Easter Chocolate Barks

At 22 years old, I feel a bit ashamed to admit that I still receive an Easter egg from my mum, and my grandmother..and my boyfriend. Needless to say, I always find myself with too much chocolate after Easter, I usually follow two strategies (depending on how I feel):

1. Eat ALL the chocolate in a matter of 2/3 days (telling myself I should get rid of it before starting the “after Easter diet”)
2. Store the chocolate in some container and forget all about it (i.e. letting it go to waste)

Obviously, neither of these strategies are effective and/or clever, so I thought that this year I might turn my extra eggs into chocolate barks! Adding dried fruits, candies or pretzels makes the chocolate much more interesting and worth storing in a container and eating it a little bit at a time. You can use literally every combination of chocolate and topping you have on hand, I listed a few options below but this is really a freestyle recipe. Your imagination and creativity are the key here (also your ability to collect unnecessarily large amounts of chocolate counts), my personal favourite is flaky salt+ pistachios but I also love mini pretzels.

Recipe

Ingredients:

• 18 oz. good quality dark chocolate
• 6 oz. milk chocolate (optional)
• 2 oz. white chocolate (optional)

Toppings

• ¼ cup toasted pistachios + 1 tsp flaky salt
• ½ cup mini pretzels
• ¼ cup sprinkles or candies

Other ideas:

Toffee, dried fruit, marshmallows.

Instructions:

1. Line 2 to 3 baking trays with parchment paper (depending on how many different kinds of chocolate you are using)
2. Gently melt the chocolate over a double boiler (melt the three chocolates separately)
3. Let the chocolate cool down for 2 minutes they pour it over the prepared trays
4. Spread the chocolate with a spatula (ideally ½ inch thick but depends on your taste)
5. Add desired toppings while the chocolate is soft
6. Refrigerate for 2 hours, then drizzle with the barks with white chocolate (if you wish to), chill for 30 more minutes
7. Break the chocolate into large pieces, store them in an airtight container or wrap them up in cellophane bags for a home-made treat.