When Heaven is Only a Freezer Drawer Away - Chocolate Bark Recipe

When Heaven is Only a Freezer Drawer Away. Chocolate Bark at its Finest!

- by  Deirdre Hughes

Whilst we eat zero carb most of the time we still love to enjoy chocolate. It's the ultimate treat for us. In the true sense of the word.

It's no secret. There are oodles of things in life that give us joy. And chocolate is no exception, often topping the list! Mother Nature must’ve been having a very good day when she decided to introduce the Theobroma Cacao Tree. The tree that bears the fruit of CHOCOLATE.

This recipe for chocolate bark is guaranteed to deliver joy on a visceral level. As you begin to cook it the air will quickly fill with a lingering chocolatey aroma leaving your senses lit up. The flavour and texture hits your taste buds with a glorious punch. Suddenly, life makes sense. 

This recipe can be enjoyed totally guilt free. Sure, there’s a bit of maple syrup in it. But it won’t break the insulin bank. What’s even more amazeballs is that it's easy to make and takes less than 5 minutes. No seed oils. No preservatives. No processed sugars or pretend sugars. Just 5 nutritious ingredients. Six if you add in a whole lot of love'n!

I also love the thin layered "bark" style of this chocolate. It takes me back to Easter as a kid, enjoying those air filled chocky eggs. 

The beauty of this recipe is that you can add a variety of toppings direct from your, whatever-tickles-your-fancy, imagination. In the past I’ve sprinkled over paleo granola and goji berries, or chopped macadamias, cinnamon, dried chilli flakes, grated orange rind (which makes it taste like Jaffas). If you love essential oils (quality essential oils that can be ingested) just 2 drops of your favey will take it to the next level. Our favourite is Young Living’s Orange Essential Oil. You can read about Young Living Essential Oils via their site or here at Staranise.com, where their benefits are comprehensively explained:

https://www.staraniseorganic.com/essential-oils 

The recipe generously serves 3 people. Double all the portions if you feel you’ll need more (highly likely!). We love it on weekends as a treat or enjoy it as a dessert when friends or fam are over for dinner. I doubt you'll ever return to buying commercial grade chocolate.

As a btw: “Theobroma” is the Greek word for “food of the Gods”. 

Need I say more? 

Things you’ll need: 

A small to medium sized saucepan

A whisk

Measuring spoons/cup.

A flat, low rimmed baking tray lined with baking paper

Space in the freezer to lay the tray

A bendy spatula 

Ingredients:

1 cup of organic raw cacao butter *

2.5 tablespoons of the real deal Canadian Maple Syrup (go for 3 tablespoons if you have a mega sweet tooth!).

A good pinch of quality salt

3 levelled tablespoons of raw cacao powder (not to be confused with cocoa powder)

Toasted coconut flakes 

How to:

Place the raw cacao butter into the saucepan and on a medium to high heat melt it down. It's very important not to boil or burn it so keep an eye on it, constantly stirring it with a whisk. Once there are only very small traces of the solid butter left, take it off the stove and let it continue to melt in its own heat whilst still stirring it.

Once it's all melted add the maple syrup and thoroughly mix it in with the whisk.

Add the salt and whisk it in.

Add the raw cacao powder and stir it through thoroughly using the whisk.

Now pour the liquid mixture evenly over the baking paper lining the tray. It may or may not completely fill the tray - depending on the size of your tray - but that’s okay. Let it settle where the portion size naturally flows.  

Take the toasted coconut flakes and liberally sprinkle them all over the liquid chocolate. 

Carefully place the tray in your freezer, ensuring it is resting on an even surface. 

20 minutes later it should be solid enough to enjoy. Simply break the chocolate up into fragments and pop it on a plate for serving.  

*Raw cacao butter is available in a few different formations ie buttons, rocky chunks or shredded. I prefer the buttons or shredded version as they melt evenly. It's available to buy online or you can grab a bag in most health food stores.

Inspo:

This recipe was inspired by Soulla Chamberlain. Soulla was our first podcast guest and an absolute delight to be with. You're welcome to view the filmed podcast with Soulla by clicking on our podcast menu tab. 

Soulla’s energy and passion for what she offers through her nutritional health coaching business and retail/commercial kitchen store is awe inspiring. Her site Staraniseorganic.com is packed with nutritional information, workshops, blogs, recipes and a selection of wonderful artisan products.

We purchased Soulla's pre-recorded Online Chocolate Workshop. We were delivered twelve amazing chocolate recipes (nil nasties, nutrient dense and SO delicious). It also includes video footage of Soulla comprehensively explaining detailed nutritional information surrounding chocolate and the recipes. It comes with a brilliant workshop booklet as well as footage of Soulla making several of the recipes. There are other online workshops available too - both pre-recorded and live. All fantastic!

You can visit her site here:  https://www.staraniseorganic.com/

If you decide to give this recipe a go.. I would LOVE to know how it went. Feel free to leave comments below. x0x