Raise your hand if you love chocolate!
Okay, wow. That’s a lot of hands in the air!
Truth is, my hand is up too. I love chocolate like the next person. Dark chocolate, smooth and creamy, dairy free and low in sugar is my favorite kind to eat. Add some coconut and you’ve got yourself a choco-holic right here!
But even though many of us enjoy natures indulgence, we can’t all have dairy. And we know that overly-processed, packaged candies, desserts, or treats won’t do us any favors. So what’s the solution (especially during the holiday season)? Create your own, easy to make, healthier than most, sweet treats that make you feel like you’re part of the party without compromising your health.
I’m going to walk you through how to make an incredibly easy recipe of chocolate bark, that is totally customizable as well! Though I’ll be sharing the ingredients I used (inspired by Almond Joys), I’ll give you a few ideas on other chocolate bark combos that you can whip together for office parties, Christmas party favors, Bunco nights, wine tasting food, treat gifts, and more!
If you’ve been following my blog long enough, you know that I don’t chatter for too long. I know most of us want to get straight to the recipe! So here it goes…
Ingredients:
-1/2 cup almonds (salted or unsalted depending on flavor preference)
-1/4 – 1/3 cup shredded or flaked coconut
-1.5 cups dairy free chocolates (I used Enjoy Life)
Directions:
1. Melt chocolate on low heat in saucepan until completely melted. Do not heat too high or the chocolate will burn. Many recipes call for a double boiler or microwave, but since I don’t have a double boiler and choose not to use a microwave, I use a saucepan and it works just fine!
2. While the chocolate is melting, add almonds to a food processor to chop up. If you don’t have a food processor, place your almonds in a ziplock bag and smash with a rolling pin or meat tenderizer until they are the size of your preference.
3. Once completely melted, remove the chocolate from heat. Add coconut and almonds to the melted chocolate and mix thoroughly.
4. Line a small sheet pan with parchment paper and pour out chocolate mixture on top. Spread as thinly and evenly as possible. You may think it won’t spread much, but I promise it will!
5. Place cookie sheet in refrigerator for 1 hour.
6. After 1 hour, remove the cookie sheet from the fridge and pull the parchment paper away from the bottom of the chocolate. Break into pieces.
That’s as simple and easy as it is! It takes very little effort to create this delicious holiday treat. And as promised, here are a few more flavor combos for this dairy free chocolate bark.
-gluten free pretzels and sea salt
-gluten free pretzels and melted peanut butter swirled in
-2 drops peppermint essential oil
-peanuts, sea salt, almonds and cashews
-coconut and dried pineapple
