Look Bark At It
I love chocolate bark. No matter what the toppings (unless they include white chocolate), I find it completely addictive. There's no way I can eat just one piece...or even two. And by the way, huge shout out to Costco's peppermint bark. Good god. That stuff is manna from heaven, let me tell you.
Apart from being super easy to make, chocolate bark is also ridiculously customizable. Pretty much whatever you want to put on it, you can. Orange zest, chopped hazelnuts, dried cranberries, Oreos, butterscotch chips, candy, sprinkles, the list goes on and on. Bark is the candy equivalent of the Ben and Jerry's Everything But The... ice cream.
This particular batch of bark has Oreos, crushed candy canes and peppermint sugar on it, because holiday feelz. This would also work nicely for Valentine's Day because red and white yadda yadda but you could always use a different combo of toppings.
The only annoying part about making bark is that you have to temper the chocolate so that it doesn't get a weird greyish tinge when it hardens again after melting, but even tempering chocolate isn't so difficult. For a great step-by-step tutorial, go to The Kitchn.
Apart from the tempering, go buckwild. Feel free to add a layer of white chocolate on top of the dark here if that's your jam. I also used very bittersweet dark chocolate (65 percent cacao) to counter the sweetness of the Oreos and candy canes but that's also up to you.
Ingredients:
2 c. bittersweet dark chocolate pieces, tempered
10-15 Oreos, crushed
1/2 c. candy canes, roughly chopped
3 tbs. peppermint sugar (optional)
Directions:
1. Prepare a large baking tray with parchment paper or a Silpat baking sheet.
2. Pour the melted chocolate on the prepared sheet and spread with a spatula until about 1/4 inch thick.
3. Evenly sprinkle (in this order) the Oreos, candy canes and peppermint sugar over the melted chocolate.
4. Refrigerate for 5-6 hours or until fully solid. Break into pieces with a meat tenderizer or your hands. Store in a cool, dark place for up to 2 weeks.
