OK, so admittedly, this is not one of my healthier recipes. BUT, it is yummy. And it can disappear quickly if not watched with a camera and security guard. AND it’s highly customizable (if you don’t like dark chocolate, consider mixing it up with some milk chocolate). The impetus for this was the “credit crunch” that hit a few years back. Trying to come up with an inexpensive way to have holiday presents for the teachers at day care, we bought some tins from our local craft store and filled them with waxed paper and this bark. My apologies for the lack of picture; as soon as I make a batch this fall, I’ll load up one. For now, just imagine…yum. It’ll come to you.

Ingredients:

24.5oz Lindt 70% dark chocolate (seven 3.5 oz bars)

10.5oz Lindt 85% dark chocolate (three 3.5 oz bars)

2 cups Rice Krispies cereal

3 cups Rice Chex cereal

Make it Happen:

1. Put the Rice Chex into a ziploc bag and roll a rolling pin over it to crush it. Set aside.

2. Get a cookie sheet that has sides; line it with wax paper.

2. Chop the chocolate finely and place it into a bowl.

3. In a double-boiler set on a low temp (and with a small amount of water in the bottom of the double boiler), add a tablespoon of the chocolate to make sure the pan is hot enough for melting the chocolate. Once that’s assured, add a cup or so of the chocolate at a time, mixing it in thoroughly to coat it with the melted chocolate. Stir continuously with a spatula.

4. Once all of the chocolate has been melted, pour half of it into the cookie sheet. Use a spatula to distribute it around the sheet evenly.

5. Sprinkle the “krunch” mix over the chocolate until it’s fairly evenly coating the chocolate.

6. Pour the remainder of the chocolate onto the sheet, pouring it to distribute it as evenly as possible.

7. Place the cookie sheet into the fridge and let it cool/set for 3-4 hours, until it’s no longer liquid.

8. Overturn the bark onto a cutting board (or just pick it up by the wax paper and move it to a cutting board). Roughly break it up using a heavy knife, like a butcher knife.

9. Store in a wax paper-lined container, like a cookie tin. Store in the fridge when not going OMNOMNOM.

Note: if you are the type of person who wants to mix up your chocolates – milk and dark, white and milk, white & dark, etc. – go for it. Make sure you melt them separately and clean the top of the double boiler in between meltings. The big concern here is that if you don’t remove every speck of moisture from that top pot before putting in the chocolate, your chocolatey goodness will seize. Seizing is bad and to be avoided at all costs. Alternately, you can melt one chocolate on the stove and another in the microwave – just watch BOTH carefully. And remember that white chocolate is mostly cocoa butter and won’t melt the same way as other chocolates but WILL seize with impunity at the drop of a hat.