I have been head-over-heels in love with chocolate bark since I discovered peppermint barkfive or six years ago. I have been making it for each and every Christmas since, and have recently added Pistachio & Cranberry White Chocolate Bark to the holiday mix (the red and green are so festive!). When October rolls around and you have leftover Halloween candy, no problem! Just whip up the Leftover Halloween Candy Bark! Aside from the holidays, I have enjoyed experimenting with different bark variations throughout the year and have found some great combinations in Salted Caramel Cashew Bark and Toffee Pretzel Bark. With St. Patrick’s Day right around the corner, I thought that a festive green and minty chocolate bark was in order.

I have been a huge fan of Andes mints since I was a kid and my parents would take us to Olive Garden. Getting the check with those mints was always the best part, in my opinion. Bonus if the waiter was awesome and dropped a whole fistful on the table! I always keep a box of them in my candy stash, so there was no question I needed to use them in this minty bark concoction.

Chocolate bark has a lot going for it – it’s easy to make, it’s quick, it’s no-bake, it’s highly customizable, and it will keep for weeks in the refrigerator. I used the same basic formula for this bark that I use for just about all of my other ones. I added a little mint extract to the white chocolate layer – I loved it (I love the mint/chocolate combination), but my Chief Culinary Consultant found it to be a little too minty. Go with your personal tastes – you do get a little mint flavor from the Andes mints, and that might be enough for you. If you so, feel free to omit or reduce the amount of mint extract if you’d like. Likewise, use those green food drops as you see fit – light green, dark green, whatever you want! Enjoy creating your mint chocolate masterpiece. I, for one, can never get enough of it!

P.S. I just realized that this is the only St. Patrick’s Day recipe I’m posting this week that doesn’t have alcohol in it. I’m not sure if I should say I’m sorry or you’re welcome. Your call!

GRASSHOPPER MINT CHOCOLATE BARK

yield: About 2 pounds of bark

 

prep time: 30 minutes

 

total time: 30 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

16 ounces white chocolate, finely chopped
1 teaspoon mint extract (NOT peppermint), optional
Green food coloring
16 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 box (4.67-ounces) Andes Crème de Menthe Thins, unwrapped and coarsely chopped

DIRECTIONS:

1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

2. Melt the white chocolate over a double boiler (or in 30-second intervals in the microwave on 50% power, stirring after each). Once the chocolate is melted, remove from the heat and let sit for a few minutes to cool slightly, stirring occasionally. Add the mint extract, if using, and stir to combine. Add a few drops of green food coloring and stir until desired color is reached.

3. Spread the white chocolate mixture onto the prepared pan in an even layer (depending on the size of the pan and how thick you’d like your bark, you may not need the entire surface of the pan). Refrigerate for 15 minutes, until just about set.

4. Meanwhile, melt the semisweet chocolate over a double boiler (or in 30-second intervals in the microwave on 50% power, stirring after each). Once the chocolate is melted, remove from the heat and let sit for a few minutes to cool slightly, stirring occasionally. Pour over the white chocolate layer and spread evenly over top. Sprinkle with the chopped Andes mints and press down lightly to push the mints into the top chocolate layer. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, until completely set.

5. Cut the bark or break into uneven pieces. Store in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator. When stored in the refrigerator, it will keep for at least 2 weeks.

I have become completely overpowered by the force that is salted caramel. I simply can’t get enough of it, no matter how it’s presented to me. Ice cream? Pass me a spoon. Popcorn, Pretzel & Peanut Bars? Hand me at least three, please. Brownies? You may as well just give me the entire pan. Growing up I was never one to swoon over caramel sauce. Maybe because I had never had great caramel sauce – mostly just the jarred or bottled sundae toppings – it always seemed sickeningly sweet to me. However, this whole salted caramel craze has me doing a completely 180. Throw in a healthy dose of coarse sea salt like fleur de sel to cut that sweetness and give sauces and baked goods an entirely new dimension? I am ALL.IN.

SALTED CARAMEL CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE BARS

yield: 16 cookie bars

 

prep time: 15 minutes

 

cook time: 30 minutes

 

total time: 45 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

2 1/8 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups chocolate chips
10 ounces caramel candy squares, unwrapped
3 tablespoons heavy cream
Fleur de sel (or other sea salt), for sprinkling over caramel and bars

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease a 9-inch square pan; set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

3. Using an electric mixer, mix together the melted butter and sugars on medium speed until combined. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract and mix until smooth. Slowly add the dry ingredients and mix on low, just until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.

4. In a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine the caramels and heavy cream. Microwave on high until the caramels are melted, stirring every 20 seconds. This will take about 2 minutes.

5. Press half of the cookie dough into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with a spatula. Pour the hot caramel over the dough cookie dough and spread into an even layer, leaving some empty space around the edges. Sprinkle the caramel with the sea salt. Drop the remaining cookie dough in spoonfuls over the caramel and gently spread the dough with a spatula until the caramel is covered. Sprinkle the bars with additional sea salt.

