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Homemade Peppermint Bark

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This is one of our favorite Christmas season treats. It’s easy to make, and so fun to make with kids. And if you make it yourself, it’s much cheaper than that fancy kitchen store!

It makes a great gift also. Try it out yourself!

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Peppermint Bark

This rich and minty combination of white and dark chocolate with peppermint makes a festive treat at holiday parties and is a wonderful gift for the person who has everything.
Prep Time20 minutes
Cooling Time2 hours
Total Time2 hours 20 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American, Holiday
Keyword: Gluten-free, Holiday, Kid-Approved, Kid-Friendly
Servings: 24
Calories: 190kcal
Author: Holly
Cost: $9

Equipment

  • Offset Spatula
  • Parchment Paper
  • Microwave
  • 2 small microwave-safe mixing bowls
  • 2 spoons for stirring
  • Kitchen mallet
  • Ziptop bag

Ingredients

  • 3 ounces peppermint hard candy crushed (About 6 or 7 candy canes)
  • 14 ounces dark chocolate chips or broken into pieces. I prefer 60% cacao or higher.
  • 12 ounces white chocolate broken into pieces. Look for a product that actually says "chocolate" on the package or lists cocoa butter in the ingredients.
  • 12-20 drops Peppermint oil to taste. (Roughly ten drops in each kind of chocolate.)

Instructions

  • Using a kitchen mallet, crush peppermint candy in a ziptop bag. Set aside.
  • Lay out parchment paper on a flat surface or a cookie sheet.
  • Use the microwave to melt dark chocolate in 30-second increments at Cook Power 6 and stir well in between. Avoid hot spots that can burn your chocolate. Also, avoid getting any water or other moisture in the chocolate. This should take 3-4 increments of 30 seconds each.
  • Add about 10 drops of peppermint oil, to taste. See note. Stir well.
  • With an offset spatula, spread dark chocolate on parchment paper to about 1/8 inch thickness. Try not to spread it too thin on the edges. Your sheet of chocolate will be about the size of a standard sheet of paper. Reserve about a 1/4 cup of dark chocolate to drizzle on top of the white chocolate.
  • Use the microwave to melt white chocolate in 30-second increments at Cook Power 6 and stir well in between. Avoid hot spots that can burn your chocolate. Also, avoid getting any water or other moisture in the chocolate. This should take 3-4 increments of 30 seconds each.
  • Add about 10 drops of peppermint oil, to taste. See note. Stir well.
  • Wait until dark chocolate layer has lost its gloss and developed a matte look and hardened slightly. This will take longer if your kitchen is hot or if your counter is warm, such as above a running dishwasher or next to a hot oven. If this is the case, move cooling chocolate to a cooler place, if possible. Or do something else while you wait.
  • Carefully spread white chocolate onto dark chocolate layer. Avoid pulling dark chocolate up into white chocolate layer by having a gentle touch. If marbling does occur, it's ok! You won't even notice once you have the dark chocolate drizzle and crushed peppermint candy on top.
  • Check reserved dark chocolate to make sure it's still melted. If not, melt in microwave as before for 30 seconds at cook power 6. Stir well.
  • Drizzle dark chocolate over white chocolate layer. See video for demonstration.
  • Sprinkle crushed peppermint candy over all. Allow to harden completely before breaking into pieces. Store in an airtight container. Enjoy!

Notes

Note on Peppermint Oil: Use the full amount if you like to really taste that cool pop of mint. If you don’t have peppermint oil, use 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of peppermint extract. You’ll need to sample the melted chocolate, because different peppermint extracts vary in their intensity.

Nutrition

Calories: 190kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 3mg | Sodium: 16mg | Potassium: 159mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 15g | Vitamin A: 11IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 40mg | Iron: 2mg

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Tuscan Sunset Soup

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Also known as Italian Sausage Soup with White Beans, Kale, and Sun-dried Tomatoes, this soup received raved reviews at our dinner table this evening! Lots of “OOOOOH, Mommy! This is good!” “You need to write down this recipe!” and “Can I have more??”

I loved it because I threw all the ingredients in the Instant Pot, set it to cook, and we all went for a walk/bike ride at the neighborhood playground. When we came home, a delicious dinner was there waiting for us. This is truly my favorite thing about the Instant Pot—the ability to walk away while dinner is cooking, and not have to be there to tend to it.

There are so many ways the kids can help put together this quick soup too!

Here are some age-appropriate ways for kids to help with this easy, delicious dinner.

Toddlers:

  • Help sort dried beans.
  • Carry canned beans from the pantry to the kitchen counter.
  • Carry onion from pantry to kitchen counter.
  • Learn vocabulary—“This is an onion. This is a knife. These are white beans.”


Middle kiddos:

  • Help or make chicken broth.
  • Help with making beans or cook them independently.
  • Brown Italian sausage.
  • Chop and measure garlic, using a food chopper.
  • Measure sun-dried tomatoes.
  • Learn knife safety skills by watching you chop food, and talking about ways to hold the food and how to handle a knife. Or take a course in knife skills together. 


Older children (pre-teens and teens):

  • Make chicken broth on their own.
  • Put on a pot of beans independently.
  • Chop onion.
  • Put together entire recipe, start to finish.
  • Plan the week’s family meals.
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Tuscan Sunset Soup

Also known as Italian Sausage Soup with Sundried Tomatoes, White Beans, and Kale. So much flavor is packed into this delightful soup!
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Pressure Cooking Time5 minutes
Total Time40 minutes
Course: Dinner, Soup
Cuisine: Italian, Mediterranean
Keyword: Budget-friendly, Dairy-free, Dinner, Gluten-free, Homemade, Instant Pot, Made from Scratch, Soup
Servings: 8
Author: Holly

Equipment

  • Electric Pressure Cooker

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. Italian sausage
  • 1 cup onion diced
  • 1 tablespoon garlic powder or 2 tablespoons fresh minced garlic
  • 1 quart 4 cups chicken broth
  • 1 bunch kale chopped; can also use frozen kale (6-8 oz.)
  • 6 cups cooked white beans 1 (15 oz) can of cooked beans equals about 1½ cups of cooked beans
  • 4 tablespoons sun-dried tomatoes diced
  • salt to taste
  • 1 tablespoon Balsamic vinegar

Instructions

  • Instructions:
  • Brown Italian sausage on [Sauté] mode in the Instant Pot. Add diced onion and sauté for a minute or two. Throw in the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Scrape off all the browned bits from the bottom of the pot, and deglaze with 1 cup of the broth. Make sure there is nothing stuck to the bottom of the pot.
  • Pour remaining chicken broth into the pot. Add salt and balsamic vinegar. Float chopped kale on top of chicken broth and pour white beans on top of kale. Finally, top with sun-dried tomatoes. Avoid stirring.
  • Set Instant Pot to [Pressure Cook] or [Manual] or [Soup/Broth] for 5 minutes on High Pressure. Natural release for at least 10 minutes before manually releasing the remaining pressure.
    Enjoy!

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