Easy-to-Make Organic Holiday Chocolate Bark

The holidays are a time for giving, sharing, and creating memories with loved ones. Pure Mama, Juli Novotny, a fave foodie and culinary stylist extraordinaire, has the tastiest treat to enjoy around the holidays. She started her gluten-free, organic snack food company, Kookie Karma, in Santa Monica, CA while studying for her Masters in Holistic Nutrition. She has been cooking for clients, consulting for health food start-ups, journalism, photography and recipe development for other like-minded companies. Her tasty recipe for homemade chocolate bark is healthier than store-bought options and you don’t have to worry about it going old like other baked goods since it has a pretty long shelf life. It’s truly the perfect hostess gift, stocking stuffer or treat for a holiday party! Try out Juli’s yummy homemade treat and create some new holiday memories with the fam.

Ingredients

• 3-4 organic dark and white chocolate bars for white and dark bark

Toppings

• Toasted nuts and seeds, chopped (pumpkin, hazelnut, almonds, walnuts)
• Dried fruit, chopped (cranberries, raisins)
• Shredded coconut
• Sugar in the raw (I use turbinado sugar)
• Flavored sea salt
• Candy cane pieces
• Get creative – whatever you like pairing with chocolate works!

You’ll Also Need

• Parchment paper
• Small high wall cookie sheet or pan

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Remove wrappers and put chocolate bars next to each other, side by side, on cookie sheet.
2. Bake until chocolate is melted and not burned, about 5 minutes. Maybe longer depending on your oven, so be sure to check them every few minutes to see if the chocolate is melted enough to spread with a spatula.
3. In the meantime, prep toppings.
4. When chocolate is melted, remove the cookie sheet from oven. Using a flat spatula, evenly and gently spread the mixture over the parchment paper on cookie sheet until completely covered. Note: If you would like, you can add a flavoring, like cinnamon, peppermint oil, sea salt, orange essence, vanilla, even peanut butter and blend it into the warm chocolate mixture.
5. Next, sprinkle all toppings evenly over the top layer of the warm chocolate.
6. Freeze or refrigerate for a few hours or overnight, until mixture is hard again like a chocolate bar.
7. Gently great apart chocolate into large or small pieces.
8. Enjoy!

~ Juli Novotny of Pure Mamas