I did not bake Himself a Birthday Cake this year, he prefers candy anyway. He loves Buckeyes but I did not feel like rolling balls and dipping them in chocolate- too fussy. I am not saying Himself is not worth the fuss, I am saying it is not my talent to get perfectly shaped Buckeyes- plus I kind of like the rustic charm of this bark. This makes a big batch and the entire process took less than 30 minutes. Now a big bucket of this stuff lurks in our freezer and I am wondering how long it will last. My guess? Not very.
Buckeye Bark
2.5 pounds favorite chocolate candy coating*- white, dark, or milk
1 pound all natural creamy peanut butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1 stick butter melted
1 tsp vanilla
Melt 1.25 pounds chocolate according to package directions and spread over parchment paper or a silpat lined cookie sheet. Spread to a large rectangle but not too thin, maybe 1/8-1/4 inch thickness. Place in freezer. In a large bowl whip together the remaining ingredients until smooth and creamy. Spread over first chocolate layer. While it sits in the freezer, melt the remaining chocolate and spread over peanut butter layer. Freeze until set. Break up into small pieces using a butcher knife- hacking away! Serves a crowd. Store in the refrigerator or freezer until ready to serve.
*I used Ghirardelli Chocolate Candy Coating. I think I will try this again with real chocolate and I bet white chocolate would be great around Christmastime.
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Robin Sue
36 Comments
What would be amazing is if they were flexible enough to roll and then let harden and slice them up! Is that possible????
Paige- I don't think this would roll up without cracking, but maybe this candy dipped in chocolate would be close.
http://www.bigredkitchen.com/2008/11/christmas-peanut-butter-candies.html
I'm thinking this sounds very good right now!
I def want to try these! I'm a little nervous about pouring the chocolate tho, don't want it to run all over. This would be my first attempt at bark. Any tips?
You can take a piece of parchment paper and put it on a baking sheet with sides. This is how I always do it. No mess!
Ashley B- Here are some tips…
Tempering is so fussy and I seem to still get the white streaks ( bloom-when you get the chocolate too hot) once in a while. I called a chocolate company and here are a few tips they gave me.
1. Best to cut the chocolate in uniform small pieces, it is best to use a serrated knife to do this.
2. Use a double boiler with the lower pan on low heat and melt 1/4 of the chocolate in the top pan very slowly.
3. Add each quarter of the chocolate after the first is melted, this keeps the batch from getting too hot.
4. Once melted, remove from heat making sure none of the water or steam from the pot hits your chocolate. If it does, your chocolate will seize- "clot"
5. Store the final product- your candy, in cool place, in air-tight container. I freeze my bark.
6. They also told me I can check my chocolate by smearing a small bit on a piece of waxed paper and place it in the refrigerator, if it gets white then I took it too far. The flavor is fine, it just doesn't look as nice. So no worries.
7. Remember slow and low!
8. Candy coating, Candy melts, almond bark are all good for beginners as it is more forgiving than working with actual chocolate.
9. If you are worried about the chocolate running all over, then line a large jelly roll pan with side with parchment to prevent over flow.
10. Have fun, it's only chocolate!
It takes lots of practice. I am still practicing;-) And tasting all my samples as I go! Hope this helps.
Robin Sue
Have made these twice with RAVE reviews. I will say Reduced Fat peanut butter does not work. It makes the peanut butter crumbly instead of spreadable. That being said, it was still devoured.
Good to know! Thanks
Adding parafin wax to the chocolate as its melting preventa the need of keeping in fridge or freezer. You can find it in the same section as canning jars, etc. Will definitely use the recipe!!!
I love the sound of this recipe, never had a “buckeye” and am going to give it a go. I can convert most things (the pounds / inches, etc) but what amount is a “stick” of butter? We don’t have “sticks” of butter in NZ or OZ. Thanks muchly.
A stick here is 8 tablespoons or 1/2 cup or 4 ounces. Enjoy!
What the???? Buckeye bark, how genius is this???
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