Double Chocolate Peppermint Bark Recipe
This chocolate Peppermint Bark Recipe is an easy, festive candy featuring decadent layers of two kinds of chocolate: white chocolate and semi-sweet infused with peppermint and topped with crushed candy canes. Perfect for gifting! My family’s favorite peppermint bark!
‘Tis the Season with today’s Chocolate Peppermint Bark
Melt a couple layers of white chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate, then smash my holiday anxiety out on candy canes and use that as a topper? Easy. Welcome to the season of joy and chocolate with today’s Peppermint Bark Recipe!
Double the chocolate (and peppermint) equals double the chocolate deliciousness! Two kinds of peppermint goodness combine with two kinds of chocolate and one festive candy for the treat you’ll be making with your loved ones for years to come.
Whether you love chocolate peppermint bark or white chocolate peppermint bark, this recipe will cover it all! Let’s get to making it festive and bright. 🎄
The Ingredients You Need + 1 Secret One
Making this peppermint bark recipe is super easy, but admittedly, the “melting white chocolate” part can get a bit tricky. Make sure to use the 1 secret ingredient for the smoothest time.
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips – use your favorite quality chocolate chips
- Peppermint extract – make sure this is pure peppermint extract, not something artificial. The better the quality, the better the flavor of peppermint in your bark. Here’s mine.
- White chocolate chips – be sure to slowly melt this one—it likes to harden and get chunky quickly. See the secret ingredient for help.
- Crushed candy canes – you can use a combo of regular candy canes and crushed peppermint candies, but I like mini candy canes best (more on that later).
- Secret Ingredient: Coconut oil. Erik and I’ve been melting chocolate for years, and the one stumper: white chocolate. Without a little help, white chocolate can harden and get clumpy quickly. Coconut oil loves staying liquidy when warm, so it’ll keep your white chocolate in check!
How to Make Peppermint Bark
This photo tutorial will show you exactly how to make peppermint bark. We’ll go step by step, then you can head over the recipe card below for exact measurements.
CRUSH THE CANDY CANES
First, crush the candy using a meat mallet or rolling pin. You’ll place unwrapped candy canes (I prefer mini) into a resealable bag.
Then, wrap the bag in a large kitchen towel. Lay the wrapped bag on a sturdy, protected surface. Using the meat mallet, smash the candy into generally even pieces. Or, roll to bits with a rolling pin.
MAKE THE CHOCOLATE PEPPERMINT BARK
Now, line a medium baking sheet with parchment paper or wax paper. Then, clear some space in the freezer for this sheet—you’ll need it later.
Using the double boiler method, or the following method, melt the semi-sweet chocolate. Microwave in 15-second increments, stirring in between, until melted and smooth.
Stir in peppermint extract. Next, using a spoon or spatula, spread the peppermint chocolate in smooth, even layer on the prepared baking sheet. Freeze for about 3 minutes, until chilled and firm.
Melt the white chocolate using the same method in a clean bowl.
Then, remove the sheet of mostly solid semi-sweet chocolate and quickly spread the white chocolate on top to avoid marbling. Now, for the fun part: generously sprinkle crushed candy canes over the white chocolate. Using a finger, gently press the candy into the white chocolate.
Refrigerate until firm, about 20 minutes. Once firm, set the peppermint bark out until it reaches room temperature, then slice. Enjoy the easiest peppermint bark recipe!
How to Customize this Peppermint Bark Recipe
Customizing this white chocolate peppermint bark is super easy. You can make chocolate orange bark, or double chocolate pretzel bark…
- Swap the chocolates – you can use a combo of semi-sweet and milk chocolate. Others can do dark chocolate for one layer, and white for the next.
- Change the extract. Not a fan of peppermint? Swap with almond extract and top with chopped almonds and white chocolate chips. You can even do orange extract and top with candied orange slices!
- Sub the toppings – don’t want to spend your time unwrapping and crushing candy canes? During the holidays, stores also sell peppermint crunch bark in bags. You can also do a combo of pretzels and chopped peppermint kisses… the world is your oyster.
- Sprinkle… a little salt on the bark to make the bark a salty/sweet combo. Or, add festive sprinkles to make it cute.
Demeter’s Tips
Here are some of my favorite tips for ensuring that your peppermint bark turns out beautifully (and tastily).
- Mini Candy Canes vs. Regular: Crushed candy canes can be a bit lacking in color when crushed. Mini candy canes have the most bright red surface area—this means more colorful candy cane-looking bits on the peppermint bark!
- Use the Coconut Oil: White chocolate can quickly become clumpy and hardened—and heating it up again will only make matters worse/drier and more crumbly(!). Coconut oil keeps it smooth, melty and warm for longer so you can work with it easily.
- Quickly Spread the White Chocolate over the semi-sweet chocolate layer to avoid mixing the two, creating a messy marbling effect.
- For Better Slicing: After refrigerating to harden, allow the peppermint bark to reach room temperature—this will make for easy, non-brittle slicing.
Happy Holidays!
Thank you for stopping by and sharing in these happy holiday delights with me and your loved ones. Be sure to leave a comment and rating telling me what you think of today’s recipe. ‘Til our next sweet adventure…
Sending you all my love and maybe even a dove, xo Demeter ❤️
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Peppermint Bark Recipe
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 26 servings 1x
Description
Peppermint Bark is an easy, festive candy with layers of white and semi-sweet chocolate infused with peppermint and topped with crushed candy canes. Perfect for gifting!
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 12 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 teaspoon pure peppermint extract
- 12 oz white chocolate chips
- Optional, but highly recommended: 1 teaspoon coconut oil (to make melting white chocolate smoother and easier)
- About 12–14 mini candy canes
Instructions
To crush candy canes:
- Option 1: place candy canes in a zip bag and seal. Wrap with a towel and place on a sturdy surface that you don’t care about. Using a meat mallet, pound throughout until pieces are broken.
- Option 2: place candy in a zip bag and use a rolling pin to break candy.
To make Peppermint Bark:
- Line a medium baking sheet with parchment paper or wax paper. My sheet was 9″ x 13″.
- Using a double boiler or microwave, melt semi-sweet chocolate chips in a medium bowl. For the microwave, heat in 15-second increments until melted (stirring in between increments until smooth). Stir in peppermint extract.
- Spread melted semi-sweet chocolate in an even layer across the parchment paper. Freeze for 2-4 minutes, until solid enough to spread on top, but not too solid, which will cause the layers to separate.
- Using a double boiler or microwave, melt and stir white chocolate chips until smooth in a clean medium bowl. Optionally, add coconut oil to help smooth out white chocolate, which can clump up and harden quickly.
- Spread melted white chocolate over semi-sweet chocolate into an even layer. Top with crushed peppermint candy. Press lightly down on candy to ensure it adheres to the chocolate.
- Refrigerate until firm, about 20 minutes.
- Set bark out at room temperature to soften enough to easily slice, about 10-25 minutes.
- Slice into pieces (breaking with hands can result in a melted chocolate mess.) Enjoy!
★ Last Step: If you made this recipe, leave a comment and review. It truly helps our small business keep running and it helps readers like you!
Notes
Tip: Use a combination of mini candy canes (which have more colorful, bright red stripes than full size candy canes), and pre-crushed candy canes to speed things up.
Storing Instructions: Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1-2 weeks.
Freezing Instructions: Store in a freezer-friendly container in the freezer for 1-3 months.
- Prep Time: 8 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 minutes
- Category: Dessert, Snack
- Method: No Bake
- Cuisine: American
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