5 Decadent Chocolate Bar Recipes

Valentine’s Day is here! It’s almost impossible to hear those two words and not think of chocolate, probably because we all give and get that same box of chocolates every year. But what if this year, instead of buying your snookums that same old box, you went to the store, bought a few ingredients, and made them chocolate from your own kitchen? If you’re down for this little investment in the future of your love life, we’ve got you covered with five delicious recipes.

A note on pairing chocolate with wine: It’s important to pair the wine in accordance with the bitterness and sweetness in the bar. Sweet complements sweet in this scenario. You don’t want to pair dry wine with super-sweet chocolate, or the wine will make the chocolate taste bitter. As the bitterness in chocolate increases, dry wines make good pairings because sweet wines will make the bitterness in the chocolate even more bitter. Sweeter wines go well with sweeter chocolates that have less bite.

And now, without further delay, your five homemade chocolate recipes. Enjoy!

Espresso Milk Chocolate Bars with Dried Figs

Ingredients:

3 cups milk chocolate chips

2 tablespoons coconut oil

1/2 cup sliced dried figs

2 teaspoons espresso powder

Directions:
1. Cover an 8×8 baking dish with parchment paper. Make sure to leave some parchment paper hanging over the sides of the baking dish.
2. Combine the milk chocolate chips and coconut oil in a glass bowl and using a double boiler, melt together.
3. When the chocolate has reached a relatively thin, liquid texture, lower the heat on the double boiler and continuously stir as you add the espresso powder.
4. Once the espresso powder is mixed throughout the chocolate, remove the chocolate from the double boiler and pour into the pan.
5. Distribute the sliced dried figs on top of the chocolate and lightly press them into the surface. Sprinkle the figs with a pinch of espresso powder.
6. Place the baking dish in the refrigerator to set.
7. Once the chocolate has set, remove the baking dish from the refrigerator and lift the bar out of the pan using the parchment paper that is hanging over the sides of the pan. Place on a
cutting board and slice the bar into your desired portions.
8. To store, keep in an airtight container. You do not have to store the bars in the refrigerator or freezer; however, doing so ensures a longer period of freshness.

S’mores Chocolate Bars

Ingredients:

Gluten-free graham cracker crust

7.5 ounces gluten-free graham crackers

One stick of butter (8 tablespoons), melted

1 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

Marshmallow chocolate bar

2 cups chocolate chips

1 tablespoon coconut oil

1/2 cup gluten-free mini marshmallows

Directions:
1. Line an 8×8 baking dish with parchment paper. Be sure to leave some parchment paper hanging over the sides of the baking dish.
2. Combine all the ingredients for the gluten-free graham cracker crust into a food processor and process until the mixture reaches a crumbly texture.
3. Pour the graham cracker mixture out of the food processor and into the baking dish. Press the mixture down into the baking dish so the crust completely covers the bottom
of the dish. Set aside.
4. Add the chocolate chips and coconut oil together in a bowl and melt using a double boiler. When the mixture reaches a smooth, liquid state, pour into the cooled graham cracker crust.
5. Evenly distribute the mini marshmallows across the top of the chocolate and lightly press them into the surface.
6. Place the pan in the refrigerator to set.
7. Once set, remove the pan from the refrigerator and lift the chocolate bar out of the pan. Place the chocolate bar onto a cutting board and slice into your desired portions.
8. Store the chocolate bars in a sealed container in the refrigerator or freezer.

