Peppermint Bark Cookies

If my time at Williams-Sonoma has taught me anything, it's that it's not Christmas until the peppermint bark comes out (#barkyeah)! You might disagree, and that's totally fine but I couldn't think of a better way to end my twelve days of cookies than with an ode to peppermint bark. Last year, I made peppermint bark macarons, entered them in the company cookie contest, and low and behold won for best decorated!! My lovely coworker helped me work up the cutest sign ever and I feel like that might have helped my chances, so I'll be forever grateful to her because I won a set of gold touch bakeware that day!! This year I won't be entering any company cookie contests but if I were, these would be high up on the list of cookies I might enter (hard to say though, gingerbread bears, brown butter thyme shortbreads, and alfajores rank fairly high as well).

These cookies practically scream Christmas. Dark chocolate cookies with dark and white chocolate chips, topped with peppermint chunks, and drizzled with white chocolate, these are without a doubt the cookie version of WS's famous peppermint bark. And I can't think of a better way to enjoy them than with vanilla ice cream sandwiched between them. I mean, you could definitely enjoy them with a glass of ice cold milk or with your morning cup of coffee, so I guess I can think of a few other ways but for me ice cream sandwiches take the cake. These cookies are like little discs of winter wonder and when you sandwich ice cream between them, the become little wintery worlds. I imagine walking into one of those mini snow globes (honey I shrank the kids style) every time I bite into them but that's just me. You can imagine anything you want.

Peppermint bark is such a great holiday hostess gift and these peppermint bark cookies are no exception. Packaged (by you!) in a cute kraft box with a window to peer into, your recipients will be thrilled to receive the gift of Christmas in a cookie!

Thanks for reading along with me and powering through this year's twelve days of cookies! I had so much fun baking my way through twelve holiday cookies and hope you enjoyed it too! A few notes before I wish you a very happy Friday...I've got Pt. 2 of Flair! Holiday Cookie Gift Packaging (here's Pt. 1) coming on Saturday, so please check back for that if you're looking for a weekend DIY project. Please note that I realize not everyone wants add Fix Feast Flair to their gifts, so the downloadable PDFs feature snowflakes instead of the Fix Feast Flair logo. Also, I did a little Q&A with Alex over at Chez Sasha, so please head over to her site if you want to check it out! Last but not least, I know we've missed a few Pau Hana Fridays, so to make up for it, I'll be sharing some holiday cocktail recipes next week! Happy Friday!!

Peppermint Bark Cookies 

Adapted from Donna Hay's Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies

Makes 27-30 cookes

INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 c. (8 Tbsp.) unsalted butter, softened and chopped
• 1 c. light brown sugar
• 1 large egg, room temperature
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 c. all-purpose flour, sifted
• 1/4 c. cocoa powder, sifted
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 c. dark chocolate, chopped and melted
• 1 scant c. dark chocolate chips
• 1 scant c. white chocolate chips
• 1/2 c. white chocolate, chopped and melted
• 8 regular sized candy canes, broken into bite sized pieces (~1/3" diameter)

TOOLS

• Baking sheets
• Silpat mat or parchment paper
• Stand mixer
• Silicone spatula
• Small glass bowl
• Measuring cups and spoons
• 2 gallon sized ziploc freezer bags
• Hammer
• Disposable piping bag or quart sized ziploc freezer bag
• Scissors
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. cookie scoop
• Wire cooling rack

FIX

1. Adjust oven racks to upper and lower third. Preheat oven 320°F. Line two baking sheets with silpat mats or parchment paper and set aside.  
2. In the bowl of stand mixer, fitted with paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy, at least 3-5 minutes. Add egg and vanilla extract and  beat until well combined. Add flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and melted chocolate  (*see notes below on for tips on melting) and beat until just combined. Remove bowl from stand and mix in dark and white chocolate chips with silicone spatula. Using 1 1/2 Tbsp. cookie scoop, scoop dough and roll into rounds. Drop onto pre-lined sheets with at least 2" of space between them. Press on candy cane bits (*see notes below for tips on breaking) onto tops of cookies and bake for 13-16 minutes or until the edges are firm. Allow to cool on sheets for 5 minutes then transfer to racks to cool completely. 
3. When cookies have cooled completely, fill disposable piping bag (or ziploc freezer bag) with melted white chocolate (*see notes below) and snip off tip with scissors. Drizzle onto cooled cookies and let dry completely.
4. Serve and enjoy or package and gift!

Notes: To melt chocolate, place in glass dish and heat in microwave for 30 second intervals, stirring between each interval. To break candy canes into bite sized pieces, don't chop with a chef's knife. Instead, place candy canes into a gallon sized ziploc bag, seal pushing out as much air as possible, then place that bag into another and do the same. Take your bag outside and tap candy canes with a hammer to break into desired size.