Special Chocolate Bars

I heard about making your own chocolate bars with special toppings back in December on the Splendid Table. However, there wasn't time to experiment in the mist of the Christmas travel season. Recently I saw a picture of some chocolate topped with pumpkin seeds (pepitas), and it brought the idea back to mind. While shopping at the Coop, I found Belgian Dark Chocolate in the bulk baking section. I made an impulse purchase of about half a pound. I came home to find the general directions on the Splendid Table website. Here's what part of the block looked like when I started. Before you begin, line a baking sheet with wax paper. Then prepare your toppings. I toasted almonds and pepitas separately.

Roughly chop all the chocolate. I tried to chop it in the food processor, but all it did was spin around and start to melt. I found the cutting board and my serrated Cutco knife worked best for roughly chopping the chocolate. Put half of the chocolate into a heavy-bottomed pan.Melt the chocolate over very low heat. Once it is melted, stir in the other half of the chocolate. Stir together until is is all melted. Pour chocolate on to a sheet of wax paper in a baking tray. Spread to 1/8 inch thickness with a spatula. Let sit for 3 minutes.

Sprinkle on your toppings and some coarse sea salt.
Let the chocolate cool for an hour or two until set. Then break or cut the chocolate into pieces and store in a tin for up to two weeks. Three different sections were topped with pepitas, almonds, and almonds and lavender. The hardest part of this recipe is not eating it all at once.