Cinnamon Dark Chocolate Bars with Brazil Nuts and Currants

Ingredients:

3 cups dark chocolate chips

2 tablespoons coconut oil

1/2 cup chopped brazil nuts

1/2 cup currants

2 teaspoons cinnamon

Directions:
1. Line an 8×8 baking dish with parchment paper. Be sure to leave some parchment paper hanging over the sides of the baking dish.
2. Chop the brazil nuts and place them into a small bowl. Add the currants and cinnamon to this bowl as well and mix.
3. Melt the dark chocolate chips and coconut oil together using a double boiler.
4. Once the chocolate has reached a smooth, liquid state, remove the chocolate from the heat and pour the brazil nut, currant, and cinnamon mixture into the melted chocolate. Mix together.
5. Once the brazil nuts, currants, and cinnamon are evenly mixed into the melted chocolate, pour this mixture into the baking dish. Sprinkle cinnamon on top of the chocolate once it is
in the pan.
6. Place the baking dish in the refrigerator until it sets.
7. When the chocolate sets, remove from the refrigerator and lift the chocolate bar out of the baking dish. Place the chocolate bar onto a cutting board and slice into your desired portions.
8. The chocolate bars do not have to be stored in the refrigerator or freezer, but doing so ensures a longer period of freshness. Wherever the chocolate is stored, however, make sure it is in a sealed container.

Layered Coconut, Blueberry, and Walnut Dark Chocolate Bars

Ingredients:

4 cups dark chocolate chips

2 tablespoons coconut oil

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 cup shredded coconut

1/2 cup dried blueberries

Directions:
1. Line an 8×8 baking dish with parchment paper. Be sure to leave some parchment paper hanging over the sides of the baking dish.
2. Using a double boiler, melt the dark chocolate chips and coconut oil together. Once the chocolate has reached a smooth, liquid texture, remove from the double boiler.
3. The chocolate will be poured into the baking dish in three different sections. Pour the first 1/3 of melted chocolate into the bottom of the baking dish. Then, evenly distribute the shredded coconut on top of the chocolate. Pour the second 1/3 of melted chocolate on top of the shredded coconut and distribute the walnuts on top of the chocolate. Finally, pour the third 1/3 of chocolate over the walnuts and layer the dried blueberries on top.
4. After layering the dark chocolate, shredded coconut, walnuts, and dried blueberries in the baking dish, place the baking dish in the refrigerator to set.
5. Once the chocolate has set, remove the baking dish from the refrigerator and lift the chocolate bar out of the baking dish. Place onto a cutting board and slice into your desired portions.
6. The chocolate bars do not have to be stored in the refrigerator or freezer, but doing so ensures a longer period of freshness. Wherever the chocolate is stored, however, make sure it is in a sealed container.

Chocolate Turtles

Ingredients:

Caramel Sauce

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup regular sugar

1/2 cup milk (heavy cream can be used to make the caramel thicker)

1 stick (8 tablespoons) butter

1/4 teaspoon salt

Chocolate Turtle Body

2 cups chocolate chips (any type of chocolate)

1 tablespoon coconut oil

Whole pecans

Directions:
1. First, make the caramel sauce by adding all the ingredients into a small saucepan over medium heat. As the sauce heats up, stir continuously. When it reaches a boil, stir rapidly for about one minute and then turn off the heat and allow the caramel sauce to cool.
2. While the caramel sauce is cooling, line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
3. Next, arrange clusters of pecans on the cookie sheet. Each cluster should consist of at least 4 whole pecans. The pecans can be stacked on top of each other or arranged in a mound.
4. Once the caramel sauce has cooled, spoon a tablespoon of caramel sauce over each pecan cluster. After all of the clusters have been covered in the caramel sauce, place the cookie sheet in the freezer for about 20 minutes so the caramel can dry and stick the pecan clusters together.
5. After 20 minutes, remove the cookie sheet from the freezer and melt the chocolate chips and coconut oil together using a double boiler. When the chocolate reaches a smooth and liquid
texture, remove the chocolate from the double boiler.
6. Spoon a tablespoon of melted chocolate over each pecan-caramel cluster and place the cookie sheet back in the freezer for the chocolate to set.
7. Once the chocolate has set, remove the cookie sheet from the freezer and separate the chocolate turtles. The chocolate turtles will be connected due to the excess caramel sauce
and chocolate that solidified on the cookie sheet. They can be easily separated using a knife.
8. Plate the chocolate turtles or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator or freezer.