Chocolate Espresso Bark

If you like chocolate covered coffee beans from the gourmet stores, this is for you. I made one batch exactly as described (had decaf hazelnut beans on hand) and my husband loved it, but I thought the texture of whole beans were a little overwhelming when eating. The second batch I coursely ground the beans and added about a teaspoon of decaf instant coffee to make the chocolate itself have a coffee flavor too. Incidentally, I forgot the butter in the second batch and it didn't seem to matter. Melted the white chocolate separately and swirled it in the top as others have mentioned (using a toothpick for marbled effect), and with these changes would give it 5 stars. Another fancy touch is to score the chocolate when it is almost cooled (about 5-10 minutes in the fridge), then you can break it into beautifully even squares (1" is plenty at a time!) A unique treat that is surprisingly easy to throw together. People either LOVE LOVE it, or can't make it through one bite... count me in the first category. Fabulous next to a powerful red wine or a strong cup of after-dinner coffee. POW!  -  05 Jan 2008  (Review from Allrecipes USA and Canada)

I made this twice in one weekend to try out different methods. The first time I coarsely ground the coffee and swirled in the white chocolate at the end. The final result was a bit messy looking, thin and, as expected, gritty. The second time I left the beans whole and drizzled white chocolate on top after the bark had completely set. The final result was thick and beautiful! For both trials I scored the bark after 2-3 minutes in the freezer which made slicing once completely set very easy. This recipe yielded 24 nice-sized pieces. I bake part-time and I break down all my recipes to cost of ingredients - this recipe, using Starbucks whole coffee beans and Ghiardelli chocolate, cost $5.09/batch. All in all, this is a fast, easy, cheap and impressive treat that I'll be making again an again for friends and family.  -  13 Mar 2011  (Review from Allrecipes USA and Canada)

Delicious & easy. Used unsalted butter instead of margarine & it made no difference. Put it back in the freezer when halfway through breaking apart for a few minutes as it was getting a little soft. I scored it with a knife to make it easier to break. Already e-mailed this to my daughter who is a lawyer & doesn't have time for complicated recipes.  -  15 Dec 2006  (Review from Allrecipes USA and Canada)