If You're Not Gifting Peppermint Bark To Everyone On Your List This Year—You Should (2024)

If you've never made peppermint bark homemade before, now is the time to start. This holiday treat couldn't be easier to make: with just a few ingredients, you can make a batch with only 10 minutes of prep time. Plus, by making it at home, you can take some liberties in creating your own ideal peppermint bark. Share it with your friends and family as the sweetest homemade food gift or holiday dessert, or keep it all to yourself (we won’t blame you). Keep reading on for all of our top tips on how to make the best peppermint bark possible:

What is peppermint bark?
Peppermint bark is a holiday treat made with two types of chocolate—either semisweet or dark and white—and chopped candy canes. Williams-Sonoma is basically famous for theirs at this point, and for good reason—it's delicious. But, this peppermint bark is so easy to make that once you do it, you can't really justify paying for it.

Top tips for making peppermint bark:
— The best chocolate for peppermint bark. We suggest using quality bars of semisweet and white chocolate that you enjoy eating. The chocolate is the primary character here, so you want to choose a quality one, and the bark melts very well compared to morsels.
— Melt your chocolate in the microwave. Place the chocolate chips or baking pieces in a large heatproof bowl and microwave on low in increments of 30 seconds. Remove the bowl from the microwave and stir between each increment. We're using a lot of chocolate pieces, so you'll want to keep stirring to make sure the ones on the bottom get melted, not burnt.
— Melt your chocolate on the stovetop. The easiest way to melt chocolate—especially this many—is using a double boiler on the stovetop. Double boiler sounds fancy, but it's not. It just means you place a glass bowl on top of some simmering water so that the steam melts the chocolate. You just want to avoid getting water in the bowl—the chocolate will seize!
— The best pan size for peppermint bark. We use standard-sized half sheet pans in this recipe, which are 13" x 18". If you don't have that size, you can use sheet pans that have slightly different dimensions. As long as each measurement is within 2" of the half sheet pan dimensions, the recipe will work completely fine.
— How long does peppermint bark take to set? Once you pour over the melted chocolates onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and sprinkle the bark with candy canes, you just need to refrigerate the bark for 20 minutes, or until it's firm. If you're in a real rush, you can pop it in the freezer for 10 minutes.
— How do I break it up? Once the bark has completely set, for a more rustic look, break it apart with your hands. If it is too thick to break with your hands, the flat side of a meat mallet should do the trick. For cleaner cuts (hello gift basket!) use a sharp knife that has been dipped in hot water.

Peppermint bark variations:
There are plenty of ways you can get creative with this peppermint bark recipe. Switch up the chocolate layers if you prefer to have your semisweet chocolate on top, or mix up the toppings. Switch up the candy canes for your favorite colorful version, and add on your favorite candy if you want this bark to be extra sweet (hint: take inspiration from our favorite chocolate bark recipes). Can't get enough of this bark? Incorporate it into another crowd-pleasing dessert, like our peppermint bark brownies.

Storage & freezing:
Store peppermint bark at room temperature for a few days, or in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks. Alternatively, you can freeze peppermint bark for up to 6 months.

Made this recipe? Let us know how it went in the comments below!