Name: Mexican Chocolate Bark with Sea Salt and Pepitas
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 10 min
Ingredients: 6 oz dark chocolate; 3 oz semi-sweet chocolate; 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon; 1/2 tsp cayenne; 1/4 tsp sea salt; 2 tbsp pepitas {unsalted}

This Mexican chocolate bark is spiced with cinnamon and cayenne and sprinkled with sea salt and pepitas. Only 6 ingredients required and 10 minutes to make!

Remember how I mentioned that balancing being back at work, a toddler, and a food blog, my life has become verrry busy, and that I was going to be focusing my efforts on super duper easy Christmas recipes this year?

Well. If you want easy, I have easy for you. I mean, this Mexican chocolate bark barely counts as a recipe. It is so basic, it almost doesn't deserve its own post.

Because spoiler: chocolate bark is...um...melted chocolate. That is re-solidified.

But wait! Hopefully I can convince you that this 'non-recipe' is a bit more exciting that your basic 'bark'!

Reasons you'll ♡ this Mexican chocolate bark

it requires just 6 ingredients
you can make it with just 10 minutes effort
it's makes a great gift

First, rather than using straight up dark chocolate, which I find to be a little too bitter for my taste, I combined a mixture of dark chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate.

Then there's cinnamon and cayenne. Yes, cayenne! Spicy chocolate is a weirdly addictive treat, trust me. And between the cinnamon and the cayenne, there is a distinctive 'Mexican' kind of flavor about this chocolate.

And then there's the sea salt. First spicy chocolate and now salty chocolate. I can hear you all rapidly closing your browser windows...wait!!!!! The sea salt brings out all of the deep dark chocolate flavors. It totally enhances everything.

And finally, I sprinkled the Mexican chocolate bark with pepitas. As you can see, I wasn't exactly restrained. I went for it! The pepitas mostly contribute a crunch factor, as I don't find them to have a very strong flavor. They also bring color...I love the contrast between the deep rich dark chocolate and the bright green pepitas!

So all you need to do, you busy people, is to melt some chocolate. I have tried for a long time to master this in a microwave, and after numerous batches of seized chocolate, I've officially waved the white flag and moved on to the double boiler. Much, much MUCH easier.

I chopped my chocolate coarsely, and melted it down in the double boiler. Then I stirred in the ground cinnamon and cayenne. While it was melting, I taped my parchment paper into my 9X13 inch pan, but truth be told, you could also use a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Once everything is all smooth and melty and combined, spread it all over the parchment. Mine was clearly not of even thickness, and that's the beauty of this 'non-recipe'...it doesn't have to be exact! Just spread it, sprinkle it with the sea salt and pepitas, pour yourself a glass of wine and go watch some TV. You deserve it!

This Mexican chocolate bark makes a delicious snack, and would also make a wonderful gift! Just don't tell anyone that it only took you 15 minutes to make...that will be our little secret 😉

Tips & equipment for Mexican chocolate bark

use a double boiler or carefully melt in the microwave in a large glass measuring cup (stir every 15-30 seconds to prevent seizing)
tap your parchment paper onto a sheet pan or in a 9 x 13 inch baking dish
looking for more homemade gift ideas? Check out this Classic Peppermint Bark Recipe, these Classic Cinnamon Roasted Pecans or this post with 5 Edible DIY Christmas Gifts (which includes printable tags)

Did you make this? Tag me on social @sweetpeasandsaffron and be sure to leave a comment and rate the recipe!