Chocolate Caramel Bark is a decadent treat that’s easy to make and great for an edible gift. Graham crackers with rich caramel and dark chocolate make this treat hard to pass up.
This has been my favorite holiday treat this year, even beating out peppery peanut butter cookies. I’ve made three batches all ready and between gifts and all of us, it has disappeared very quickly. This bark is not as sweet as some because of the graham cracker base. For the first batch, I used up all the dark chocolate pieces that had been accumulating in the pantry, an ounce here and there and a few dark chocolate chips. It was amazing, especially if you are a dark chocolate fan.
However, I thought it could use a little milk chocolate. The next batches I experimented and found my favorite combination which is 10 ounces of dark chocolate and 6 ounces of milk chocolate. Any combination will work so use what you like. This is the time to splurge and get the best quality chocolate that will fit your budget.
To make this, you line up graham crackers on a rimmed baking sheet. If, like me, you are making several batches and don’t have enough rimmed sheets, put an empty baking sheet underneath just in case it drips over. Mine did not, but came close. This is one of those recipes that it helps to have everything ready before you start.
You will boil your butter, brown sugar, and pecans to make the yummy caramel layer. I used dark brown sugar in some and light in others. Both will work but I think I might prefer the dark brown just a bit over the light. You pour the caramel over the graham crackers and then bake it. Once it’s all bubbly, you remove it and pour the melted chocolate on top. I melted mine in the microwave and as long as you take it out and stir it every 30 seconds or so it will be perfect. Sprinkle with more pecans and just a bit of flaky salt. Let it cool down and then place in the refrigerator until it is completely firm. If you remove it too soon, the chocolate layer will not stay on the caramel layer, so be patient.
The end result is a heavenly combination of chocolate, salted caramel and pecans on a crunchy graham cracker base. Everyone who has received holiday treats has raved about this. It’s great for a hostess gift or just leave it in the freezer and grab a piece every time you go by.
Adapted from Confessions of a Chocoholic
PrintChocolate Caramel Bark
Chocolate Caramel Bark is a decadent treat that’s easy to make and great for an edible gift. Graham crackers with rich caramel and dark chocolate make this treat hard to pass up.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 8 minutes
- Total Time: 33 minutes
- Yield: 30 1x
- Category: dessert
Scale
Ingredients
- 15 graham crackers
- 1 cup butter room temperature
- 1 cup brown sugar, dark or light
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 ½ cups pecans, chopped
- 10 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
- 6 ounces milk chocolate, chopped
- ½ teaspoon sea salt, for sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º.
- Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment. Place graham crackers on sheet touching each other.
- In a medium saucepan, add butter, brown sugar and salt. Start at low temperature and increase to medium and bring to a boil. Boil for 2-3 minutes, until a candy thermometer reads 280º to 300º. Do not stir. Pour over graham crackers, spread evenly. Bake for 8-10 minutes until it is bubbly but not burnt.
- While baking, melt chocolate in the microwave stirring every 30 seconds until just melted. Pour over baked graham cracker caramel mixture and sprinkle with pecans and flaky sea salt.
- Chill for at least 45 minutes and then break into bars.
Notes
Helpful tips to prevent the butter from separating: Make sure the butter is room temperature, if not warm it up in the microwave. Start heating the butter and brown sugar on low and gradually go up to medium. Don’t forget to add a little salt to the butter and brown sugar. The good thing is that even if it separates, it will still work.
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