strawberry + raspberry chocolate bark
because everything is pink and red right now
Valentine’s Day is here again and pink and red colours reign supreme — the sweet treats are no exception. I’m not much into it myself, but at the same time my general hostility to the day has softened over the years — let the people eat cake and celebrate love, if that makes them happy.
It certainly makes the corporations happy, in any event — but we won’t go there today. I’m only stopping by to share a fun, easy recipe to share with people you love this season, whether romantically, platonically, or in any other way. Homemade gifts will, I think, always go down better than mass-produced, plastic-wrapped, pink-food-dye infused ones, even if — in fact, especially if — they are a little amateurish and rough around the edges.
The pink here comes from freeze-dried strawberries and raspberries. They aren’t in season right now, but freeze drying preserves them, and they lend a beautiful colour and sharp/sweet flavour that balances the richness of the chocolate. Literally all you have to do here is melt chocolate and scatter the freeze-dried fruit on top. I cannot think of an easier gift.
This is pretty much the same base recipe as my cashew chocolate bark, which was inspired by my trip to the Swiss Riviera last May. I used hazelnut butter instead of cashew butter here to add a little more depth of flavour, but either works just fine.
Ingredients
300g dark chocolate (I recommend 70%)
3 tbsps cashew or hazelnut butter
1/4 cup freeze dried raspberries, some roughly chopped and some crumbled into a fine powder
1/4 cup freeze dried strawberries, some roughly chopped and some crumbled into a fine powder
Method
Line a large baking sheet with greaseproof paper.
Break the chocolate into small squares and very gently melt it in a glass bowl over a pan of boiling water, stirring constantly. You can also do this in the microwave in a microwave-safe bowl by heating in small increments and stirring regularly, but there’s more risk of burning that way. When the chocolate is mostly melted, add the three tablespoons of cashew / hazelnut butter and continue stirring, so that everything is well combined.
Pour the chocolate mixture out onto the baking sheet, spreading it out so that it makes a large bar, about the thickness you’d expect of a chocolate bar. Sprinkle over the freeze dried strawberries and raspberries so that they are evenly distributed over the surface, both the roughly chopped segments and the powder, which can be swirled to give a beautiful pink colour.
Place the tray in the fridge and leave to set completely (overnight is best but probably 3-4 hours minimum).
Once completely set, use a knife to cut or roughly break up the chocolate. Transfer the pieces to an airtight container and store in the fridge.