Life & Style

Sweets for the Sweet

Looking to streamline your gift-giving with a one-size-fits-all edible treat? This peppermint chocolate bark from Brooklyn’s adorably homegrown candy shop Liddabit Sweets is an easy-to-make holiday favorite. Wrap up small batches to give as gifts, or bring a tinful to the office and watch it disappear in the blink of an eye.

Chocolate Peppermint Bark

What follows isn’t so much a recipe as a guideline; you can use any type of chocolate you like—dark, milk, white (or a combo)—and pretty much any topping. We’ve included some of our favorite combinations below, but the fun of this is putting your own spin on it.

Instead of straight-up chocolate, you also have the option of using Cheater’s Chocolate Coating, but keep in mind: the simpler the bark, the nicer the chocolate should be. If you’re going to the trouble of tempering nice chocolate, you should let it shine, and keep the ingredients spare and complementary to the chocolate (dark chocolate with dried pomegranate seeds, milk chocolate with toffee bits, that sort of thing). With more toppings—or toppings with more assertive flavors—you have a little more leeway, and the textural difference in the chocolate coating will all but disappear under that delicious goodness.

If you need to speed up the set—you’re making a last-minute gift, for example, or you just can’t wait to get a treat in your face-hole—you can stick the bark in the freezer for 5 to 10 minutes. The chocolate may not set up quite as shiny, but we promise no one will notice. Now git goin’—bark it up!

Ingredients

2 cups (13 ounces/370 g) chopped chocolate, or 2 cups (13 ounces/370 g) chopped chocolate and ⅓ cup (75 g) mild vegetable oil
1½ cups assorted small toppings

Special Equipment

Small (9″ x 13″) rimmed baking sheet

Instructions

1. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper, making sure the paper extends over the two long sides of the sheet (this will make it easier for you to lift the finished bark out of the sheet).

2. Temper the 2 cups chocolate, or use the 2 cups chocolate and ½ cup oil to make Cheater’s Chocolate Coating.

3. Pour the chocolate into the lined sheet, and tap it gently on the counter a couple of times to get rid of any bubbles and distribute the chocolate in a uniform layer.

4. Quickly sprinkle the toppings evenly over the chocolate (if the toppings don’t want to stick, press down on them gently with another sheet of parchment paper). Let the chocolate set, about 1 hour.

5. Run a paring knife along the unlined edges of the baking sheet to loosen the bark, and then gently lift up on the parchment paper “handles” to remove the bark from the baking sheet. Carefully peel the paper off the underside of the bark, and use your hands to break it into rough 2- to 3-inch pieces.

Store the bark in an airtight container for 2 to 4 weeks (its shelf life will depend on the toppings; for example, nuts, dried fruits, or candies will last longer than stuff like cereal or chips)

Peppermint Swirl Variation: Dark and white chocolate with peppermint candy topping. Use half dark and half white chocolate for the base: Pour the dark chocolate first, and, when it has cooled somewhat but before it sets completely (after about 5 minutes), pour the white chocolate on top of it. Swirl the chocolates with the tip of a paring knife, and then sprinkle with 1 cup crushed peppermint candy (such as candy canes).