Sugar-Free Dark Chocolate & Salted Caramel Bark

Servings: Makes one 9 x 12 sheet of chocolate bark

Ingredients:

• 16 ounces sugar-free dark chocolate*
• 10 Tom and Jenny’s Classic Sugar-free Caramels
• 1/2 tbsp butter
• 1 tsp heavy cream
• Course sea salt

*Can be chips or bars. We used Hershey’s sugar-free special dark, but feel free to pick your favorite brand. Note: remember to use a dark chocolate, not an unsweetened baking bar!

The key to a great chocolate bark is great chocolate. If you already have a favorite sugar-free chocolate brand, feel free to use that here. Or taste a few different brands until you find one you love. The melted bark will taste similar to the raw chocolate, so taste-testing your chocolate will give you a good idea of the finished product!

Directions:

• Line a rimmed 9 x 12 inch baking sheet with parchment paper.

The Bark:

1. If using chocolate bars, chop the chocolate into chip-sized pieces, and place the chips or chopped pieces into a metal bowl.
2. Heat an inch or two of water in a pot over medium-high heat. When the water is simmering, place the metal bowl of chocolate over the pot.
3. Stir the chocolate continuously until it is melted and smooth. NOTE: avoid placing the pan with chocolate over a direct flame or stove element, as that is likely to burn your chocolate!
4. Pour the melted chocolate onto the baking sheet, spreading it so that it evenly covers the sheet.
5. Place the sheet in the fridge or freezer until the chocolate is set.

Caramel Sauce: 

1. Unwrap the 10 classic caramels and place in a saucepan. Add the heavy cream and butter.
2. Heat over medium low heat, stirring continuously until all ingredients are combined and the caramel sauce is smooth.
3. Keep stirring for another 2-3 minutes, until caramel sauce is fluid and drips easily off of a spatula.

Chocolate & Caramel Bark:

1. Take your chocolate bark out of the fridge/freezer and drizzle caramel sauce over it. We made (very) roughly a grid pattern to make sure the bark was covered. Spread out any larger clumps of caramel that land on the bark by swirling a toothpick or knife tip through it. Don’t panic if it doesn’t look pretty right now – it will once you break up the pieces!
2. Place the entire sheet in the fridge or freezer, until the caramel is set (20 minutes in the freezer, 1-2 hours in the fridge).
3. Sprinkle the top with coarse sea salt, to taste. Snap the bark into pieces, and enjoy! Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Other toppings:

You can add endless toppings to chocolate bark! Slivered almonds, dried fruit – the list goes on. If you want to add some toppings, add them to the warm chocolate right after it’s been poured into the pan. Feel free to swirl them in, or let them rest on top. Then continue with the recipe as written.