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White bowl with chopped cinnamon bits for baking.

Homemade Cinnamon Chips for Baking

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Chilling Time:: 2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 8 ounces (228 g) white bar chocolate (NOT almond bark or candy coating - see note), coarsely chopped
  • ½ cup (100 g) white chocolate chips (see note for best melting brands)
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 5 to 6 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Instructions 

  • Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
  • Combine the chopped white bar chocolate and white chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 30 second intervals at 50 or 60% power, stirring in between, until the white bar chocolate is completely melted. Don't over heat or the white chocolate can burn and clump up.
  • White chocolate chips don't melt as easily as the bar chocolate. It helps to heat until the white bar chocolate is completely melted and then stir well and let the mixture rest so the white chocolate chips can melt in the residual heat of the melted white bar chocolate.
  • Continue microwaving for 30 second intervals, if needed, to melt the white chocolate chips thoroughly. Be patient with this process! Most brands of white chocolate chips will end up melting almost all the way. It's ok if there are tiny bits of white chocolate chips that don't melt all the way.
  • Stir in the vanilla and 1 teaspoon of the ground cinnamon. The mixture may initially look like it's seizing up a bit. Just continue to stir and it should come together. Stir in the remaining cinnamon 1 teaspoon at a time, stirring to combine fully after each addition.
  • Spread the mixture into a rectangle on the prepared sheet pan, about 11X8-inches or so. Place in the fridge for 20 to 30 minutes to let fully set up and harden.
  • Use a knife or bench scraper/knife to chop into small bits. For smoother chopping, it helps to let the cinnamon sheet sit out at room temp for 5 to 10 minutes before cutting into pieces.
  • Immediately place the cinnamon bits into a container or bag and store in the freezer. They work best added to any recipe (cookies, scones, bread) straight from the freezer. When adding to recipes, don't over-mix or over-handle the cinnamon bits as they will melt more easily than store bough cinnamon chips.

Notes

White Chocolate: Look for white "baking" chocolate. The most commonly available brand where I live is Ghirardelli. If at all possible, don't use almond bar or candy coating. The flavor is quite a bit more artificial and can be slightly "waxy" in taste and texture. 
White Chocolate Chips: White chocolate chips are notoriously bad at melting - and different brands melt better and worse than others. I tested this recipe with Nestle, Ghirardelli, and Guittard brands of white chocolate chips. Ghirardelli brand worked the very best, and it's my preferred brand for this recipe. The other two brands can work - just be patient if the white chocolate chips take longer to melt.