Crispy Hazelnut Bark

I'll tell you right now that I'm a little bit obsessed with Ferrero Rocher candies--you know, the ones that are like Nutella in disguise? They're large balls of hazelnut paste surrounded by a crispy wafer shell and they are ridiculously good. I've attempted taste-alike recipes before (these Crispy Nutella Truffles come quite close, if I do say so myself) but there's a fair amount of time involved. The mixing! The rolling! The dipping! Sometimes a girl just wants instant gratification.

So I bark-ified the concept of Ferrero Rochers, and created this Crispy Hazelnut Bark. It uses hazelnut-flavored chocolate to give it bold hazelnut flavor, and crisped rice in the chocolate mimics the crunchiness of the wafers. The bark is topped with toasted hazelnuts for an extra hazelnut boost. It's ready in 10 minutes (five if you stick it in the freezer to harden!) and has all the hazelnut flavor and crispity-crunchityness you could ask for.
Crispy Hazelnut Bark Photo c2008 Elizabeth LaBau, licensed to About.com, Inc.

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