It's finally Christmas season! This season would not be complete without Peppermint Bark... and when paired with brownies - I mean, need I say more? It's freaking delicious!! Chewy brownies with a minty white chocolate drizzle, and topped with crushed candy canes. Do you need these in your life? YES, immediately.
Need more festive recipes? Don't miss this Gingerbread Pound Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting and this decadent Eggnog!
So, I start celebrating Christmas on November 1st. The Christmas wreath goes up on my door, the christmas tunes are being blasted in the car, and my christmas tree candles are burning. In short, I love this time of the year. It IS the most wonderful time of the year.
Now that w've got that out of the way, back to the food. Peppermint bark. It come around every year. And every year, I love it. I could OD on it in fact. In true Britney Breaks Bread fashion, I had to use my cravings to make something cool for my blog. So, I made these chewy and delicious Peppermint Bark Brownies.
what flavor is peppermint bark?
Think thin mints meets christmas. It's a chocolate-y minty flavor topped with crushed candy canes. If you've never had a thin mint, think of a peppermint patty made into a cake that's topped with candy canes. If you've never had a peppermint patty ... well, just know that peppermint bark is really good (so imagine how good peppermint bark brownies are!) if you like chocolate, white chocolate, and crushed candy canes mixed together.
It's smooth, crunchy, and fun to eat - just like these peppermint bark brownies. So fun that I made it into a cake and baked at Williams-Sonoma's Peppermint Bark-Off last year! (The cake recipe can be found in my Holiday e-CookBook that can be purchased HERE).
why is it called peppermint bark?
In short, no one really knows where Peppermint Bark came from. The long story is it's believed to be modeled after mendiants which are a French Christmas dessert.
Read more here, I'm certainly no expert in the history of peppermint bark. However, I do know that these Peppermint Bark Brownies are AMAZING and you need to make them as soon as possible. lol
what is the secret to chewy brownies?
Butter, oil, and brown sugar - in that order! These peppermint bark brownies have all of the above. Brown sugar helps with gluten formation which gives the brownies that "chew" that we all love.
Then the oil and butter come together to give the brownies not just an awesome taste (butter) but also that chewy/cakey texture (oil).
how do you make peppermint bark brownies?
Mix together the melted butter, oil, brown sugar, and sugar. Add in the vanilla extract, peppermint extract, a little coffee (or water if you don't have coffee), and then add the eggs - one at a time.
In a separate bowl, combine and whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, cocoa powder, and espresso powder. Add these dry ingredients to the butter/sugar mixture and then add to a parchment lined 9x13 baking pan. Bake for 45-50 minutes and then allow the brownies to cool completely. COMPLETELY.
Once the brownies have cooled COMPLETELY, melt the white chocolate. Swirl it together and pour (or drizzle on top like in the pictures) on top of the brownies (hence as to why they need to be cool. If they were hot, the white chocolate will not set and it'll be a melty mess lol).
Top with crushed peppermints and refrigerate for about 15 minutes, then eat up!
more recipes you'll love!
- Chocolate Coffee Marble Cake
- Christmas Ice Cream Cake
- Brown Butter Chai Cookies
- Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Homemade Snickers Bars
- Minty Bourbon Slush
- Cream Cheese stuffed Vanilla Peppermint Cookies
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Let's stay connected on social media and continue to cook together! Also, if you decide to make this recipe, please leave a star rating on the recipe card and leave a comment below! Tag @BritneyBreaksBread on Instagram and hashtag #britneybreaksbread so I can see your creations! I hope that you love this recipe as much as we do!
Peppermint Bark Brownies
Equipment
- Mixing Bowls
- 9x13 baking dish
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup Butter, melted
- 2 cups Sugar
- 1 cup Brown sugar
- 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 tsp Peppermint Extract
- ½ cup Coffee (or water)
- 3 large Eggs
- 2 ½ cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1 ½ tsp Baking Powder
- 1 tsp Kosher salt
- 1 ¼ cup Cocoa Powder
- ½ tsp Espresso Powder
- 6 oz White Chocolate (melted)
- ¾ cup Crushed Peppermint
Directions
- Preheat the oven 350 degrees. Line a 9x13 baking pan with parchment paper.
- Melt butter and add to a large mixing bowl. Add sugar, brown sugar, vanilla extract, and peppermint extract. Mix together until all ingredients are fully incorporated. Add coffee and then mix in the eggs, one at a time.
- In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, cocoa powder, and espresso powder. Whisk together and add to the butter/sugar mixture. Fold together until just combined (batter will be thick).
- Pour batter into baking pan and even out batter with a spatula/spoon to ensure batter is evenly spread throughout the pan. Bake for 45-50 minutes. Allow brownies to cool completely before moving to the next step.
- Melt white chocolate according to the package's instructions. Drizzle white chocolate on top of brownies and top with crushed candy canes.
- Refrigerator for 15 minutes to allow white chocolate to set.
The brownie is moist and rich and the peppermint bark on top takes it to the next level.