My husband and I have been on one of those health journeys for some time now- a somewhat-restricted diet, you could say. But we need a treat now and then. (OK, every day, ha!) We used to get extra dark chocolate, which made us feel less guilty about that treat. I even found one bar at Trader Joe’s that was 100% chocolate, no sweeteners at all. But that chocolate disappeared during the pandemic (except for some auctioned off on Amazon to the highest bidder). It became pretty price-prohibitive for me. I needed to make my own.
BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD
So I went back to experimenting with chocolate. It took a long time to figure this out—it should’ve been so easy. But first, I thought for sure the best chocolate would come from starting with cocoa nibs. This was years ago, before cocoa nibs started showing up everywhere. I thought I was ahead of the trend, and that it was going to be great. Ha. No.
But like Thomas Edison, I discovered many ways to NOT do it. First, don’t try turning cacao nibs into a luscious puree by throwing them in your heavy-duty Vitamix blender. You might bust a gut on that blender. And, it won’t be that smooth.
In my quest, I also tried using my Champion juicer from the eighties, to pulverize those hard nibs into a creamy paste. But it wasn’t all that creamy. What it was- a huge mess!
Finally, I learned: just get some cacao paste. I should’ve known this from earlier baking days, when recipes called for unsweetened chocolate. Those conventional squares found at most grocery stores would work perfectly. Now I personally prefer an organic unsweetened cacao paste (in chunks) that’s available through Amazon or other websites. It’s easy, it’s pure, and it’s delicious!
Chocolate Bark w/Dried Fruits & Nuts
Adjust recipe according to taste, like by making sweeter with more dates or raisins, if desired, or even with no fruit. (I like making a no-fruit version with just walnuts in it, and it can really hit the spot. IF you’re not craving anything sweet!) Makes about 3 lbs.
- 1 lb. cacao paste pieces (AKA unsweetened, bitter chocolate)
- .13 cacao butter
- .035 liquid lecithin
- Rounded ½ tsp. salt
- .03 (1 TBS.) vanilla
- .45 total dates, chopped
- .45 raisins, chopped
- .85 toasted pecans (or other nuts)
Add to 4-c. glass measuring cup: > 1 lb. cacao paste pieces > .13 cacao butter > .035 liquid lecithin
Cover tightly with plastic wrap, set on small rack (or towel) in pressure cooker. Bring pressure up by heating on high for 2 minutes, then leave on medium low heat for 1 hour or so to melt the chocolate.
While chocolate’s melting, toast pecans in oven. This may require careful watching. Putting half in at a time, it takes 5 minutes at 325° in my air fryer.
Also, prep the dried fruits. You can skip this step, but I like the chewy crunch of the roasted dried fruit. For this, I first bake the chopped, dried dates for 10 minutes (un-preheated) at 350°. Then I turn the oven off and add the chopped raisins, letting the dates and raisins dry out for 10 minutes more. (If the raisins are added sooner, they tend to burn. Yuck.)
When melted, carefully remove the plastic wrap, to avoid getting condensation in the chocolate. (Or getting burned.) Scrape melted mix into stand-mixer mixing bowl, adding: > rounded ½ tsp. salt > .03 (1 TBS.) vanilla
Blend mixture on low for ten minutes or so, then add dried fruits and nuts: > .45 dates (optional- baked) > .45 chopped raisins (again, baked is optional) > .85 toasted pecans (or other nuts)
Spread mixture onto parchment on cookie sheet (or large pyrex pan). Chill and store in refrigerator, breaking off pieces for healthy snacks that satisfy chocolate cravings.
“Taste and see that the LORD is good;
blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.” Psalm 34:8
