Easy Homemade Peppermint Bark Recipe

This simple peppermint bark recipe takes just a few minutes to make, and it creates a great gift. It’s a great way to create an easy dessert everyone loves.

Remember last week when I made and shared my nut free English toffee recipe with the teachers at my kids’ school? I knew the PTO would be short allergy friendly items. The toffee is gluten free but not dairy free.

Me being me, I already planned to chop chocolate for the toffee, so why not do just a little more and make another simple treat?

Who doesn’t love peppermint bark? The richness of the dark chocolate with the bite of the mint and the crunch of the candies all make the perfect treat. I almost feel bad calling this a recipe because it’s truly that easy.

And really, I make this all the time over the holidays with the leftover chocolate I have from other chocolate dipped treats. When you make truffles – whether edible cookie dough truffles or traditional chocolate ones – you have to melt more chocolate than you need to dip.

What to do with that leftover chocolate?… Of course, I make peppermint bark! Chocolate nut clusters are another great one to make, and both ideas make great gifts in addition to just flat out being tasty.

I’ve talked before about how I make a chocolate bark every time I melt chocolate and have extra left over – which is pretty much every time. No one wants the truffle that got dragged through the bottom of the pot, right?

The best part? You can switch up the flavors of your chocolate bark so easily depending on your mood. I’ve made s’mores bark and an antioxidant bark (my personal favorite) and so many more.

With the holidays literally around the corner, you know I had to do a peppermint bark recipe this time.

I make this a bunch right after the holidays, too – when candy canes are on sale, because I always buy more. Once you crush them, it’s just peppermint and not a Christmas candy anymore.

That’s my excuse anyway. You can even make these with peppermint candies instead of candy canes if you can’t find them (hello August cravings).

They key for this is to use quality chocolate. You’ll notice my version has no white chocolate.

I’m a chocolate snob, and you do know that white chocolate isn’t actually chocolate, right? Much of what people use is almond bark, and that has both dairy and soy in it, making this suddenly less allergen-friendly.

If you want the pretty combo, feel free to add white chocolate to your shopping list. Make a dark chocolate layer, add a layer of white chocolate, then top with more dark chocolate. Let each layer harden a bit before adding the next layer and spreading.

Me? I’ll stick with this version. I’m a purist!

Just make sure you use good chocolate. This will melt smoothly for you, which lower quality chocolate won’t without adding a little oil.

I have giant bars of chocolate in my house and chop what I need, but there are fantastic callets (that’s fancy for “chips”) you can buy instead that work great, too.

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How to Make a Homemade Peppermint Bark Recipe

Crush your candy canes before you melt your chocolate. If you use candy canes, place them on a chopping block.

Drop a heavy pot on the candy canes to crush. The plastic wrap protects them but easily peels off afterward – no wasted plastic bag!

Use a heavy pot to melt your chocolate over low heat. I used to use a double boiler to ensure the chocolate melts safely, but my cast iron pots with low heat work just as well. Stir the chocolate to ensure the bottom doesn’t scorch.

While the chocolate melts, place wax paper on a jelly roll pan, or use a silpat. There’s a reason you want this on a cookie sheet, trust me!

Remove the pot from the heat once just a few lumps remain. You want to chocolate to melt at the lowest temperature possible. If it gets too hot, it loses the pretty, glossy look you want and expect from chocolate.

Add peppermint extract, and stir to distribute.

Immediately pour the chocolate onto your silpat or wax paper. Use a spatula to scrape the pot, then spread the melted chocolate to your desired thickness. I like mine about a quarter inch thick, which lets it really snap when I break or bite into it.

Immediately sprinkle your crushed peppermint onto the chocolate. Lift the jelly roll pan a few inches from your counter and drop it a few times.

This helps push the peppermint into the melted chocolate to ensure it stays in place after the chocolate hardens.

Let the chocolate harden. When it’s winter, I set it on my deck to speed the process. Gently lift the peppermint bark from the paper and break into pieces.

Serve immediately or place in a sealed container on your counter for up to a week.

Have you ever made a peppermint bark recipe?

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