coffee n' nibs chocolate bars. homemade sweets.

Coffee n' Nibs Chocolate Bars. Homemade Sweets

Last minute Valentine's Day treats can be spectacular...and exceptionally easy. This was my thought process as I impulsively bought a bag of chocolate baking chips today, the day before Valentine's Day, to make something nice with. I flipped through some cook books, passing over chocolate mousse and chocolate tart recipes due to the long list of ingredients. No energy for that right now. I wanted something with chocolate, just chocolate, and mostly chocolate as the ingredients. Nothing fancy, you know. Rarely does chocolate need much to make it delicious.  

I actually thought it was Valentine's Day today, don't ask me why, but either way, either day, you could make this quick chocolatey treat within 30 minutes and be a superstar lover. 

I just got back from traveling for a month in Hawaii, and brought back some raw cocoa beans and coffee grown on the Hilo side of the Big Island. With these in mind, I crushed both types of beans in my heavy duty mortar and pestle and sprinkled the crumbs over a layer of melted chocolate to make some super simple and satisfying dessert. Why buy a chocolate bar when you can do it yourself and make that special someone (could be a friend or yourself too!) feel extra loved?

Here's to love. To love of another, to love of yourself. To the love of chocolate, for goodness sake. 

coffee n' nibs chocolate bars

Ingredients:

1 10oz bag semisweet or dark chocolate chips

A handful of raw cocoa beans (or 3 tbsp cocoa nibs)

2 tbsp coffee beans of choice

A pinch of black sea salt (or regular sea salt)

Method:

In a double boiler, simmer about 1/2 inch water in a saucepan under a small metal bowl. Add chocolate chips and stir with a rubber spatula until melted.

Meanwhile, in a mortar and pestle or grinder, crush cocoa beans and coffee until they are crumbled but not ground too fine. Do not grind if using prepared cocoa nibs. 

Pour melted chocolate onto a layer of wax paper or a silpat on a large flat baking pan. With a spatula, spread chocolate into a flat rectangle, about 1/2 cm thick. Jiggle the pan a bit to flatten the top layer. Sprinkle the cocoa nibs and coffee bits evenly over the melted chocolate. Sprinkle on desired amount of sea salt. 

Place in refrigerator until set, but not too rock hard. Remove and cut into desired shapes, trimming the outside. If too cold to cut, let sit at room temperature for a few minutes. Store in refrigerator until ready to serve.