INGREDIENTS
Cookie crumb
120 g unsalted butter
65 g brown sugar
50 g whole egg
200 g plain flour
35 g Dutch processed cocoa powder
¼ tsp salt
Plain flour, for dusting
Cookies and cream bark
80 g cookie crumb, from above
Pinch of salt flakes
280 g good-quality white chocolate
METHOD
Cookie crumb
- Place the butter and brown sugar into the bowl of a freestanding mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat until smooth.
- Once there are no lumps of butter remaining, add the egg and mix to combine.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, and salt.
- Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix until it just comes together as a dough.
- Press the dough into an even, flat rectangle, wrap it in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven on Fan Plus at 150°C.
- On a lightly floured workbench, roll out the chilled dough to approximately 4 mm in thickness.
- Cut the dough into 50 mm x 50 mm squares and transfer them onto a lined baking tray.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes.
- Allow to cool completely at room temperature, then roughly chop into small pieces.
Cookies and cream bark
- Evenly divide the cookie crumbs between two bowls, then mix the salt through one of them.
- Temper the chocolate by placing it into a saucepan over medium-low heat, induction setting 2. Stir continuously until you have 50% solids and 50% liquid. Then, transfer the semi-melted chocolate into a heat-proof plastic bowl and stir vigorously until the solids have completely melted.
- Mix the combined cookie crumbs and salt through the tempered chocolate, then quickly pour it onto a lined tray and spread it out.
- Before it sets, sprinkle the second portion of cookie crumbs over the surface and gently press it into the chocolate.
- Allow to set at room temperature before breaking into pieces.
Hints and tips
- The cookie crumb can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container.
- The cookie crumb recipe makes more biscuit than required for the bark but is difficult to make with smaller quantities.
- Any remaining biscuits can be eaten as is, sprinkled over ice cream, or sandwiched with ganache.
- You can substitute the cookie crumb with an equal weight of crushed store-bought cookies if desired.
APPLIANCE / FUNCTION
Kirsten Tibballs
Kirsten Tibballs, proclaimed by MasterChef Australia as ‘the Queen of Chocolate’, is one of Australia’s most celebrated and internationally respected pastry chefs and chocolatiers.
With a desire to pass on her knowledge to other passionate food lovers and professional pastry chefs, Kirsten established Savour Chocolate & Patisserie School in 2002 in Brunswick, Melbourne. Savour creates an opportunity for students to learn from and work alongside their award-winning chefs. It boasts a state of the art kitchen and hosts a number of renowned international pastry chefs each year.
