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Home » Desserts » Candy » Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Cranberry Buttercrunch

Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Cranberry Buttercrunch

November 28, 2014 by Kristi 35 Comments

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This Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Cranberry Buttercrunch has a buttery, rich, hazelnut crumble bottom topped with decadent, indulgent, dark chocolate and tart cranberries. 

Dark Chocolate, Milk Chocolate or White Chocolate?

You guys – today is something special!  For the first time, I am participating in Mystery Dish.

Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Cranberry Buttercrunch | Inspiration Kitchen

If you’re not familiar with Mystery Dish, it’s a group of bloggers that take turns each month coming up with a list of ingredients that other participating bloggers must use to create a unique dish.

This month we had to choose at least 3 ingredients from the following list:

  • Hazelnuts
  • Pork Belly
  • Dark Chocolate
  • Cranberries
  • Bourbon
  • Red Potatoes
  • Pimento Cheese
  • Ginger
  • Yogurt
  • French Bread
  • Buckwheat
  • Rice Krispies

Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Cranberry Buttercrunch | Inspiration Kitchen

When I first saw ‘pork belly’ on the list, I panicked.  No lie.  I thought, “What in the world can I make with pork belly?”  I was so nervous about coming up with something from a list of mystery ingredients,  I nearly bowed out with a feeble “I’m sorry, but I just can’t do it!”  Meh.

It never occurred to me until much later that the list wasn’t so intimidating at all, and at the very least, I could’ve made the Purple Gnocchi with Pork Belly that I tried at IFBC 2013!  🙂

Breathe Kristi, breathe.

When in doubt, make a rich, buttery, crunchy, irresistable candy.  🙂  Who doesn’t love that?

Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Cranberry Buttercrunch | Inspiration Kitchen So…, no pork belly for my lovely readers today.  Aren’t you the lucky ones?!  🙂

But, this recipe is one of our very favorites and I make it in various different forms, come the holidays, every single year.  You can actually make this buttercrunch using any nuts (walnuts, pecans, almonds), but I’m particularly fond of hazelnuts because of their rich, buttery and deep nutty flavor.  So, you can imagine how excited I was to see them on the list!

What you’ll love about making this candy is, that it comes together fast and everyone will rave about how good it is!

Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Cranberry Buttercrunch | Inspiration Kitchen

The rich, dark chocolate pairs beautifully with the tart, tangy bite of the cranberries – on top of a hazelnut buttercrunch – it’s absolutely heaven in a candy.

Want to see what everyone else made?  Visit these blogging friends!

  • Turtle Krispies by I Dig Pinterest  http://www.idigpinterest.com/2014/11/turtle-krispies-treats.html
  • Dark Chocolate Greek Yogurt Cookies by The Pajama Chef  http://wp.me/pZi0C-1C6
  • Chewy Chocolate Hazelnut Granola Bars by I Want Crazy  http://www.iwantcrazyblog.com/chewy-chocolate-hazelnut-granola-bars
  • Dark Chocolate Hazelnut English Toffee by Flavor the Moments  http://flavorthemoments.com/dark-chocolate-hazelnut-english-toffee
  • Skinny Dark Chocolate Pomegranate Hazelnut Fudge by Joyful Healthy Eats  http://www.joyfulhealthyeats.com/skinny-dark-chocolate-pomegranate-hazelnut-fudge/
  • Cranberry Hazelnut Crepe Cake by Blahnik Baker  http://blahnikbaker.com/cranberry-hazelnut-crepe-cake/
  • Dark Chocolate Gingerbread Rice Krispie Treats by The Smart Cookie Cook  http://wp.me/p3e0SZ-4nJ
  • Mini Eggnog Cheesecakes with Hazelnut Cookie Crust by The Well Floured Kitchen  http://thewellflouredkitchen.com/2014/11/28/mini-eggnog-cheesecake-with-hazelnut-cookie-crust/
  • Salted Hazelnut Scotcheroos by Yummy Healthy Easy  http://www.yummyhealthyeasy.com/?p=6182

Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Cranberry Buttercrunch | Inspiration Kitchen

Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Cranberry Buttercrunch | Inspiration Kitchen

Enjoy!

Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Cranberry Buttercrunch | Inspiration Kitchen
Print Recipe

Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Cranberry Buttercrunch

This Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Cranberry Buttercrunch has a buttery, rich, hazelnut crumble bottom topped with decadent, indulgent, dark chocolate and tart cranberries.
Course: Desserts
Author: Kristi

Ingredients

  • 2 cups chopped hazelnuts
  • 1 cup unsalted butter
  • 1 and ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 10 ounce package bittersweet chocolate chips
  • ¼ cup skim milk
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup dried cranberries chopped fine

Instructions

  • Butter the bottom of a 9"x13" baking dish. Evenly distribute hazelnuts on the bottom of the greased pan.
  • Melt 1 cup butter and sugar in a medium-sized saucepan over medium high heat until browned, stirring constantly (roughly 10 minutes).
  • In a separate saucepan, combine bittersweet chocolate chips, skim milk, 2 tablespoons butter, vanilla extract and heat over low heat until thoroughly melted and smooth.
  • Pour melted browned butter/sugar mixture over the top of hazelnuts.
  • Pour melted bittersweet chocolate over the browned butter mixture. Top with chopped cranberries.
  • Cool and let chocolate set before breaking into edible chunks.*

Notes

*To set the candy faster, you can cool it in the refrigerator like I did. Then, remove and serve.

 Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Cranberry Buttercrunch

Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Cranberry Buttercrunch - inspirationkitchen.com

Filed Under: Candy, Desserts Tagged With: bittersweet chocolate, buttercrunch, candy, chocolate, christmas, cranberry, dark chocolate, dessert, desserts, easy recipe, hazelnuts, holiday, holiday candy, holiday dessert, inspiration kitchen, mystery dish, mysterydish, recipe, sweets, treats

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Comments

  1. Renee@Two in the Kitchen says

    November 28, 2014 at 6:36 am

    You did a great job here Kristi. I love your mantra: When in doubt…..make candy!!!!! That is why I love you!! 🙂

    Hey, just FYI…..Your link is not working on other people’s sites. I tried your link on at least 4 separate sites and they all say “error” Coming directly to your site worked, just not the links.

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      November 28, 2014 at 7:59 am

      Thank you Renee! I just went and checked the links – 3 of them are not working. It looks like those bloggers have not posted their recipes yet. 🙁 Sorry about that!

      Reply
      • Renee@Two in the Kitchen says

        November 28, 2014 at 3:45 pm

        Kristi, I meant that if I am on “Flavor the Moment’s” site and try and click the link that goes to your recipe, it does not work. It comes up as “Error 404”. I tried to get to your site from several different blogs that have your link and none of them work. Not sure if it could be fixed but I just wanted you to know.

        Reply
        • Kristi says

          November 28, 2014 at 3:47 pm

          Oh no! Thank you Renee! I’ll look into it right now!

          Reply
  2. Lynn @ Order in the Kitchen says

    November 28, 2014 at 7:52 am

    Ummm these are amazing and I wish I could participate in something like that it sounds SO fun! If you think I would be able to be included please let me know because this is awesome! It’s basically like Chopped but for food bloggers 🙂 These sweet treats look so delicious. Very inspired! Thank you!

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      November 28, 2014 at 8:26 am

      It’s totally fun Lynn! I just sent the Admin of the group email saying you wanted to join – so she may be reaching out to you. I’d love to have you participate too!

      Reply
  3. Ginny McMeans says

    November 28, 2014 at 8:23 am

    Great choice of ingredients. These look so good!

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      November 28, 2014 at 8:55 am

      Thanks Ginny! They are really rich and delicious! 🙂

      Reply
  4. marcie says

    November 28, 2014 at 8:52 am

    I’m glad you took a breath, Kristi! Mystery Dish can seem intimidating at first, but it’s not — especially for a great cook like you! It’s so funny when you told me what you were making I didn’t know that butter crunch was toffee, so I look like a HUGE copycat don’t I? lol At least I didn’t use cranberries like I almost did. haha This looks amazing, I can see why you make it every year. So easy and so GOOD! These bad boys are pinned!

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      November 28, 2014 at 8:57 am

      You absolutely do *NOT* look like a copycat at all! 🙂 Your recipe was much harder – I really wanted to try using the Bourbon, but I couldn’t figure out how to incorporate it in there! I picked the 3 safest ingredients out of the whole list, so I could ease into this Mystery Dish thing! 🙂

      Reply
  5. Marissa | Pinch and Swirl says

    November 28, 2014 at 9:15 am

    This looks like my perfect candy, Kristi! I so prefer sweets with texture and crunch – yum!!

