Peppermint Bark

Peppermint bark layers rich dark chocolate and creamy white chocolate under a shower of crushed candy canes — the easiest no-bake Christmas candy. Three ingredients, twenty minutes of hands-on work, and a tin that looks like it came from a fancy chocolate shop.

Print Recipe

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 5

Total Time 1 5

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 24 pieces

Calories 160 kcal

Ingredients

Peppermint bark

12 ounces dark or semisweet chocolate, chopped 340 g (60–70% cacao)
12 ounces white chocolate, chopped 340 g (with real cocoa butter)
1/2 teaspoon pure peppermint extract
1/2 cup crushed candy canes 75 g (about 6–8 standard canes)
Flaky sea salt for sprinkling (optional)

Instructions

Crush the candy canes: place the candy canes in a zip-top bag, seal it, and crush with a rolling pin or meat mallet until you have a mix of fine shards and small pieces. Set aside 1/2 cup. Line a rimmed baking sheet (quarter-sheet pan or 9x13-inch pan) with parchment paper.
Melt the dark chocolate: place the chopped dark chocolate in a dry microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 30-second bursts, stirring well between each, until smooth and just melted — about 90 seconds total. Stir in the peppermint extract. (Or melt in a double boiler over barely simmering water.)
Spread the dark layer: pour the dark chocolate onto the parchment and spread it into an even rectangle about 1/4 inch thick. Refrigerate for 15 to 20 minutes, until the surface is set but still feels slightly cool and tacky when you press it with a fingertip — not liquid, not rock-hard.
Melt the white chocolate: while the dark layer chills, melt the white chocolate the same way — 30-second microwave bursts, stirring between each, until just smooth. Do not overheat white chocolate; it seizes easily. If it thickens, stir in 1 teaspoon of neutral oil.
Spread the white layer: pour the white chocolate over the dark layer and spread it quickly and evenly to the edges. Immediately scatter the crushed candy canes over the top and press them in very gently with the back of a spoon. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt, if using.
Chill until firm: refrigerate for 30 to 45 minutes, until completely firm and cold to the touch. Do not freeze it — freezing makes the layers separate when you break it.
Break and serve: lift the bark out by the parchment, let it sit at room temperature for 5 minutes, then break it into irregular pieces with your hands or cut it with a large sharp knife. Store in an airtight container or a gift tin lined with parchment.

Notes

The tacky test is the whole recipe. If the dark layer is still liquid, the white layer slides off; if it is rock-hard and cold, the layers will not bond and will separate when you break the bark. Slightly cool and tacky is the sweet spot — about 15 to 20 minutes in the fridge.
Use chopped bar chocolate, not chips. Chips are made to hold their shape, so they melt thick and set soft. Chopped bars melt silky and snap clean — that snap is the difference between homemade bark and a store-bought tin.
Add the peppermint extract to the dark chocolate, not the white. White chocolate seizes the moment liquid extract hits it, and a seized bowl is hard to rescue. The dark layer carries the flavor through the whole piece.
Crush, do not pulverize, the candy canes. A mix of fine shards and small chunks gives you red sparkle in every bite and a satisfying crunch — candy-cane dust just dissolves into the chocolate.
Cut it cold but not frozen. Straight from the fridge, the bark snaps cleanly; after 5 minutes at room temperature it cuts even neater. Frozen bark shatters into shards and the layers pop apart.
Make it a gift: layer the pieces in a tin with parchment between them, tie it with ribbon, and it keeps for 2 to 3 weeks at cool room temperature — the easiest homemade gift on the whole Christmas list.