6. Bake the cookie bars for 30 minutes, or until the top of the bars are light golden brown and the edges start to pull away from the pan. Cool the bars on a wire rack to room temperature, then refrigerate for about 30 minutes to allow the caramel layer to set. Cut into squares and serve. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature.

I have a secret that I’m about to blab. It’s about me. And it’s a doozie. It’s going to rock your world…

I don’t really like cake…

Shhh…

Can you believe it? It’s the truth. Hard to fathom, with all those cakes that I decorate. Now, don’t get me wrong. I will eat cake. But it pretty much ranks at the very, very bottom of the dessert hierarchy for me. Given options, I would choose pretty much anything over cake. Now, if you’re talking cheesecakes, flourless chocolate cakes, coffee cakes, crumb cakes, and things of that nature, well then that’s a whole different ballgame. But regular cake? Like birthday cake-cake? Meh. It’s just never really been my cup of tea. But what I do love is frosting. And phenomenal frosting can absolutely make my day. Peanut butter or cream cheese frosting? It may as well just be Christmas. As a result, I love cupcakes because I can pile them sky-high with dreamy frosting and enjoy each and every bite. These dark chocolate cupcakes are a dream come true for anyone who is a cake or frosting lover – they are truly the best of both worlds.

These cupcakes are insanely rich and moist, and are made using the same type of method used for making brownies – melted chocolate is added to a whisked mixture of eggs and sugar, and then flour is stirred in. The resulting batter almost resembled a mousse; both thick and light. It creates incredibly moist cupcakes that also have a light and fluffy texture.

And the frosting. Oh the frosting. Bestill my heart. I have been using this recipe for a couple of years now (how has it never made it on here before?!), mostly as a filling for chocolate cakes. But on top of cupcakes? Where I purposefully try to create a 2:1 frosting to cupcake ratio? A-MAZING. I cannot make this without usually ending up with a stomach ache from nibbling out of the bowl one too many times. It’s irresistible. Sometimes I’m tempted to make it to justhave. Smeared on toast? Used as a dipping vessel for bananas or apples? So many possibilities. The “secret ingredient” in this frosting, just as in the Easy Vanilla Bean Buttercream, is the heavy cream. It creates a smooth and fluffy frosting that is easy to slather or pipe on.

Note: To make the swirls of icing, I use a 1M icing tip. I just love the look that it gives the cupcakes; it reminds of a soft serve ice cream cone. Which is another one of my favorite things 

MORE CHOCOLATE & PEANUT BUTTER DELICIOUSNESS:

Chocolate-Covered Peanut Butter Crisp Squares
Marshmallow Crunch Brownie Bars
Chocolate Peanut Butter Torte
Peanut Butter-Fudge Cheesecake
No-Bake Cookies

DARK CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES

yield: 12 cupcakes

 

prep time: 30 minutes (active), 45 minutes (inactive)

 

cook time: 18-20 minutes

 

total time: 50 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

For the Cupcakes:
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
½ cup (1.5 ounces) Dutch-processed cocoa powder
¾ cup (3.75 ounces) all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs
¾ cup (5.25 ounces) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon table salt
½ cup (4 ounces) sour cream

For the Peanut Butter Frosting:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
⅓ cup heavy cream

DIRECTIONS:

1. To make the Cupcakes: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat to 350 degrees F. (If you are using a non-stick muffin pan, heat the oven to 325 degrees F.) Line standard-size muffin pan with baking cup liners.

2. Combine butter, chocolate, and cocoa in medium heatproof bowl. Set bowl over saucepan containing barely simmering water; heat mixture until butter and chocolate are melted and whisk until smooth and combined. (Alternately, you can microwave the mixture at 50% power, stirring every 30 seconds until completely melted.) Set aside to cool until just warm to the touch.

3. Whisk flour, baking soda, and baking powder in small bowl to combine.

4. Whisk eggs in second medium bowl to combine; add sugar, vanilla, and salt until fully incorporated. Add cooled chocolate mixture and whisk until combined. Sift about one-third of flour mixture over chocolate mixture and whisk until combined; whisk in sour cream until combined, then sift remaining flour mixture over and whisk until batter is homogeneous and thick.

5. Divide the batter evenly among muffin pan cups. Bake until skewer inserted into center of cupcakes comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes.

6. Cool cupcakes in muffin pan on wire rack until cool enough to handle, about 15 minutes. Carefully lift each cupcake from muffin pan and set on wire rack. Cool to room temperature before icing, about 30 minutes.

7. To make the Peanut Butter Frosting: Place the confectioners' sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on medium-low speed until creamy, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula as you work. Add the cream and beat on high speed until the mixture is light and smooth.