Love and Olive Oil
Peppermint Bark Brownies

Peppermint Bark Brownies

Fudgy Peppermint Bark Brownies with White Chocolate and Peppermint

The holidays are officially and undeniably upon us, which means the internet is awash with everything peppermint. Just like one month ago it was everything pumpkin, and one month from now it’ll likely be a sea of red velvet.

That’s just how the internet works, apparently.

And while I am loath to contribute to the peppermint-ing of the blogosphere, I’ll be honest when I say that I have been waiting since June to share these brownies with you.

I mean, Christmas decorations appearing in stores well before Halloween is bad enough… so I figured you wouldn’t much appreciate me posting an all-out festive dessert in the middle of summer.

So I waited.

I sat on the idea, as visions of candy canes danced in my head in the 90-degree heat.

Until I finally had an excuse to make these divinely inspired brownies. Our annual food blogger holiday shindig last night was the perfect venue to debut their decadence. And now I can finally share them with you. Joy!

Fudgy Dark Chocolate Brownies with White Chocolate Peppermint Bark Topping

I’ve said before I like my brownies dense and fudgy (if I wanted something cake-like I’d bake a freaking cake). Well, I think the picture above shows you that these brownies go well beyond fudgy. They are perhaps the fudgiest brownie in the history of the world.

And I’m totally cool with that.

The brownies are then topped with, well, peppermint bark. A layer of smooth white chocolate studded with crushed candy canes. The peppermint bits are just bright enough to hold their own against the brick of dark chocolate brownie.

Now that I think about it, I should have shared these in June, gosh darn it. Candy cane or not, they are totally appropriate ANY time of year.

Note: This recipe has been re-tested and updated as of December 20, 2015, after receiving a few comments that the brownies came out crumbly. This new version is moist and fudgy and even better than before!

Peppermint Bark Brownies

Peppermint Bark Brownies

This perfect holiday dessert recipe combines two of your favorite desserts in one: rich, fudgy brownies topped with sweet white chocolate pepper mint bark.

Did you make this recipe?

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/3 cup dark or dutch processed cocoa powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 5 ounces dark or bittersweet chocolate (70-75%), chopped
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into cubes
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten
  • 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract

For Topping:

  • 6 ounces good quality white chocolate, chopped
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable shortening
  • 3 to 4 candy canes, coarsely chopped or crushed (about 1/2 cup)

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line the bottom and sides of a 8-by-8-inch pan with parchment paper, leaving a slight overhang on two edges.
  2. Sift together flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl and set aside.
  3. Melt chocolate and butter in a double boiler or a medium-large bowl set over gently simmering water. Stir until smooth, then remove from heat. Whisk in sugar and stir until mostly dissolved and mixture has cooled slightly.
  4. Whisk in eggs, vanilla, and peppermint extract until just combined (do not overmix). Sprinkle flour mixture over top and fold in to chocolate mixture using a large rubber spatula until just incorporated. Pour into prepared pan.
  5. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Transfer pan to a wire rack and allow to cool completely.
  6. Gently melt white chocolate and shortening together in a double boiler or in short bursts in the microwave on low power (white chocolate is very fragile and so you want to be sure you melt it very gently; be patient, rushing is the quickest way to ruin it). Remove from heat before it is completely melted; the residual heat will be enough to completely melt it. Pour over brownies, spreading into a thin, even layer. Sprinkle with candy cane pieces. Chill until set, at least 30 minutes, or preferably overnight (these brownies are at their best and fudgiest when chilled in the refrigerator overnight).
  7. Remove brownies from pan using the edges of the parchment paper to lift the entire block out of the pan. Using a large sharp knife, cut into 9 squares, then diagonally in half into triangles. Brownies will keep, covered in the refrigerator, for up to 5 days.
All images and text © / Love & Olive Oil

Did you make this recipe?

Let us know what you think!
Leave a Comment below or share a photo and tag me on Instagram with the hashtag #loveandoliveoil.

