Peppermint Bark: Updated 12/23/10

Very good candy that makes a great gift!

What you need:

    * 8 ounces high-quality semisweet chocolate, broken into pieces
    * 2 teaspoons canola oil, divided
    * 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract, divided
    * 8 ounces high-quality white chocolate, broken into pieces
    * 25 peppermint candies, crushed

What you do:

   1. Lightly grease a 9x9 inch pan and line with waxed paper, smoothing out wrinkles; set aside.
   2. Place the semisweet chocolate and 1 teaspoon of the canola oil in a microwaveable dish and microwaved on high for 1 minute, stirred, and microwaved for 1 more minute. When the chocolate is melted, stir in 1/4 teaspoon of the peppermint extract. Pour the melted chocolate into the prepared pan, and spread evenly over the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle half of the crushed peppermints over the chocolate layer. Refrigerate until completely hardened, about 1 hour.
   3. Place the white chocolate and the remaining 1 teaspoon canola oil in in the microwave, melt 1 minute, then stir and melt 1 more minute (as in step 1 above). When the chocolate is melted, stir in the remaining 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract. Pour the white chocolate directly over the semisweet chocolate layer; spread evenly. Sprinkle the remaining crushed candy over the top and gently press in. Refrigerate until completely hardened. Remove from pan; break into small pieces to serve.

Break it carefully so as not to separate the layers. You can hold it against the kitchen counter and apply pressure to break it into large chunks. If you want smaller chunks, you might want to consider using a hammer and and an ice pick or clean screw driver.

For gift giving she made these in individual mini cupcake liners, so she doesn't have to break them. Here's how they turned out.