So this recipe kinda just happened out of my having WAY too much stuff in my cupboards and more importantly, my not knowing I had the stuff in the first place. Since I’ve been home with surgery I’ve been going stir crazy and I am not one to sit still. I swear the phrase “ants in the pants” is because of me. I could never sit still. Now I wasn’t hyper or the like I just was always into stuff, wanting to learn, understand how something worked. And since I didn’t require a lot of sleep I learned at a very young age that others (I call you folks ‘sleepers’) need more than 3-4 hours of sleep a night, unlike me. That being said waking my parents or siblings up in the middle of the night was a big no-no, no matter how flippin’ adorable I was as a child.
Now fast forward to now, being one-armed was an issue for me while my shoulder healed. I was limited and it sucked but I was bound and determined to do something. My real job graciously let me work from home while I healed and once my day with that was done I’d try to find stuff around the house to get into. So the one day I decided to take a deep dive into my ‘snack’ cupboard. Well wait, it’s not “my” snack pantry but more so 2 shelves are all his of his snacks (along with the entire baking rack of snacks and kitchen table of treats). 2 of the other shelves were some more baking items, sauces and oils for cooking. As I started pulling stuff out I literally had 4 boxes of unopened candy canes from honestly… I have no clue when I bought them. Maybe 2 years ago… maybe *blush*
So once I got everything all straightened out I still had those 4 boxes of candy canes. “Were they any good still? Can I freeze them? What in the world am I going to do with them??” type of thoughts all went through my head. I had no clue what to do with them. So on my kitchen counter they sat for the day which literally drove Mr. Fantabulous crazy. Now ‘splain this to me. The man can leave dirty dishes on his desk for a week and it not bother him but if I leave stuff out like that it bothers him. See I’m the neat one or as he would say “the nag” because I hate him leaving stuff around. God don’t get me started on dirty clothes on the floor either.
Now I could have made more Kissyface Dust and Kissyface Crumbles but I already had 2 jars of each in my pantry. So I opted to just get out my big trust mallet and beat the crap out of them to make chunks and crumbles to use… for something later on.
But what… what was that something? I was in one of those moods where I wanted chocolate maybe cake or brownies but I honestly didn’t feel like waiting for them to bake and cool. Plus I was sore and tired. Okay fine (I have Mr. Fantabulous over my shoulder saying ‘Um you forgot to tell them you were SUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUPER cranky. Like ridiculously cranky. Like you had your cranky pants pulled up so high they were around your ears cranky’. Swear that man at times…
Fine yes I was cranky but it’s because I was sore and I had to do something with those damn now candy cane crumbles. So here’s the lowdown – I wanted chocolate, I didn’t want to bake anything and I had to use up those candy cane pieces. DUH! Bark! Bark is one of the easiest desserts to make as 99% of the time there is no baking involved. It has chocolate and well… stuff! Of course you can go all chocolate with a variety of flavors stemming from dark to white and layering in between but yeah, bark. We’re going with that. Now I’ve made my Chocolate Cake Bark and my Chocolate Chip cookie bark but those both involved baking. Again, something I really wasn’t up for.
No I wanted even easier. I wanted no bake. So I got to thinking about brownie batter and how I could make it without having to use the raw eggs and stuff in it that is required when you bake it. The more I thought about brownie batter I got to thinking about brownie batter bark to which I thought of ‘frosted’ brownie batter bark. The white chocolate could be the frosting and the candy cane crumbles could be the sprinkles. See I absolutely LOVE peppermint and chocolate together. Almost as much as peanut butter and chocolate. I like that coolness you get when you bite into a piece of dark chocolate and you’re hit with that pop of mint. Now I’ve shared with you Peppermint Bark but never one with brownie batter. I know, shame on me!
This recipe came together pretty easily and yes it’s no bake which means no eggs though I come from the school where it’s perfectly acceptable to eat raw cake, cookie and brownie batter with eggs in it. It hasn’t killed me yet. The hardest part out of this whole recipe is the layering and waiting. You have to wait for the base chocolate to chill in order for you to spread the brownie batter on top. Then that has to go back in the fridge to chill. Once that’s cold then you can do that ‘frosting’ and ‘sprinkles’ and then it goes back in the fridge to chill.
All this waiting is torture for a girl who wanted something sweet and no-bake. But seriously it was so worth it as I LOVED this dish! Not only did the brownie add an amazing texture contrast but it married the flavors perfectly! It took your typical peppermint bark and put it on steroids! Chocolate Brownie Steroids folks! Mmmmm!
When I took this out of the fridge to cut it up I had to call Mr. Fantabulous to cut it for me as I barely trust myself with both arms with a sharp kitchen knife but only give me one and I’m an accident waiting to happen. As he looked at it he made that face which means “I don’t know what it is but I won’t like it cause it’s not normal”. As he cut it he asked what it was. I said “Peppermint Crunch Brownie Batter Bark” to which I swear he only heard the word “Brownie” as he quickly stopped, did a fast look around the room and said “You made brownies? Where? Can I have one?”
…sigh
…super sigh
I said “no, just brownie batter. That’s what I used in here.” To which I got “wait, you made brownie batter and used it in this instead of making real brownies? Tsk Tsk Tsk…” Folks he’s lucky he had the knife and not I! LOL I told my big baby if he got the stuff out I’d make him real brownies if he wanted but he had to help me out as I was ready to go lie down for a bit… with a chunk of this bark. Thankfully he didn’t want any as honestly I wasn’t up for it. Plus this was all about me.
So now I have this big batch of bark and I’m the only one here that’ll eat it. Wanna come over? I’ll share!
PrintPeppermint Crunch Brownie Batter Bark
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Ingredients
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoon Peppermint Kissyface Dust
- 8 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
- 3 tablespoon Peppermint Kissyface Crumbles
- 1–2 drops peppermint oil
- 1 1/2 cups milk chocolate cut into chunks
- 1 cup white chocolate cut into chunks
- 1 teaspoon canola oil
Instructions
- Line a 9×13” pan with parchment paper leaving a 1” overhang.
- Melt milk chocolate in in double boiler of medium-low heat.
- Pour evenly into plan and smooth with offset spatula.
- Place the pan in the fridge to chill for 20 minutes.
- In a bowl add the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt and Peppermint Kissyface Dust, whisk until combined.
- Add the melted butter and mix until smooth.
- Remove the chilled chocolate from the fridge and spread the brownie batter over top evenly. *Note: the chocolate must be hardened before you spread this on.
- Place the pan back in the fridge for 20 minutes.
- Melt white chocolate in in double boiler of medium-low heat.
- To the white chocolate add in the canola oil and peppermint oil. If the chocolate doesn’t melt add a teeny bit more canola to help smooth out.
- Remove the pan from the fridge and pour the melted white chocolate on top.
- Smooth with offset spatula.
- Sprinkle the Peppermint Kissyface Crumbles on top.
- Place in the fridge for at least one hour to harden and set.
- Cut with a serrated knife and keep chilled prior to serving.
Looking for more delicious bark ideas?
Potato Chip Rice Krispies Bark
Toasted Almond Chocolate Caramel Bark with Sea Salt
Chocolate Peanut Butter Caramel Bark with Fritos and Bacon
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