Chocolate Bark With Lots of Bite

Love chocolate and spices together. You get the sweet with just a little bit of "bite" at the end. This recipe incorporates several different types of chocolate, a tiny bit of cayenne and chili powder, along with dried cherries and pecans.

• Ready In: 45 mins
• Yields: 3 pounds

Ingredients

• 4  cups pecan halves (1 pound)
• 2  tablespoons butter, melted
• 1  tablespoon sugar
• 1  teaspoon salt
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1⁄2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or less to taste)
• 1⁄2 teaspoon dried ancho chile powder (or less to taste)
• 1 (12 ounce) package  semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 4 1⁄2 tablespoons  vegetable oil, divided
• 1 (11 1/2ounce) package  milk chocolate chips
• 1 (10 ounce) package white chocolate chips
• 3⁄4 cup dried cherries

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place the pecans in a bowl; add butter and toss. Combine the sugar, salt, cinnamon, cayenne and chili powder; sprinkle over pecans and toss to coat. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool leaving pecans on the pan.
2. In a double-boiler (or microwave) combine the semisweet chocolate chips and 1 1/2 tablespoons oil, stirring until melted and smooth; then immediately drizzle over pecans distributing evenly and making a pattern over the surface of the nuts.
3. Repeat the process with the milk chocolate and vanilla chips, melting each package with 1 1/2 tablespoons oil. When drizzling over the pecans, make sure all colors of the chocolate are visible. Sprinkle with cherries if desired. Let stand until set. Break into serving-size pieces. Store in an airtight container.