocolate and that always seems to be the “go-to” bark this time of year.
Dried strawberries? It sounds like a miracle! I must have missed them or maybe they don’t exist in the shops I go to… I must search for them.
Your chocolate bark looks gorgeous and much more appealing and colourful than the bark I see at an expensive chocolatier’s in my city! Thank you for this brilliant Christmas gift idea!
Omg…. seriously? A skype chat? That’s just sad… and depressing :/ Who wants a Santa-skype chat? :( You know, I’d always wondered what chocolate bark is… what’s it called that? Because it looks like tree-bark? – I like the idea of piling it high with yummy stuff though… fruit and nuts and all things nice!
Yum! Since this is dark chocolate, would it be okay to eat for breakfast? :)
so nice and lovely.
Ciao.
aria