You can easily make your own homemade chocolate treats. It's deliciously easy to stir a variety of crispy, crunchy bits into a warm pool of melted chocolate, cool and harden the works, then start snapping off homemade candy!

Yield: 8 Snacks, Easily doubled or tripled

Ingredients

For the dark chocolate, almond and cherry bark
1 pound (450 g) of dark chocolate, broken into chunks
8 ounces (225 g) of unsalted roasted almonds
8 ounces (225 g) of dried cherries
1 tablespoon (15 mL) of dark chocolate or coloured sprinkles for garnish

For milk chocolate granola bark
1 pound (450 g) of milk chocolate, broken into chunks
1 pound (450 g) of your favourite granola
1 tablespoon (15 mL) of dark chocolate sprinkles or shredded coconut for garnish

For the white chocolate, cranberry and pistachio bark
1 pound (450 g) of white chocolate, broken into chunks
8 ounces (225 g) of roasted shelled pistachios
8 ounces (225 g) of dried cranberries
A few spoonfuls of crumbled candy canes for garnish

Procedure

Today for Tomorrow>
Make your granola and bark ahead (see Storage Tip). Most nuts benefit from a brief toasting in a 350°F (180°C) oven to eliminate staleness. A few days ahead, toast them for 10 minutes to freshen their flavour.

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or foil. Nestle a medium bowl over (not in) a small pot of slowly simmering water. Toss in the chocolate. Stir with a wooden spoon until the chocolate is smoothly melted. Remove from the pot and then thoroughly stir in your choice of fillings. Pour the works onto the pan, gently tilting the pan so the chocolate forms a thick puddle. Sprinkle evenly with the garnish. Cool until hardened, then break into smaller pieces.

Storage Tip>

Room Temperature: Cool the bark completely, tightly seal and store for up to 4 days.
Refrigerate: Cool the bark completely, tightly seal and refrigerate for up to a month.
Freeze: Tightly seal and freeze for up to 6 months.

MS_make ahead meals_selectFrom Make Ahead Meals Copyright © Chef Michael Smith 2015. Reprinted by permission of Penguin Canada, a division of Penguin Random House Canada Limited.