Peppermint Trifecta

I've said it before, but I LOOOOOOOOVE peppermint and chocolate, and this was certainly three successful outcomes.



I stole two of the recipes from Beantown Baker and made a very slight adaptation to each to up the peppermint goodness.

Starting at the top, we have peppermint fudge. I used her standard fudge recipe but used mint chocolate chips instead of plain chocolate chips. It's the easiest fudge recipe in the world, so I suggest you check it out. When I say "easy," I mean EASY, as in less than 10 minutes to prep. The hardest part is waiting for it to chill in the fridge.

The Peppermint Bark is my favorite holiday trick, because everyone always thinks that it's so impressive and that it must be so hard to make. I probably shouldn't tell you this, but it's really one of the simplest things ever. I kind of wing it, but the recipe that I've come up with, if you can even call it that, seems to work pretty well. I'm not even going to break it into steps, because you don't really need to:

Melt 8oz dark or semi-sweet chocolate with 1/2 tsp of canola (or vegetable) oil and 1/2 tsp peppermint extract. (You can melt the chocolate in a microwave, but I prefer a double-boiler.) Spread onto wax- or parchment-lined cookie sheet (thickness is a personal preference!), then sprinkle crushed peppermints on top.

Chill for an hour, then melt 8oz white chocolate (not the fake white chocolate candy coating, the good stuff! Look for cocoa butter and milk, not hydrogenated oils.) with another 1/2 tsp canola oil and 1/2 tsp peppermint extract, spread over chilled darker chocolate, top with another round of crushed candy, and chill overnight. Break into pieces when it's set.

Finally, we have the phenomenal peppermint cookies. This was a new recipe for me, and they're my new favorite, for sure. Again, slight deviation from the recipe in the form of peppermint extract - I doubled the recipe and added a teaspoon to the cookie dough. I also added a half teaspoon to the chocolate topping, which was just enough to add the minty kick but not be overpowering. Finally, I opted to crush my peppermints a little bit finer, just because there will be toddlers eating my cookies.

So there you go, three of my new favorite christmas recipes. Now, if only Ben & Jerry's would release a Peppermint Ice Cream to go along with them, I'd be totally set.

My only regret is that I didn't make it to Beantown's Peppermint Brownies. They're definitely at the top of my list for next year!