Chocolate Peppermint Bark - Christmas

Jb Tyler, TX's Note:

Christmas candy - Two kinds of chocolate with peppermint chips. Yummy! So pretty, and great for gift giving. I have used chocolate bark (dark and white) with good results and it was less expensive, and hardens up beautifully

• Total Time: 20 mins
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 10 mins

Ingredients:

Serves: 20-30

Yield: 1.5 pounds

• 12 ounces quality white chocolate (like Ghirardelli)
• 12 ounces quality dark chocolate (like Ghirardelli)
• 1/2 cup crushed peppermint candy (I use starlite)

Directions:

1. Line a 9x12 pan with parchment paper.
2. Melt the dark chocolate (use the method you prefer, either double boiler, or microwave - cook 30 seconds in a heat-proof bowl, stir and repeat until you have a smooth consistency.
3. Pour the melted dark chocolate on the parchment paper, spread the chocolate out until it is about 1/3" thick. You can do this by hitting the pan on the countertop repeatedly, or maybe you could use a spatula to spread the chocolate.
4. Melt the white chocolate, using the steps above. After the chocolate is smooth, pour it on top of the dark chocolate - trying to make the layers the same thickness. (it's best to do this step while the white chocolate is still very soft -- I've had them separate when I broke them into pieces, I think the layers "stick" together better if the white chocolate has not hardened).
5. Unwrap the starlite mints, or peppermints of your choice and put them into a heavy duty ziplock bag. Using a hammer or meat tenderizer - crush the mints then, while the white chocolate is still melted sprinkle on top.
6. Let the chocolates harden in the refrigerator for 2 hours, then break the candy into pieces. This needs to be stored in the refrgerator if you live in a warm/humid climate.

Reviews

[Greeny4444]

I made this tonight, and it turned out great - not quite as pretty as the submitter's, but not bad for my first try! The directions were very easy to follow. I used one bag each of Herhey's Special Dark chocolate chips and Nestle white chocolate chips, both 12 oz. I was already using my 9x12 pan to make fudge, so I just used a large, circular metal cookie tray. I did all the melting in the microwave in Pyrex measuring cups, so it was really easy. After I spread the dark chocolate and put it in the fridge to harden (but before I melted the white chocolate), I placed 25 Brach's peppermint candies into doubled-up ziploc sandwich baggies and crushed the crap out of them with a meat mallet. Then, I put a strainer over a bowl, and I poured the crushed mints into the strainer, so all the small and powdery pieces went into the bowl. I then melted the white chocolate and poured the tiny mint pieces (from the bowl) into the white chocolate before I spread it (that way, it would be a little more minty, and there's no waste). I then sprinkled the large pieces that were leftover (in the strainer) on top. I wrapped these and some Easy Butterscotch Fudge, and I am going to give some to our neighbor and to the mailman for holiday gifts. Thanks for this recipe!

[ELS]

I brought this to a christmas party and everyone loved it! What a great holiday gift, too! There is a bit of finesse to getting it to look right, and to not having the chocolate swirl into the white when smoothing it out. It helps if you chill/freeze it for about 10 minutes to make it extra hard before spreading. I used crushed candycanes with great results.

[Mary Scheffert]

Just made two batches of this using Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate chips, Hershey's Premium White Chocolate chips & crushed candy canes. Had some separation of the layers, and I don't think it's quite peppermint-y enough -- next time I will add a touch of peppermint oil to the dark chocolate. Thanks for posting.