
My friend Gabby introduced me to chocolate-covered matzo a few years ago. She makes this delicious treat for Passover, and when I had the opportunity to try hers, I was hooked. Matzo, is a staple at every Passover Seder, but regular gluten-filled matzo can make me feel… a bit irregular. And once I discovered gluten-free matzo it changed my world.
This is a no-frills recipe adapted from Gabby’s original recipe along with a few integrations from recipes I found on the internet.
Grand Marnier Covered Matzo
I also happen to love Grand Marnier and chocolate combinations in desserts, don’t you?! The orange liquor coupled with chocolate is super decadent. So I decided my recipe would be boozy (just like me) and I found that adding Grand Marnier adds a refreshing zap to the recipe.
So does Grand Marnier make matzo more Miami? Absolutely.
I never claimed that this recipe is Kosher for Passover, but it’s Kosher for my belly. And isn’t that what G-d really wants anyway? Happy bellies all around 😉
For your convenience, I linked the ingredients above to quickly shop for your baking needs. It’s all available via Amazon Prime.
Gluten-Free Chocolate + Grand Marnier Covered Matzo Crack(ers)
Ingredients
4 to 6 sheets gluten-free matzo
1 cup (2 sticks or 8 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into a few large pieces
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
A big pinch of sea salt
1/2 tablespoon Grand Marnier or you can use a Grand Marnier extract or pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups bittersweet chocolate chips
1/2 cups milk chocolate chips
1 cup toasted chopped walnuts or a nut of your choice (optional)
Pink Himalayan Salt for sprinkling (optional)
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet completely with foil, and then line the base of the foil with parchment paper, cut to fit.
Then line the bottom of the baking sheet with matzo, covering all parts. You’ll need to break pieces to fit any extra spaces, which will be annoying because despite being perforated, it does not actually break in straight lines.
I don’t mind that it looks a little choppy because it makes it look more homemade. Perfection isn’t the goal here… getting chocolate and caramel deliciousness into my belly is!
Grand Marnier Caramel
In a medium saucepan, melt the butter, light and dark brown sugar together, and stir it over medium heat until it begins to boil.
Once it has begun boiling, let it bubble for three more minutes, stirring it well. Then it will thicken a bit as it cooks. Remove from the heat and add the salt, Grand Marnier / vanilla, and then quickly pour it over the matzo. Spread it quickly, as it will begin to set as soon as it is poured.
Bake the caramel-covered matzo for 10 minutes, watching carefully as it will bubble and the corners might darken too quickly and/or burn. Then you can reduce the heat if you see this happening.
Chocolate Nut Topping
Turn oven off and remove matzo from oven.
Immediately cover with chocolate chips and start spreading the chocolate with a spatula. If the chips don’t melt quickly, place the chocolate covered matzo back in the oven for a few minutes and watch it carefully for the chips to melt.
Remove from oven and continue spreading until the chocolate has looks like a nice thick layer. I like imperfection with this and will not take the chocolate to the edge so the caramel has a chance to show off too!
Then sprinkle the chocolate with toasted chopped nuts and/or sea salt.
Place the matzo in the fridge so everything has a chance to cool and set.
I’m impatient as should be expected in the face of chocolate matzo crack(ers). I like to nibble on a piece while the caramel is still gooey!
Once the matzo is set, break the matzo into pieces and store it in a container. It should keep for a week, but it doesn’t last that long in my apartment. This is a good dish to prep in advance of Seder but baker beware… it’s addicting AF!
XO
EV