Surprise your child's teachers or your students with personalized Chocolate Chalkboards. These school-themed treats are fun to make for back-to-school parties, teacher's appreciation gifts, and graduation.
We always made homemade gifts for our teachers at Christmas and Teacher Appreciation Week. My teachers would have loved receiving one of these edible chalkboards.
I'm excited to share this school-themed food craft project with you. The chalkboards can be made using handmade or store-bought chocolate bars. You will need to make some homemade white chocolate chalk to go with the chalkboards.
The edible chalk can be used to write special messages on your boards like, "#1 Teacher," "Thank You," or "Special Teacher."
The boards look great plain but can be decorated with a border or embellishments like a candy apple.
Ingredients
dark chocolate candy bars - You can make homemade chocolate bars or use large thick store-bought chocolate bars. The bars should be at least 5 inches long. If you use break-apart bars, be sure they are thick enough to withstand a little pressure when you write on them using the white chocolate chalk.
white compound chocolate (also known as candy melts, melting wafers, almond bark, or confectionery coating) - You will use this to make the white chocolate chalk that can be used to write on your chocolate chalkboards.
powdered sugar - If you brush powdered sugar over the chocolate bars, they will look like chalkboards that have been erased.
optional decorations - You can make borders or decorations like apples using homemade 2-ingredient modeling chocolate, taffy, or fondant.
Before you begin, read my Chocolate Making Tips for instructions on melting compound chocolate (candy melts, almond bark, melting wafers) or melting and tempering pure dark chocolate (heating and cooling to exact temperatures).
Supplies
disposable pastry bag or a zip top bag
drinking straws (don't use bendable straws with ridges, you need a smooth surface)
glass filled with a few inches of sugar
wooden skewer or long toothpick
optional: candy bar candy molds (I used a 6-½" by 4-½" rectangle mold)
If you can't find a candy bar, you can pour chocolate into a rectangle plastic container to create candy bars with a smooth surface on the top. Just make sure the container is smooth inside.
Instructions
Make homemade chocolate bars.
Melt dark confectionery coating/candy melts (or temper pure dark chocolate) and pour it into candy bar molds or a rectangular plastic container.
Freeze the chocolate for 10-20 minutes until set (refrigerate if using pure chocolate). Then un-mold the bars and let them come up to room temperature before proceeding.
Now to transform your candy bar into a chalkboard, you need to rough up the surface of the candy bar. Take a pastry brush or a paper towel and rub the bar to take away the shine of the bar. You don't want to rub so hard that you end up with indentations, just enough to dull the surface.
Make white chocolate chalk.
Pour a few inches of sugar into a glass and insert drinking straws into the sugar. Fill one straw for each chalkboard you plan to make. You'll have more than enough chalk.
Pour the white candy melts (confectionery coating) into a small microwave-safe bowl. Heat on high for 15-second bursts, stirring after each until melted.
Once melted, pour the white chocolate into a disposable pastry bag or a zip-top bag. Cut the tip off the bag.
Squeeze the white chocolate into a straw filling it completely. Repeat.
Freeze your candy-filled straws for 5-10 minutes. Set your timer. You don't want to forget them in the freezer as the candy will become sticky if left in the freezer for too long and won't come out of the straw.
Remove the white chocolate chalk from the straws.
To remove the candy from the straw, push a wooden skewer or toothpick into the straw and push the candy up and out of the straw.
If the candy won't come out, you may need to freeze it for a minute or two longer. Just don't leave it in the freezer for too long or it will stick permanently.
Break the candy chalk into pieces.
Allow the white chocolate chalk to come to room temperature before using it to write on the chalkboards.
Use the candy chalk to write a special message on your candy bars. You will break several pieces of candy chalk while writing each message. Well, I did, anyway. I found smaller pieces worked best to write on the boards but it's nice to have some longer pieces to add to the gift when packaged.
Dust with powdered sugar.
Once you've completed your writing, sprinkle some powdered sugar over the candy bar.
