A holiday favorite!  I am really not a fan of chocolate (especially white chocolate), but I do love this.  The first bark I ever had was at Williams-Sonoma many years ago, and I’ve been searching for a close call ever since!  This recipe came out of Food Network magazine, and was quite close!  Close enough that we actually made it to include in gift baskets this year.

• 12 oz good quality semi-sweet chocolate, chopped into 1/2 inch piece
• 1 1/2 teaspoons peppermint extract
• 1 lb good quality white chocolate
• 3 candy canes or 1 bag peppermints, crushed

Line a 9×13 pan with foil and smooth out wrinkles.  Heat an inch of water in saucepan until steaming.

Put all but 3/4 cup of the semi-sweet into a heat-proof bowl.  Set bowl over the saucepan and stir until about a third of the chocolate has melted.  Remove from heat and keep stirring…as chocolate melts, gradually stir in the 3/4 cup remaining.  Return to heat for 5-10 seconds at a time to help with the melting while stirring continuously.  It could take 10+ minutes to melt the chocolate so be patient!

When all is melted, stir in 3/4 teaspoon peppermint extract and, working quickly, pour the chocolate into the prepared 9×13 dish and spread into an even layer.  Set aside at room temp and allow to set and harden a bet, about 15-30 minutes.

Put all but 1 cup of the white chocolate into the melting bowl and repeat the heating steps.  Stir in the remaining 3/4 teaspoon peppermint extract, then pour over set semi-sweet.  Cover immediately with crushed peppermint bits and press lightly into chocolate.  Allow to set for a few hours at room temp, then lift out of pan using foil and break into pieces.  Stores for about 2 weeks.