Cranberry Bark: Two Types of Chocolate and Two Types of Cranberry

A chocolate bar with cranberries and chocolate cookies with cranberries were not enough to fulfill my chocolate-cranberry needs for the Christmas season.

Not even close.

Over a pound of chocolate cranberry bark? Well, now we’re getting closer.

Chocolate Cranberry Bark

8 ounces bittersweet chocolate

1/2 cup heavy cream

2/3 cup cranberries

10 ounces white chocolate

½ cup dried cranberries, finely chopped

Melt the chocolate over low heat, cool, then spread evenly on parchment paper. Cool until solid.

Mix cranberries and cream, bring to a simmer over low heat and hold the simmer for five minutes, then remove from heat and allow to sit ten minutes. Repeat twice, then strain cream, discarding solids. Melt white chocolate over low heat, then combine with cream mixture.

Allow to cool, then spread atop dark chocolate. Sprinkle with finely chopped dried cranberries, then cool until solid.

Break apart into rustic-looking chunks.

Share with a couple of your friends.

What’s your favorite kind of bark to make?

Cranberry Sea Salt Brunsli: Stop Asking Questions

Dried cranberries rule.

Especially when combined with chocolate, as I was reminded after sampling that Lindt Dark Excellence Cranberry bar last week.

Obviously, I needed to bake something with cranberries and chocolate.

And salt.

Why salt? Why do YOU ask THESE QUESTIONS which have OBVIOUS ANSWERS? Stop asking questions and just read about these Cranberry Sea Salt Brunsli already.

Cranberry Sea Salt Brunsli (inspired by Saveur)

8 ounces blanched almonds

1 1/2 cups sugar

6 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

1/8 teaspoon fine salt

2 egg whites

6 ounces dried cranberries

1 tablespoon coarse sea salt

Finely grind almonds, fine salt, and sugar in a food processor. Add chocolate, process until a uniform mixture forms, then add egg white and process until smooth. Remove from food processor, mix in cranberries and coarse sea salt by hand.

Roll the dough about ¼ inch think, then use cookie cutters of your choice to shape the cookies.

Let the shaped cookies dry on a parchment-paper lined baking sheet for three hours. The dough will be quite sticky before drying, but the cut cookies will be much easier to handle after the drying process. Bake at 300° F for 12-15 minutes, when they should be slightly puffed.

Slightly puffed, and very delicious.

Can you think of any cookie recipe that isn’t improved with the addition of more salt? Yeah, I didn’t think so.

Lindt Excellence Dark: Cranberry

Remember how Lindt sent me free chocolate to check out this summer?

Yeah, I suck, don’t I? And now, I suck more, because as a member of the Lindt Excellence Influencers club, I was sent a coupon for a free Cranberry dark chocolate bar.

Boom.

The bar has a very creamy aroma, with some berry and faint hints of vanilla and coffee.

Thin almond slivers and bits of dried cranberry are distributed evenly throughout the bar, and are small enough to not over take any bites of chocolate.

The chocolate itself has a smooth, buttery melt with a subtle cranberry flavor and a creamy edge to the flavor. It seems to almost taste like cranberry milk (does anybody make that? Somebody should). Coffee and earthy flavors also permeate the chocolate, and a bit of sugar complements the tart flavor nicely. The cranberry bits are a tiny bit chewy, and this is perhaps the only aspect of the bar that isn’t nearly perfect, but the almonds add a nice crunch without overpowering.

Well done, Lindt, well done. And a nice seasonal flavor to boot.

Do you get coupons for free chocolate all the time? Or is that just me?