Bread with Chocolate

This recipe will surprise you as much as it did me. The full name is Rustic Bread with Dark Chocolate, Olive Oil, and Salt, which reveals all four recipe ingredients. The recipe comes from the book Tapas – A Taste of Spain in America, by José Andrés.

José Andrés is a well known Spanish chef who’s highly regarded for not only his culinary expertise but also his humanitarian work. I’ve seen the chef on various shows, and he just seems like a very nice human being. As of 2024, he owns 19 restaurants around the world, so along with his charity work, he must be extremely busy.

This tapas book was published in 2005. I probably bought it that year, because I wouldn’t have bought it after our trip in Spain in 2007. Let me explain.

I designed a road trip for my husband and myself beginning in Madrid, a lovely visit in Cuenca, Peniscola on the coast, then drove inland to a Parador in Cardona, with an incredible stop at Montserrat. After that was a crazy fun drive through Andorra, over the Pyrenees, and into France where we visited my sister. After a week, we returned to Madrid on a different, more northern route. At the bottom of this post are some photos from the trip.

The reason I mention our trip, is that as is our “way” with traveling, we don’t go to touristy spots. (After seeing the Eiffel Tower and The Vatican, of course.) And we weren’t in Spain during the tourist months, either. I had been so excited for the famous Spain “tapas,” but was terribly disappointed.

The actual tapas in the tapas bars and little cafés? Most of them were moving. I’m not kidding. Spider and crab-like critters moving on their bed of tomatoes. Seriously. They reminded me of the fresh white eels that I read about as a kid in National Geographic that people eat on New Year’s Eve for good luck. I couldn’t do it. I expected gambas, patatas, croquettes, etc.

The meals were fabulous, though, and the house wine. We enjoyed lots of Iberico ham, and Manchego with rosemary inside, all drizzled with olive oil. Heaven.

So back to my tapas cookbook, here it is 2024 and when I pulled it out of my book case and opened it up, I realized I’d never read it. I must have purchased it after our trip to Spain! In any case, all is forgiven, just not quite forgotten. We will be going back to Spain. Here is the recipe.

Rustic Bread with Dark Chocolate, Olive Oil, and Salt
Pan con chocolate, aceite y sal
Printable recipe below

4 1/2” thick slices rustic bread
4 ounces dark chocolate
4 tablespoons Spanish extra-virgin olive oil
Sea salt to taste

Heat the oven to 200 degrees.

Toast the slices of bread in a toaster until brown. (I didn’t do this.)

Using a knife, break the chocolate into small pieces. Scatter them over the toasted bread, and place in the oven until the chocolate melts, about 5 minutes. (I personally would have tempered the chocolate first.)

Drizzle with the olive oil, sprinkle a little salt on top, and serve.

Chef Andrés call this simple dessert one of the best examples of a uniquely Spanish mix of olive oil and chocolate on bread.

Before oil and salt, which was favorite part of these tapas!