INGREDIENTS
225-250g Nature’s Lane solid cacao butter (broken into chunks, about 1 cup)
6-7 tablespoons Nature's Lane Cacao Powder
3-4 tablespoons Nature’s Delight honey or maple syrup
½ teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract/essence
1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds
1 tablespoon almond slivers
1 tablespoon Nature’s Lane coconut flakes (optional)
1 tablespoon dried blueberries or cranberries or raisins (your pick!)
METHOD
Bring a quarter-full saucepan of water to boil and turn the heat down to simmering. Add cacao butter to a heatproof bowl and place over the simmering water. Make sure no water gets in the cacao butter.
Stirring with a spatula, heat the cacao butter, and when almost melted, stick the digital thermometer in (if you have one handy). Make sure the temperature doesn’t go over 48°C. If it’s close, remove the bowl from the heat and let the butter melt further on the countertop. The temperature will start to drop and that’s what we’re after.
Add the cacao powder, vanilla and honey or maple syrup to the melted cacao butter and whisk until dissolved and well incorporated. The temperature will drop once you add other ingredients. Keep it at about 32-35°C, warm up if needed, but NOT all the way up to 48°C. This will keep it smooth and silky, and decrease the chances of chocolate seize (when it turns into a grainy paste).
Finally, add the salt and whisk together. Line a tray with baking paper, covering the sides so no chocolate is spilt over the edges. Pour the chocolate into the tray and let is spread into a thin bark layer. While still melted, sprinkle with pumpkin seeds, almonds, coconut flakes and dried blueberries, or other nuts and dried fruit of your choice.
Place the tray in the fridge for at least 2 hours. The bark will solidify within 30 minutes, but it’s a good idea to let it stand for a little longer. Keep in an airtight container, in or out of the fridge, depending on how crunchy you like it. It will keep for a few weeks.
Recipe inspiration: https://irenamacri.com/recipes/raw-cacao-butter-chocolate-bark/
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