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You are here: Home / Recipes / Dessert / Bar-One sauce – a South African classic

Bar-One sauce – a South African classic

by Jeanne Horak on November 21, 2008 16 Comments in Dessert, NaBloPoMo 2008, South African, Vegetarian

Bar-One-sauce

So you think you’ve had a rough week?

Well, spare a thought for some of the occupants of the International Space Station.  First they break the news to you that of the two spiders being sent into space, you are not the Lead Spider – you are merely the understudy.  So you have no real role unless the Lead Spider for some reason becomes incapacitated during the flight.  Then they tell you that you will have to spend the trip in a sealed tank, separated from the only other member of your species, for the entire trip.  And then when the astronauts come to check on you, you are discovered to have gone AWOL – the tank is as empty as a jar of peanut butter in Elvis’ kitchen.  “Umm… we’re sure he’s around here somewhere…” mutter the embarrassed astronauts, hoping that small crunching sound as they bounce weightlessly off the ceiling of the cabin was not your carapace.

Or spare a thought for the Lead Spider.  When the understudy went missing, the astronauts went to look if he’d sneaked into the Lead Spider’s tank. But the Lead Spider has become so confused and miserable because of weightlessness that he has taken to covering every millimetre of his tank in erratically spun webs, in an attempt to stop himself from floating around.  And now there is so much webbing in the tank that the astronauts can’t tell if either spider is in there.  Hell – Elvis could be in there!

But the person I feel sorriest for is the astronaut who happily puts on their space glove and discovers that this is where the spiders have decided to hole up.

Doesn’t your week seem a whole lot less trying now??

Something that I find always helps when you’re feeling confused and miserable is dessert – even better if it’s something to remind you of home.  Now when I was a little girl, my mom used to make her own chocolate sauce that she kept in a jar in the fridge.  Later we could get plastic squeezy tubes of chocolate sauce, and even later, bottles of Ice Cap chocolate sauce that you’d pour over ice cream and they’d harden to a crispy shell.  But the biggest treat of all was hot Bar-One sauce.  Bar-Ones are South African chocolates simmilar to English Mars bars and American Milky Ways: chocolate bars consisting of a layer of malted nougat topped with a layer of caramel and covered in milk chocolate.

Somewhere along the line, somebody discovered that melting Bar-Ones together with a little cream makes for a fabulously rich chocolate sauce.  You get the taste of the malted nougat, and the gooey consistency of the caramel, all in a chocolate matrix – it’s the best of all possible worlds!  Served hot over vanilla ice cream, I can think of few simpler (or guiltier!) pleasures.

If I could, I’d send the space spiders a bowl to cheer them up.IceCreamBarOneWeb2

BAR-ONE SAUCE (makes 6-8 servings)

Ingredients:

2 x 100g Bar-Ones or Mars Bars
200ml double cream
1/2 tsp vanilla essence

Method:

  1. Cut the Bar-Ones into 1cm thick slices and place in a pyrex bowl.
  2. Set the bowl over a pot of boiling water on the hob (the base of the bowl should be just above, not touching, the water) and allow the chocolate to melt.  The nougat and caramel will take longer to melt than the chocolate, so stir vigorously until all the lumps have melted.
  3. Remove from the heat, add the vanilla essence and cream and stir well.  You can add a little milk if the consistency is too thick.
  4. Serve hot over vanilla ice cream.
  5. You can make this a day ahead and store in the fridge – when ready to serve just heat in the microwave or over low heat on the stove, adding a little milk to loosen the consistency if needed. You can also keep any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.

Follow me every day in November as I complete National Blog Posting Month – a post a day, every day, for 30 days! Here’s what I’ve written so far.

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  1. nina says

    November 22, 2008 at 4:09 am

    Seems like those people are all “spaced out”! We love Bar One sauce and always serve it with a sprinkling of ground hazelnuts….delicious!

    Reply
  2. Elra says

    November 22, 2008 at 4:44 am

    Ah… my husband would be thrill to hear this S.A treat. Too bad that he is still in Israel at the moment. Hmmm, maybe I can make this as a welcome home surprise thing for him, and like Nina, he would pretty much love having hazelnuts in it!
    Cheers,
    Elra

    Reply
  3. Kit says

    November 22, 2008 at 9:44 am

    Poor old spiders! Still they are welcome to some of ours – I still haven’t learned which ones bite hideously and which ones are harmless here and now there are rumours about unprecedented amounts ‘violin spiders’, whatever they are, that have thrived in our wet winter and are now invading houses and make you swell up like a tennis ball or something! Bar ones are now on the shopping list in case of spider attacks!

    Reply
  4. jacoba says

    November 22, 2008 at 12:23 pm

    my children have been looking for this recipe for years now – you have no idea how welcom this is.

    Reply
  5. jacoba says

    November 22, 2008 at 12:25 pm

    Oh yes, about that spider ……… imagine those become the parents for a species of super spider – massive flying ones with big jaws …. 😉

    Reply
  6. Gemma says

    November 22, 2008 at 10:40 pm

    Mmmmmmm, that sounds really good… Could eat a big bowl right now!

    Reply
  7. Bellini Valli says

    November 23, 2008 at 1:56 pm

    Oooh…wouldn’t this be a decadent treat!!!!

    Reply
  8. grace says

    November 23, 2008 at 3:47 pm

    mmm. milky ways. if i ever have a bar or two that don’t get devoured whole, i fully intend to make this sauce. 🙂

    Reply
  9. ND says

    November 23, 2008 at 5:41 pm

    I add brandy. Or better yet, Amarula (but only if you have a steady supply source, otherwise what a waste!)

    Reply
  10. megan says

    November 23, 2008 at 6:37 pm

    oh my goodness, that is the perfect complement to any ice cream! YUM!!!

    Reply
  11. Jenn's an ice cream maker says

    November 24, 2008 at 12:58 pm

    I’ve never had a Bar-One – but I love Mars bars! This sounds delicious!!!!
    Thanks for the idea!

    Reply
  12. _ts of [eatingclub] vancouver says

    November 24, 2008 at 11:35 pm

    Not to be a big ol’ spider meanie, but I find that image of the Lead Spider all confused with weirdly-woven webs too funny. ;D

    Reply
  13. David says

    November 25, 2008 at 8:17 pm

    omg! all my favorite flavors, in one sauce : )

    Reply
  14. Sandy says

    December 23, 2012 at 7:59 pm

    This looks great!!!!
    I’m going to try it and then make my comments, but I’m sure it will be fantastic.
    My son-in-law is chocolate crazy.

    Reply
  15. Rae says

    September 15, 2018 at 4:56 am

    Can this sauce stay in the fridge

    Reply
    • Jeanne Horak says

      September 17, 2018 at 12:44 pm

      Yes it will last 2 days in the fridge (if you can resist it that long!)

      Reply
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Jeanne Horak is a freelance food and travel writer; recipe developer and photographer. South African by birth and Londoner by choice, Jeanne has been writing about food and travel on Cooksister since 2004. She is a popular speaker on food photography and writing has also contributed articles, recipes and photos to a number of online and print publications. Jeanne has also worked with a number of destination marketers to promote their city or region. Please get in touch to work with her Read More…

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