Holiday Treats

Ghiradelli peppermint brownies

We love baking-especially at this time of year.  (Incase you didn't realize by now, the three of us have  BIG sweet tooth) There's always a cookie swap, a cookie decorating party, a house party where we want to bring something, or something going on where we get to bake something fun.  This year, we wanted to bake some goodies for our neighbors and we found this delish recipe online that we wanted to share with you from http://www.allrecipes.com/  They fun and festive and absolutely perfect for the holiday season.  Its also something fun for the whole family to do together.  Hope you enjoy :)


Ghiradelli peppermint brownies

Ingredients

• 4 ounces Ghirardelli 100% Cacao Unsweetened Chocolate baking bar, broken or chopped into 1 inch pieces
• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 3 large eggs
• 2 cups granulated white sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 (5.32 ounce) bag Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate with White Mint Filling Squares™, unwrapped
• 4 small candy canes, crushed

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch square baking pan with cooking spray and dust with flour, tapping out any excess.
2. In the top of a double boiler or in a heatproof bowl over barely simmering water, melt the unsweetened chocolate and butter, stirring occasionally until smooth. Cool to room temperature
3. In a large bowl with an electric mixer or whisk, beat the eggs, sugar, vanilla, peppermint extract, and salt until combined. Beat in the chocolate mixture. Gently stir in the flour. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
4. Bake for about 45 minutes, or until a tester inserted into the brownies comes out clean. Arrange the mint squares on top in one layer and return the brownies to the oven until they are just melted, about 1 minute. Evenly spread the chocolate with a spatula and sprinkle with the crushed candy canes. Cool completely before cutting into 2-inch squares.