Description
A single-sheet dark chocolate bark studded with salty pretzels, finished with an easy skull “bones” look created by drizzled white chocolate over a stencil outline.
Ingredients
- Dark chocolate: 16 oz (453 g) dark chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate
- Crushed salted pretzels: 1 1/2 cups (90 g) crushed salted pretzels
- Neutral salt (optional, for extra pop): 1/8 tsp (0.6 g) flaky sea salt
- White chocolate for skull/bones: 6 oz (170 g) white chocolate chips or chopped white chocolate
- Neutral oil for drizzling (optional, only if needed): 1/2 tsp (2.5 ml) neutral oil, such as refined coconut or vegetable oil
Instructions
- Line a sheet pan with parchment paper (use a rimmed baking sheet). Set aside.
- Melt the dark chocolate: Place dark chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 20–30 second bursts, stirring each time, until smooth. Alternatively, melt over a double boiler, stirring until glossy.
- Spread the base: Pour melted dark chocolate onto the prepared parchment. Use an offset spatula to spread into an even rectangle, about 1/4 inch (6 mm) thick.
- Add pretzels: Sprinkle the crushed pretzels evenly over the surface. Gently press with your fingertips so the pretzels adhere. Don’t over-pack—leave some chocolate visible for contrast.
- Chill: Refrigerate 15–25 minutes, or until the bark looks set and matte on top.
- Prepare the skull stencil: Place a skull stencil (printable outline or cookie-cutter silhouette) under the parchment so the outline matches the area of the bark. If the parchment is thick, you can tape it lightly at the edges.
- Melt white chocolate: Melt white chocolate the same way as the dark chocolate (microwave bursts, stirring). If it’s too thick to drizzle, stir in the optional neutral oil.
- Create the skull & bones: Transfer melted white chocolate to a small piping bag or a zip-top bag. Snip a tiny corner. Drizzle white chocolate along the skull outline, then fill in bones lines where your stencil has them. Work slowly to keep lines readable.
- Set the decoration: Refrigerate 10–15 minutes until the white chocolate is opaque and no longer tacky.
- Break & serve: Lift the bark by the parchment edges and break into pieces. Serve immediately or store as directed.
Notes
Stencil tip: Choose a stencil with thick, high-contrast lines so the white chocolate forms readable “skull” shapes. If lines blur, it’s usually because the white chocolate was too thin or not fully chilled—chill longer before handling.
Texture tip: Crushed pretzels of mixed sizes look best and create extra crunch pockets.
Appearance tip: For extra glossy dark chocolate, melt until completely smooth, then spread quickly before it thickens.