Love and Olive Oil

Fruity Chocolate Bark

Fruity Chocolate Bark with Freeze-Dried Fruit

Bark is a candy that has no regard for perfection; the rough, jagged edges and irregularly scattered toppings are part of the appeal.

It’s a great cabinet-cleaner recipe too. Perfect for those days when you’re frantically trying to clean out the pantry before your inlaws arrive, and those three random bags of freeze-dried fruit seem destined for the trash can. Not to mention to overflowing chocolate tub, with partial bars and half-wrapped bits and scraps from recipes past.

Fruity Chocolate Bark with Freeze-Dried Fruit

As it turns out, freeze-dried fruit makes for a truly wonderful candy. Fresh freeze-dried fruit (oxymoron, much? By ‘fresh’ I mean still sealed in the unopened package) is surprisingly light and crispy, unlike the heavy, sticky nature of dried fruit, giving this bark a unique tart crunch.

How to Make Chocolate Bark with Freeze-Dried Fruit

Simply melt your chocolate, as gently as humanly possible (I personally love my little chocolate melter – no more burned and seized chocolate!) then spread and sprinkle with bits of freeze dried fruit. I used a combination of blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries (Trader Joe’s sells a wonderful assorment of fruit) but I’ve also seen such delicacies as freeze-dried pomegranate seeds and elderberries online. I’ve used freeze-dried fruit before, ground up into homemade pixie sticks, meringues, or macarons. It’s also great in cereal (you know, if you find yourself with more on hand than you can use).

I think the astronauts were on to something here…

Fruity Chocolate Bark

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Ingredients:

  • 8 ounces good quality, dark chocolate (70-80%), very finely chopped
  • 1 cup assorted freeze dried fruit, large pieces roughly chopped

Directions:

In a microwave, double boiler, or chocolate melter, gently melt chocolate on the lowest possible heat setting. Stir regularly, removing from heat as needed. The goal here is to keep the temperature under 90 degrees, above which the chocolate will lose its temper. Be patient, keep stirring, and even with on and off low heat the chocolate will melt eventually.

Once melted and smooth, pour chocolate onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spread into an even layer (it will not cover the entire pan, just spread it until it’s as thick as you want your final bark to be).

Sprinkle evenly with freeze-dried fruit. Let dry, uncovered at room temperature, for 1 to 2 hours or until set. Break into serving size pieces.

Because of the nature of freeze-dried fruit, this particular bark is best enjoyed within a day or two, as the fruit will begin to soften once exposed to humidity. The bark is good for up to a week, however, the fruit just might be a bit softer after a few days out in the open.

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27 Comments

  1. This looks so simple to do and delicious! Just gorgeous

  2. Break into pieces and but into a canning jar, vacuum seal and give as gifts. The jar can be resealed after use ir put a canning lid and a plastic canning jar lid on top and tighten. It will stay fresh as long as you keep the lid on.

  3. Yum! This looks so good! I love chocolate and berries together!

  4. What can I use instead of freeze dried fruit? Can I use fresh fruit?
    Thank you!

  5. I made these this morning and wanted to say thanks! Such a great idea to use the freeze dried fruit. It gives it such a nice taste with the sweet and sour. Thank you!! I linked to your post :)
    https://mommycrossing.wordpress.com/2014/12/05/dark-chocolate-bark/

  6. Where can I buy a lot of good quality chocolate for lots of candy making? I need to buy the large blocks of quality chocolate.
    Thank you for any help you can give me.

  7. This recipe is to die for! Thank you

  8. Knew when I saw a photo of this bark on Pinterest that I needed to give it a try! I was very excited to try using freeze-dried fruit, not something I’d ever baked with before. My bark turned out really great, though I did freeze it for about 20 minutes to finish up the hardening (my apt is a bit on the warm side). I shared this recipe on my own blog; thanks so much for posting this. Look forward to trying more of your recipes in the future! 

  9. Gorgeous! The color you get from the fruit is so great against that dark swathe of chocolate. 

  10. Freeze dried fruit ground up for pixie sticks!! OMG most genius thing I’ve heard in a long time! I am so trying that!

  11. I love the color of this bark. The reds and chocolate are so beautiful!

  12. This is gorgeous :) The berries looks so vivid against the dark chocolate!

  13. Oh – what beautiful reds, pinks and purples. I’ve never made chocolate before as I’m always nervous about the tempering, but you’ve inspired me to give it a go…

  14. Really like this idea! The colours are beautiful! 

  15. Fun! I never put fruit with chocolate and I definitely need to more!

  16. This looks so striking and delicious!

  17. I also love the rough and ready nature of chocolate bark, just toss anything you have to hand into it.

  18. Thank you for this tasty and fruity chocolate, a new reason for not giving up with chocolate, have a nice evening:)

  19. I love freeze-dried fruit, the texture and the intense flavour are really amazing! The only thing is that they are so hard to get…

    • I get a monthly shipment of freeze-dried fruits. It doesn’t get any easier than that! And I order them by the #10 can, not little pouches. perkins.thrivelife.com/all-products/thrive-foods/fruits.html

  20. This is gorgeous!! I love fruit and chocolate together and would probably eat it all in one sitting though!!

  21. This is beautiful! And genious. 

  22. Fruit + chocolate is one of my favorite flavor combos. I’ve added all sorts of crunchy candy to bark but never thought about fruit. Also, if this is the result, I’ll come over to help clean out your cabinets any time :)

  23. looks stunning and sounds like the perfect sweet + tart combination! I’m also with Marta, up there. I’d happily clean out your cabinets weekly if this is what came of that cleaning! mine only results in sticky jars with honey residue destined for the trash, boxes of poorly wrapped, stale cereal. ugh.

  24. I just came across your blog, and then I saw this! This bark is 1) hello gorgeous! 2)Chocolate 3)Easy 4) Did I say chocolate?  Basically, this is everything I could ever want in life, in one dish.  Pinned and a new follower!

  25. If this is how you clean your cabinet, I want to live with you and clean it each week with you.

  26. Lindsay it’s beautiful! It’s the prettiest bark I’ve ever seen and I’ve read one or two blogs around the holidays :) WOW! Just stunning – love that contrast of colors and textures. Pinned! Happy TG to you and Taylor!

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