There may be affiliate links in this post. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

75 Comments

  1. These were a huge hit with my family we loved them! Although next time I think I will use a a white chocolate cream cheese frosting instead of the straight white chocolate topping as we had some issues with it shattering when cutting slices or taking a bite. The brownie base itself was amazing and I look forward to using it again!

  2. Just made these for our christmas eve shanigans this year, so glad it keeps a few days to keep day of from being crazy stressful! The batter was amazing and the directions were easy to follow. Thank you!

  3. I’ve been looking for a good brownie recipe and I’ve finally found it!!!!! These were a hit at my holiday treat swap and will be my go to brownie recipe. Thanks!!!

  4. I made these with new improved recipe and they were fantastic. Not only were they super fudgy, but after putting them in the fridge overnight, they cut like a dream with a knife warmed in hot water. So pretty and my work colleagues loved them.

  5. Can these be frozen?

    • Sure! I might freeze them without the white chocolate topping, then thaw and add that right before you serve them, as the white chocolate might do weird things once thawed? (I can’t say as I’ve never tried it). But brownies usually freeze pretty well by themselves. :)

  6. I made these as well and like other commenter they cake out extremely dry and crumbly. Followed the instructions to a T and they just didn’t turn out like I expected.

    • Thank you, I much appreciate the feedback. While I never had problems with the original recipe, you weren’t the only one to end up with crumbly brownies, and it prompted me to go back and retest the recipe this weekend. The new version is even fudgier than ever! :) I hope you give the new recipe a try!

  7. We tried these and they came out very crumbly as well. What is your stir scoop method? Would love to know!

  8. I was super excited about these (I love fudgey brownies!) but mine turned out super dry and crumbly. The only step I missed was letting the eggs come to room temperature, would that have made that much of a difference? (I have never used room temperature eggs when recipes call for them, and it’s always been fine). The taste was perfect, but I was hoping for that gooey texture. I took them out after 22 minutes so I don’t think they were overcooked. 

    • Hmm, that is strange indeed. The temperature of the eggs shouldn’t have caused crumbly brownies. Wondering if maybe the flour measurement was off? If you tightly packed your cups (vs a stir/scoop measuring method I use) you may have had a higher proportion of flour than I did. Or perhaps it’s an oven calibration issue (or difference in baking pan?)

    • Just wanted to let you know that you weren’t the only one to end up with crumbly brownies… I got a few other comments lately that prompted me to go back and retest the recipe this weekend. The new version is even fudgier than ever! :) I hope you give the new recipe a try!

  9. When I first saw the picture I was in love thinking it was just a supper thick layer of chocolate under the white part of the bark but then when I read it was brownie I just melted and can not wait to try these I also love dense and fudgy brownies there is no other way to have them. Thank you for sharing this brilliant idea.

  10. I tried this recipe but couldn’t get the sugar to dissolve in the chocolate. What gives?

    • It won’t fully dissolve, rather turn into a grainy chocolate paste about the consistency of peanut butter. Does that sound right?

  11. What a creative idea. Peppermint bark and brownies all in one. Yum.

  12. I am drooling over the fudgey-ness of these brownies!! I would love to attempt to make them the base of my favorite cheesecake… What do you think? Is it do-able? Would I need to double the recipe for a 9″ springform pan – or do you think there would be enough batter as is?? (I would love the “crust” to be about as thick as the brownies are in your beautiful photo). Thanks!

  13. I just made these, everything was going according to plan. Brownies were in the oven an all. Then my mom decided to vacuüm. Thanks mom, now I totally didn’t here the alarm. Result, brownie crumbs. All dried out:(. So sad, I was really looking foward to the fuggiest brownies ever.
    Next time I’m making these, no one exept me is allowed in the kichen!

  14. How do you cut them so beautifully without hitting chunks of candy and making the chocolate crack? I made these today and they were tasty, but didn’t cut as nicely. A hot knife gets through the chocolate but doesn’t help when there’s candy in the way. How did you manage this?

    • Yes, cutting can be tricky. I tried to place my cuts so they hit as few candy pieces as possible, even in some cases moving big pieces that were in my way. Other than that, being sure the brownies are thoroughly chilled and using a large, sharp knife is the way to go.

Did you make this recipe? Leave a Review »