Chocolate Bark Candy Recipes - Chocolate Chocolate and More! (2024)

FAQs

What is the best chocolate for melting? ›

Choosing your chocolate

Chocolate melts faster the higher the percentage of cocoa butter and fat, so dark chocolate melts the fastest. Once melted, it's glossy and has a good viscosity. Good-quality dark chocolate with no less than 70 per cent cocoa solids will leave you with a darker, richer flavour.

You'll want to add in only a small amount of the oil at a time — too much could create an unpleasant texture in the chocolate. Stir in a spoonful of coconut oil until it's blended with the chocolate, adding more as needed. The oil will help thin out the chocolate and make it easier to mix and pour.

Tempered chocolate is wonderful to use when making homemade candy, such as truffles or peanut butter cups, or peppermint bark, because it maintains a nice smooth, shiny, and hard texture even at room temperature.

Fixing Seized Chocolate

This may seem counterintuitive, but the way to fix seized chocolate is to add 1 teaspoon of boiling water at a time, then mix vigorously until it becomes smooth once again. This is ideal when planning to use the chocolate for a drizzle or a sauce since the chocolate will be somewhat diluted.

White chocolate generally solidifies more rapidly than milk or dark chocolate, setting in around 10-20 minutes. On the other hand, milk and dark chocolate usually take 20-30 minutes to harden.

The best chocolate for melting contains 32 percent, or higher, cocoa butter. Here's why: All chocolate will melt, but not all chocolate will melt the same. Some types lose their sheen and may become chalky looking when they cool and resolidify.

Dark chocolate typically contains the highest cocoa content of the chocolate types, with around 86% or more cocoa solids. This makes it more resistant to melting. It has a melting point ranging from 113 to 120 degrees Fahrenheit (45 to 48 degrees Celsius).

Adding a tablespoon of coconut oil or vegetable oil while microwaving helps the chocolate melt more smoothly and makes it the perfect consistency for dipping! The caveat here is that once cool, the chocolate won't set up quite as hard as it did to begin with due to the added fat content.

I recommend Ghirardelli, Guittard, or Baker's brand bars of chocolate when making bark.

Why won't my chocolate bark harden? ›

That's because your chocolate wasn't tempered. Tempered chocolate sets at room temperature and has a snap just like a chocolate bar you buy from the store.

It could be that your room temperature is too high. If the temperature is over 68 F, this can cause problems. The ideal setting temperature is between 65 and 68 degrees Fahrenheit. It could also be that the chocolate wasn't tempered, because untempered chocolate takes quite a bit longer to set.

Melted chocolate is pretty easy to freeze, but it's best when it's done gradually. Chocolate candy can also be frozen to preserve it for longer. When you're ready to enjoy the chocolate, just take it out of the freezer to defrost. You can then melt chocolate again or enjoy frozen candy for a sweet treat.

Use Dairy. Another sure shot way to revive the original texture of the melted chocolate is by adding dairy products such as hot cream and stirring until it's smooth again. The resulting mixture, comparatively, will have a thinner consistency than desired and you might have to alter the recipe.

The great thing about Candy Melts is that leftover melted candy, or candy that has dripped off your treat and is crumb-free, can be re-melted and re-used.