Use the pastry brush to brush the powdered sugar across the candy bar.
Your chalkboard now looks like it has had a lot of school lessons written and wiped away over the years.
To add a frame around your chalkboard:
Dust your work surface with some powdered sugar. Roll some brown modeling chocolate (either make modeling chocolate using milk chocolate or tint white modeling chocolate with brown candy coloring) out to ⅛" thickness. Cut into ½"-1" thick strips.
Place one strip on each of the four sides of your chalkboard, overlapping the strips at the corners. You need to cut the strips at the corners so that they match up nicely.
The easiest way to do this is to cut down through the overlapping strips at a 45-degree angle. Remove the excess modeling chocolate then gently press the two angled strips together. Repeat with all the corners.
Attach the frame to the chalkboard.
Reheat the white candy melts in the microwave on defrost for 10-second intervals, stirring after each, until melted.
Use a bit of melted candy to attach the frame pieces and a few pieces of candy chalk to the chalkboard.
Add decorations.
To make an apple, color some white modeling chocolate with red candy coloring. Pinch off about a teaspoonful and roll into a ball. Flatten and shape it into an apple shape.
Color some modeling chocolate brown to create the apple stems and some green for the leaves.
Attach decorations with melted confectionery coating/candy melts.
Package the chalkboards.
These chocolate chalkboards can be personalized for any occasion and will make great gifts for teachers, students, and faculty members.
If you are looking for more fun Back to School or Teacher Appreciation Gift ideas be sure to check out all these other amazing food craft and recipe ideas on my School & Teacher Treats Page.
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Two Shades of Pink
These are incredible...just unbelievably creative. Saw this on OPT and I just HAD to peek in! So glad I did. 🙂
Jenn (Cookies Cupcakes Cardio)
That's a great idea! I'm a teacher and would LOVE to get such a thoughtful gift!
Aimee
You are a genius. I love everything you are doing here. Totally going to be a follower!!
Craft 4 Change
This is just about the cutest thing I have ever seen! A-dorable! Thanks for sharing. ~~ Robyne
Beth Jackson Klosterboer
It is so exciting to see so many nice comments about my chocolate chalkboards. I hope you enjoy making them and that all the teachers that receive them as gifts think they are sweet.
Heather
These chalk boards are so stinkin' cute
Cheryl @ Sew Can Do
This is very cool. Am now a new follower:) I'm currently looking for guest posters for tasty treat projects this summer - would love to have you share an idea!
Deb
I was wondering what to get the teachers this year. These are perfect and my kids will love making them. Thanks for the great idea!
Persnickety Hall
Amazing! I swear, every time you post i am blown away.
Becky Green
This is REALLY GREAT!!! Someone DEFINATELY has on their CREATIVE HAT!!!!! WOW!!!!!!!!!! Wish my kids were still in school!!!!!!! 🙂
Corinne
So creative! I may try these for my son's teachers this year. Thank you for a great idea!
Shannon
Oh wow, this is so clever! Thanks for sharing! I can't wait to try it with the kids...
Bridget
Wow wow wow thanks a bunch for this post what a great end of the year post for a lucky teacher.
Chic Cookies
Unbelievable. Wow, this is crazy amazing! I posted a link on ediblecrafts.craftgossip.com 🙂 One more wow. Wow.
ringr
I AM IN LOVE WITH THIS! As a teacher (by day, chef by night), I may be making these for co-workers for the end of the year (and what a great retirement add-on as well). Thank you for sharing
Bea Roque
OMG!!! How cute is that!!!!... Thanks for sharing!!
Mandy
This looks amazing! So creative and beautiful--what a wonderful gift idea!
Yadi I.
How amazing is this! I'm a teacher and I would've never thought of making something like this. Thanks for sharing!
Kim @ Party Frosting!
Total genius!!! I can't wait to post a link to your site tonight for my readers! love it!hugs! Kim @ Party Frosting!
laurielufkin
And I repeat......so clever!!!