This classic Peppermint Bark recipe couldn’t be easier to adapt and make your own! Made with layers of decadent milk chocolate and white chocolate, this chocolate bark is perfectly crisp, simple to make and delicious to eat and the perfect gift during the holidays. For more amazing treats to give during the holidays, try this Little Debbies Christmas Tree Cakes, Peanut Brittle, Pralines, Bourbon Balls, Gingerbread Cupcakes, this Eggnog Pound Cake and this Red Velvet Marble Pound Cake!
Deliciously Easy Peppermint Bark and Chocolate Bark – Perfect for the Holidays!
Christmas is in the air! Break out the stockings, fill your holiday mugs with peppermint tea and blast the ole’ carols. Though the weather may be dreary and the sun doesn’t shine for long anymore, there is so much this season has to offer. Christmas lights brighten up our days and holiday meals shared with family make for more joy than my heart can handle.
I love the moments spent in my kitchen whipping up Winter themed treats to be shared with anyone that will partake. The smell of Gingerbread cupcakes filling the air while “Charlie Brown Christmas” plays on TV is something I look forward to every year.
But as much as I love baking, I also love simple recipes that don’t require me to sacrifice flavor or Christmas spirit. That’s where Peppermint Bark and Chocolate Bark come in!
What Is Peppermint Bark?
During the holidays, I can’t think of a better thing to make than a batch of this wintery chocolate bark.
I know peppermint bark is all over the internet. I am also pretty sure than 1 in 3 food blogs probably have a recipe for it. That’s because it is so easy to make. Made with white chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate, this bark is not overly sweet and balanced with chocolate flavor.
The base is really a chocolate bark but the first recipe I turn to is the Peppermint Bark. By adding crushed peppermint, you turn plain chocolate bark into something minty and perfect. This recipe is so easy to change up and make your own. Below I share some additional ideas for how to adapt it.
How to Make Peppermint Bark
Learning how to make peppermint bark is not difficult. The recipe starts out like any other bark. You first melt semi-sweet chocolate chunks or chips over a double boiler and spread it out flat on a parchment or non-stick foil lined cookie sheet and refrigerate to firm.
You repeat the process with white chocolate spreading on top of the semi-sweet chocolate then you sprinkle with crushed peppermint. That’s it!! Seriously how easy is that?
Chocolate Bark Variations
Besides Peppermint Bark, here are some other fun variations and ingredients that can truly change your chocolate bark into something different:
For Salted Caramel Pretzel
- Pretzels
- Melted Caramel Chews
- Sea Salt
For Toffee Hazelnut
- Chopped hazelnuts
- Toffee Bits
Cranberry Pistachio
- Salted pistachios
- Dried cranberries
If you love some of these combinations or want to create your own, feel free to do it! It is seriously so so fun! Really do your own thing here.
Tips and Tricks for Chocolate Bark Recipe
Tip 1: Use an offset spatula to spread your chocolate into thin, even layers.
It helps to make everything even so you have perfect amounts of milk chocolate and white chocolate in each taste!
Tip 2: For Peppermint Bark, the easiest way to crush your peppermint candies (either candy canes or peppermint candies) is to place them in a Ziploc bag, then use a meat mallet or rolling pin to break them into small pieces.
Tip 3: Allow your bark to set in the refrigerator before breaking apart.
Get creative! Try out new toppings for your bark that’ll set yours apart from the rest. Marshmallows, crushed up gingerbread cookies and pretzel pieces are all great options.
Peppermint Bark Recipe
Ingredients
- 11.5 ounces milk chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup white chocolate chips
For Peppermint Bark
- 3 candy canes crushed
For Toffee Hazelnut
- 2 tbsp hazelnuts chopped
- 2 tbsp toffee bits
For Salted Caramel Pretzel
- 8 caramel chews melted
- handful of pretzels
- Pinch of flaked sea salt
For the Cranberry Pistachio
- 2 tbsp salted pistachios
- 2 tbsp dried cranberries
Instructions
- Melt the milk chocolate over a pot of simmering water. Let it cool for about 3-5 minutes then pour it on a silicone mat or parchment paper and spread it even.
- Use a spatula to spread chocolate across baking sheet with parchment paper with 1/4 inch thickness leaving the edges clear.
For the Peppermint
- Sprinkle crushed peppermint on top and place in the refrigerator to let set.
For the Toffee Hazelnut
- While milk chocolate melts, melt the white chocolate in the microwave in 30 second intervals.
- Randomly dot half of your milk chocolate with the white chocolate and use a toothpick to swirl it in.
- Sprinkle with toffee and hazelnuts and place the bark in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before breaking apart.
For the Salted Caramel Pretzel
- Drizzle top of chocolate with caramel then sprinkle with pretzels and sea salt.
For the Cranberry Pistachio
- While milk chocolate melts, melt the white chocolate in the microwave in 30 second intervals.
- Randomly dot half of your milk chocolate with the white chocolate and use a toothpick to swirl it in.
- Sprinkle with cranberries and pistachios and place the bark in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before breaking apart.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Do I melt the same for dark Choc?
Yes you can.
I love eating chocolate bark but I haven’t attempted to make it yet, I will try it out for the upcoming holidays! Thanks for sharing 🙂
ABsolutely!!!
Tried making this in the past and it wasn’t so easy, this was much better and is now a family fave.
Indeed! This is super easy!