Ever since I made this Easter bark back in April, I’m been a bit obsessed with making this delicious graham cracker bark. So naturally I had to make a Christmas version too! Unlike normal Christmas bark that just uses chocolate topped with other things, this bark combines chocolate with marshmallows, and graham crackers for a bark that tastes almost like Christmas s’mores. And who doesn’t love a good s’more, especially on a cold winter night!! If you’re looking for a more traditional bark, I’ll be sharing a melted snowman bark soon that may be more of what you’re looking for! But for now, try this one. Who knows, you might like it even more than a traditional Christmas bark recipe. I know I do and so does my family! Plus, this also makes a great gift! Make up a big batch, then add pieces to of this no bake holiday treat to cookie plates with one of these Christmas tags, and you have a sweet holiday gift everyone will love for the holiday season!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Simple ingredients – this recipe only takes four ingredients plus whatever Christmas candy you put on top! It’s an easy recipe that makes an amazing sweet treat. Christmas party favorite – this is perfect for taking to a Christmas party since you can break it into smaller pieces (or bigger ones if you want), giving everyone a chance to try this festive Christmas bark!Versatile – while the crunchy base of this Christmas chocolate bark needs to stay the same, you can get creative with the toppings! Add your favorite candies, add salty pretzels, add pieces of candy canes. It’s your choice of toppings depending on what you like! This festive treat is delicious with pretty much any Christmas treats on top!
Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
Marshmallows – you can either use regular size marshmallows or mini marshmallows, either ones work just fine in this no bake treat. Graham crackers – I like to do this with regular graham crackers compared to honey ones, but either would probably be fine. Keep them whole instead of breaking them into pieces. Chocolate – you can do pretty much any chocolate melts, but I prefer baking chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate melting wafers, or semi-sweet chocolate chips. Anything that will melt into a pourable mixture is great. You could even do this with white chocolate chips to make it a white chocolate bark, just make sure they’re high-quality white chocolate because the cheap ones don’t melt well. A dark chocolate layer or even a layer made out of milk chocolate chips would be fine too (just a bit sweeter). Or even almond bark, although it’s not necessarily my favorite. Butter – go with unsalted butter on this one. If you don’t have unsalted, you can use salted, but it may change the flavor slightly. Christmas candies – as I mentioned above, the possibilities are endless here. I just like to keep the candies to soft ones (like peanut butter cups) or if you’re doing harder ones like peppermint chips, make sure they’re small pieces that people won’t have to bite through. Sprinkles – I always like to add festive sprinkles just to make this look more fun but it’s not absolutely necessary. If you do, go with small sprinkles rather than the huge mixes that are hard to eat, even for people with a sweet tooth!
How to make christmas bark
There’s not a lot to this recipe but it only works if you follow the instructions! I’ve included instructions as well as a few of my tips and tricks to make sure this easy Christmas bark comes out just like it’s supposed to! For full measurements, make sure to check out the full instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of this post! First you’ll need to line a 9.5″ X 13″ cookie sheet with parchment paper. If you don’t have a baking sheet that size, you can always half this recipe and make a smaller batch as well. Or just put the graham crackers on a bigger cookie sheet and keep the toppings to the graham crackers. Once the baking sheet is lined with parchment paper, place the graham crackers in a single layer on the parchment paper. It’s okay to trim the graham crackers to make them all fit flat. Next, put the marshmallows in a large, microwave-safe bowl then pour the melted butter over them. Stir to coat the marshmallows in the butter then microwave for 30 seconds, then stir. Repeat heating and stirring in 30 second intervals until marshmallows are completely melted. Alternately, you can combine the butter and marshmallows over low on the stove just like you would for these chocolate dipped rice krispie treats. Just keep the temperate on low and stir regularly until the marshmallow is completely melted. Pour the melted marshmallow mixture over top of the graham crackers, then spray a spatula with non-stick cooking spray and use it to spread the melted marshmallows evenly over the graham crackers. You want to ideally cover all of the graham crackers but if there’s not quite enough marshmallow, get it as close to the edges as possible. And try your best to get a nice even layer, although it’s marshmallow, so it may not be perfect. Now melt the chocolate in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds, until it is melted and smooth. Again, you could do this on the stove using the double boiler method if that’s easier for you! Pour the melted chocolate evenly over the marshmallow layer and spread out evenly with a spatula. You want a smooth chocolate layer to add your Christmas candies to. While the chocolate is still melted, press candies gently into the melted chocolate and add holiday sprinkles throughout to finish it off! Try to evenly distribute the candies as much as possible so you have M&Ms throughout the chocolate bark, peppermint pieces throughout, and so on. You don’t want one section with just M&Ms, one section with just peppermints, etc. Well unless you do of course! After you’ve added the candies, put the pan in the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes, or until the chocolate is hard. You can leave it harder if you’d like but make sure to let it chill for at least 30 minutes so the chocolate is hard before you break the bark. Once the chocolate is hard, remove the pan from the refrigerator and use a sharp knife that has been coated in non-stick cooking spray to cut the bark into serving size pieces. You can also just pull the chocolate bark apart, but you won’t get as smooth of edges this way, so I recommend using a sharp knife for clean cuts if you want even pieces. If you’re good with irregular shapes and not as clean of pieces, pull away. Serve chilled or at room temperature in pieces.
Expert Tips
Store at room temperature for up to one week in an airtight container. If it’s warm inside, keep refrigerated so the chocolate doesn’t melt. You’ll still get the Christmas crunch you’re looking for without melty chocolate. Make sure to use non-stick cooking spray on the spatula and your hands when dealing with the melted marshmallow. It can get really sticky and you don’t want it to pull up the graham crackers when stuck to your hands. Mix it up! Try this same graham cracker bark base with other holidays and candies. Or you could even go sweet and salty with toppings like pretzel sticks for a salty chocolate bark. Double the batch and make multiple sheet pans full at once! Just use a larger bowl with double the measurements to melt in the microwave! Pour half onto each sheet full of graham crackers.
More Christmas treats
If you like this holiday bark, you have to try these other fun Christmas treats that are sure to bring holiday cheer to your home!
Christmas tree blueberry hand pies – little mini pies that are designed to look like Christmas trees, yummy and cute!Slow cooker candied nuts – these are the most delicious holiday snack plus they make your house smell amazing!Strawberry thumbprint cookies – these Christmas cookies are a classic for a reason, they’ll be gone in minutes! Candy cane cookies – sugar cookie dough gets twisted and turned into the shape of a candy cane, these are so fun! Grinch balls – this fun treat is perfect for this time of year with its Grinchy green color!