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      November 28, 2014 at 1:35 pm

      Thanks Marissa! I love this crunchy candy! 🙂

      Reply
  6. Amy (Savory Moments) says

    November 28, 2014 at 12:22 pm

    This looks so yummy – when in doubt, candy is a great idea! 🙂 It’s very festive as well.

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      November 28, 2014 at 1:35 pm

      Thanks Amy! I really love this candy! 🙂

      Reply
  7. Cookin Canuck says

    November 28, 2014 at 2:30 pm

    You are definitely forgiven for not posting a pork belly sandwich. 🙂 This butter crunch looks too good for words!

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      November 28, 2014 at 3:46 pm

      Hahahaha! You made me laugh out loud, Dara! 🙂 xoxo

      Reply
  8. Judit + Corina @ Glamorous Bite says

    November 28, 2014 at 4:09 pm

    You got us with dark chocolate! Love the little bright bursts of cranberry that add a touch of tartness. Regarding the pork belly, well maybe that can be chocolate covered too…. 🙂
    Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving Kristi!

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      November 28, 2014 at 6:09 pm

      Hahahaha! I LOL’d at the chocolate covered pork belly! Thank you for making me laugh. I hope you two beautiful ladies had a great Thanksgiving! I adore you two girls! 🙂

      Reply
  9. Julie @ Willow Bird Baking says

    November 28, 2014 at 4:49 pm

    Gorgeous!!

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      November 28, 2014 at 6:10 pm

      Thank you Julie! Have a great weekend!

      Reply
  10. ATasteOfMadness says

    November 28, 2014 at 8:55 pm

    Oh my goodness, this looks amazing! I have been really into the cranberry chocolate combo recently This is perfect for me!

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      November 29, 2014 at 8:29 am

      Thanks Cathleen! These were addictive for sure! 🙂

      Reply
  11. Mariana @The Candid Kitchen says

    November 29, 2014 at 1:29 am

    I love this idea of mystery dish!!! This looks like a very successful attempt, Kristi!

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      November 29, 2014 at 8:28 am

      The Mystery Dish of the month is really fun Mariana! Let me know if you want to become part of the contributors and I’ll add you!

      Reply
  12. Manali @ CookWithManali says

    November 29, 2014 at 9:18 am

    this looks so delicious Kristi! 🙂 I love hazelnuts , wish I could eat one right now! Pinned of course.

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      November 29, 2014 at 2:36 pm

      Thank you for the pin Manali! You would absolutely love this candy – it’s so addictive! 🙂

      Reply
  13. Josefine {The Smoothie Lover} says

    November 30, 2014 at 10:36 am

    Mystery Dish sounds like so much fun! I really want to participate in something like it. Wonderful recipe you made 🙂
    And I am definitely on the dark-chocolate-side here – the darker the better. I’ve found a bar of chocolate which is 92% cocoa and sweetened with coconut sugar – SO GOOD!

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      November 30, 2014 at 3:16 pm

      Josefine, if you want to participate, I can send you an invite to Mystery Dish! 🙂 It’s ssssoooo fun! That chocolate bar you found sounds delish!

      Reply
  14. Rachel @ the dessert chronicles says

    November 30, 2014 at 5:58 pm

    I loved my time as a part of Mystery Dish! Looks like you’re enjoying it and came up with the perfect combo of ingredients. These look delicious!

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      November 30, 2014 at 9:55 pm

      I really enjoy it Rachel! I was nervous at first, but then it got the creative juices going! 🙂 Let me know if you want to rejoin!

      Reply
  15. Ella-HomeCookingAdventure says

    November 30, 2014 at 10:17 pm

    I have a bag of cranberries and didn’t use it by now.. I love anything with chocolate and these look wonderful.. I can imagine the taste…mmmmmm

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      December 1, 2014 at 6:52 am

      So glad you like it Ella – they are really, really good!

      Reply
  16. Lindsey @ American Heritage Cooking says

    December 13, 2014 at 8:44 pm

    Fun!!! I don’t even know what to say about the crunchy, sweet, nutty awesomeness that you created from those ingredient! It looks heavenly!

    Reply
    • Kristi says

      December 14, 2014 at 5:03 pm

      It is some tasty for sure! You should totally join the Mystery Dish Gals Lindsey! It’s sssooo much fun – you’d love it!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Spinach, Tomato & Roasted Garlic Flatbread | Inspiration Kitchen says:
    December 29, 2014 at 3:00 am

    […] OMGosh, can I just tell you how much I love Mystery Dish?  If you don’t know what that is, I explained it in this post. […]

    Reply

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