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 Christmas Day Chocolate Bark Did you know that you can make beautiful and expensive-looking chocolate bark in the comfort of your own home? I have been making bark for years and I am always impressed by the creative opportunities that chocolate as a canvas for other ingredients lends itself to: you can make a Thanksgiving version, a Valentine’s Day version and even a summer version. You are just limited by your imagination. For this one that is embracing the Christmas season, I’ve chosen just a few flavoring elements because I just didn’t want to get between chocolate and mint. Those two are pretty tight. This makes an elegant, simple bark that makes a great holiday present, contribution to the office potluck, addition to a Christmas stocking (just remember to wrap it!) and on and on. With a minimum of effort, you will get a great little treat. Enjoy! Christmas Day Chocolate Bark 16 oz. Fair Trade, vegan chocolate chips ½ tablespoon coconut oil 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract ½ teaspoon peppermint extract 2/3 cup broken peppermint candy canes or candies, broken* (I used and recommend TruJoy candy canes, made without artificial dyes and with organic sweeteners) Salt for sprinkling on top Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. In a double-boiler or a DIY double-boiler (how I roll) with a few inches of simmering water in it, add your chocolate chips and oil, reserving two tablespoons of chocolate chips. (The oil is necessary to get it to melt uniformly; you can also use vegan shortening.) Stir until all is melted, turn off the heat and remove the bowl, add the reserved chocolate chips and stir until they are melted. Add the vanilla and peppermint extracts and stir some more.  Spread the chocolate across the sheet evenly. Sprinkle the broken candy canes across the top, then sprinkle with a bit of salt. Store in the fridge until it sets. Cut or break into individual pieces and serve.   * I just broke my pieces with a knife on a flat board but I would imagine pulsing in a food processor would work just as well. Use a very light touch, though, because you don’t want these to be pulverized into powder. © 2015, Vegan Street |
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