I know what you’re thinking…peppermint overload! You’ve got my word, I vow to take a break from peppermint for awhile. I saw a picture of these brownies and was intrigued by their festive tie-dye look and couldn’t help myself. If you’re not a fan of peppermint, this is still a fabulous brownie recipe, and there are a bunch of other topping options at the bottom of the post to make instead of the peppermint.  The topping is simply melted peppermint candies, and much easier to accomplish than it looks. It does, however, take a little time. You can always take the shortcut and make up a boxed batch of brownies. Then, make the homeade ganache. People will think it’s homeade and I won’t tell! I’ve included pictures about making the peppermint top so you can see what’s involved. Spacing is extremely important. The small test batch I made I spaced as the recipe called for at 1 3/4″  apart, which was too far and I ended up with spaces in between the melted peppermints. The second batch I spaced 1.5″ apart and it was perfect.

So here’s the deal…these are all about the novelty, kind of like the bubble gum infused cocktail I made awhile back. It’s good as a once in awhile recipe. It makes people wonder how you did it. Great brownie base - definitely on the pepperminty side. Is it the best brownie I’ve ever eaten… probably not. Would I make it again? Yes! These would be fun to do for a cookie exchange and I can almost guarantee someone else won’t show up with the same thing.

Peppermint-topped Brownies (Recipe adapted from Sunset Magazine)

Prep and Cook Time: 2 1/2 hours, plus at least 3 hours to chill. Notes: You can make the brownies with ganache 3 days ahead, cover with plastic wrap (making sure it does not touch ganache), and chill. The tops can be made up to a week ahead and stored airtight at room temperature. Look for hard, round peppermint swirl candies, also called starlight mints, with bright red color. Keep an eye on the candies as they melt; some brands don’t spread as quickly or as thinly as others. You may want to make a test batch using 12 mints arranged in 3 rows of 4 to determine whether you’ll need to adjust your oven’s temperature or space the candies closer together.

Yield: Makes about 25 brownies

10  tablespoon  butter, plus more for pan

6  ounces  good-quality bittersweet chocolate, broken into large chunks

3  eggs

1 1/2  cups  sugar

1  tablespoon  vanilla

1/4  teaspoon  salt

1  cup  all-purpose flour

1/2  cup  cocoa powder

1/2  teaspoon  baking powder

80  hard, round, red-and-white peppermint swirl candies (17 oz.; see Notes)

1/2  pound  semisweet chocolate, chopped

1  cup  whipping cream

Brownie Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°. Butter a 9- by 13-in. baking pan. In a medium saucepan, stir butter and bittersweet chocolate over very low heat with a heatproof rubber spatula until just melted (do not let simmer or boil). Remove from heat and let cool slightly, about 5 minutes.

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar, vanilla, and salt. Slowly pour chocolate-butter mixture into egg mixture, whisking constantly. Into a separate bowl, sift flour, cocoa powder, and baking powder, then whisk together. With a clean rubber spatula, gently fold flour mixture into egg mixture until just combined.

Spread batter evenly in the baking pan. Bake 20 to 30 minutes, or until brownies are firm, beginning to pull away from sides of pan, and a toothpick inserted in center emerges with only a few crumbs clinging to it. Let brownies cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.

Peppermint Top Directions

Reduce oven temperature to 300°. Line a level, rimmed 11 1/2- by 16-in. baking sheet with parchment. With a pencil, draw a grid of 1.5-in. squares on parchment (5 rows of 8), leaving about a 1-in. border, and turn parchment over. Place a mint in the center of each square. Bake 15 to 25 minutes, or until completely melted into 1 large sheet, but remove before candy begins to turn yellow. Immediately score peppermint squares with a pizza cutter, using pencil lines as your guide. If scored lines don’t hold, rescore quickly. Let candy cool completely. Gently break into squares along score lines. Arrange, bake, and score remaining 40 candies the same way (you’ll have extra squares; pick the prettiest).

Ganache Instructions

Don’t Like Peppermint? Check out these other options…

Be generous with amounts, and chill brownies so that the topping sets.

Coconut and Macadamia: Sprinkle shredded toasted coconut and chopped toasted macadamia nuts over the just-warm ganache layer.

Crushed Toffee: Sprinkle crushed toffee bits over the just-warm ganache layer.

Double Peanut: Warm up natural-style peanut butter (creamy or chunky) and spread over cooled brownies. Refrigerate until peanut butter is firm; top with ganache and chopped peanuts.

Raspberry: Spread raspberry jam over cooled brownies and top with ganache.

Rocky Road: Preheat broiler. Spread half of the just-warm ganache over cooled brownies, then top with mini marshmallows and chopped walnuts. Broil brownies for about 1 minute, or until marshmallows are toasted and beginning to melt together. Remove from oven and drizzle with remaining ganache.

White Chocolate Swirl: Spoon dollops of melted white chocolate over the just-warm ganache layer and make marbled swirls using a toothpick or a knife.