The Swirling Trick For An Even Richer Chocolate Bark

Even if it's not the holiday season and peppermint flavors aren't top of mind, it's always a good time to make chocolate bark for dessert. A classic recipe for this treat uses melted chocolate (typically in the form of chips or squares), along with mix-ins like nuts or candy. But while the typical version is undoubtedly delicious, who says you have to stick to using just one type of chocolate?

The next time you feel inspired to whip up some homemade bark, let your imagination go wild and swirl together two different varieties. Milk, dark, and white are the main types of chocolate chips out there, of course, but you can also go with semi-sweet, mint chocolate, bittersweet, or even swirled morsels. Not only will combining two different kinds upgrade your bark and give it a richer flavor, but it allows you to get even more creative with the mix-ins you choose. Plus, you'll get a treat with a pretty pattern that looks like it took much more effort to make than it actually did.

Despite its fancy appearance, swirled chocolate bark is fairly simple to whip up. Once you've melted the two types of chocolate you're going to use, you'll first want to spread one of them out on a lined baking sheet, like you typically would when making bark. After you've made a smooth, even layer, you can simply plop spoonfuls of your second type of chocolate all over the place. A toothpick, chopstick, or knife dragged through both varieties will give you that pretty pattern you're looking for. If you want a neater design, however, you can arrange your second type of melted chocolate in vertical stripes over the first, then pull your chopstick horizontally through the layers.

The add-ins come into play after you've created your swirled bark, but before you let it set in the fridge. So whether you want banana chips, dried cherries, and dried pineapple for a banana split flavor; or orange zest and cranberries for a holiday version, sprinkle your ingredients on top gently to avoid messing up your pattern. Feel free to mix and match your toppings with your multiple flavors, too. Colorful add-ins like crushed, dried raspberries or pistachios pop against white and dark chocolate bark, for example, while banana chips will mesh perfectly with a milk chocolate and peanut butter chip-based treat. But as long as you start with a multi-layer swirl, you'll end up with a dessert richer than your average chocolate bark.