This Chocolate Peppermint Bark is a healthier twist on the holiday classic! It has a layer of dark chocolate topped with homemade vegan white chocolate and crushed peppermint candies. You’ll adore this vegan peppermint bark! It’s perfect for your holiday parties or holiday gifting.

This Chocolate Peppermint Bark is a healthier twist on the holiday classic! It has a layer of dark chocolate topped with minty homemade vegan white chocolate and a sprinkling of crushed peppermint candies. You'll adore this gluten-free, paleo and vegan peppermint bark!

Peppermint bark is one of those classic holiday treats that just doesn’t feel like the holiday season until you break into a metal tin of the stuff, right? The minty layers of dark chocolate and white chocolate, with a sprinkling of crushed peppermint…it just sings holidays!

So I wasn’t overly surprised when I got more than a few requests for a healthier homemade chocolate peppermint bark. One that wasn’t full of refined sugars or dairy but still satisfied the peppermint bark craving that could only be satisfied by crunchy, melt-in-your-mouth layers of minty chocolate.

This Chocolate Peppermint Bark is a healthier twist on the holiday classic! It has a layer of dark chocolate topped with minty homemade vegan white chocolate and a sprinkling of crushed peppermint candies. You'll adore this gluten-free, paleo and vegan peppermint bark!

How to make homemade peppermint bark

To make this recipe, you have two options for your dark chocolate layer. You can do as I did for the chocolate you see in the photos: melt down your favorite dark chocolate and spread it in an even, thin layer.

Alternatively, if you can’t track down refined sugar-free chocolate, you can also make your own dark chocolate! I do this for a whole bunch of my recipes, like my peanut butter cups and chocolate peppermint cups. It’s so easy! Just stir together the right ratio of melted coconut oil, cocoa powder, and maple syrup. Voila, you’ve got melt-in-your-mouth dark chocolate.

This Chocolate Peppermint Bark is a healthier twist on the holiday classic! It has a layer of dark chocolate topped with minty homemade vegan white chocolate and a sprinkling of crushed peppermint candies. You'll adore this gluten-free, paleo and vegan peppermint bark!

Once your dark chocolate is chilled, we’re ready for the white chocolate. This was the trickier part of developing this recipe! I have been working on a homemade, refined sugar-free, and vegan white chocolate recipe for a while now. I’ve been testing and tweaking, trying to find a stable recipe. It’s coming along nicely, but it’s not perfect quite yet.

However, one of my tests was perfect for use here. Although you can’t bake it into white chocolate chunk cookies (which I’m working on making happen without the white chocolate dissolving), it works amazingly as white chocolate for this peppermint bark.

This Chocolate Peppermint Bark is a healthier twist on the holiday classic! It has a layer of dark chocolate topped with minty homemade vegan white chocolate and a sprinkling of crushed peppermint candies. You'll adore this gluten-free, paleo and vegan peppermint bark!

How to make homemade white chocolate

The key ingredient to getting that white chocolate flavor is cacao butter! This is one of the ingredients of cacao mass. When you remove the cacao powder, you’re left with cacao butter. It gives white chocolate its inherent chocolateiness, and substituting anything else here just wouldn’t be the same. You can find it at most health food stores or order it on Amazon.

You’ll add maple syrup to the cacao butter to sweeten it, along with cashew butter to give the white chocolate some creaminess. Vanilla extract adds some depth, and of course, we’ve got to have peppermint extract!

This Chocolate Peppermint Bark is a healthier twist on the holiday classic! It has a layer of dark chocolate topped with minty homemade vegan white chocolate and a sprinkling of crushed peppermint candies. You'll adore this gluten-free, paleo and vegan peppermint bark!

You’ll spread the white chocolate all over the dark chocolate. Then, sprinkle it with crushed peppermint candies and/or cacao nibs and leave it to set. That’s all! Once it’s chilled, you can either cut pieces or break them up into rough pieces with your hands. Either way, a pile of these in a gift box is the perfect gift. Enjoy!

This Chocolate Peppermint Bark is a healthier twist on the holiday classic! It has a layer of dark chocolate topped with minty homemade vegan white chocolate and a sprinkling of crushed peppermint candies. You'll adore this gluten-free, paleo and vegan peppermint bark!
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This Chocolate Peppermint Bark is a healthier twist on the holiday classic! It has a layer of dark chocolate topped with minty homemade vegan white chocolate and a sprinkling of crushed peppermint candies. You'll adore this gluten-free, paleo and vegan peppermint bark!

Vegan Chocolate Peppermint Bark

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  • Author: Bakerita | Rachel Conners
  • Prep Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 30 minutes
  • Yield: 16 pieces 1x
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: No-Bake
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan
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Description

This Chocolate Peppermint Bark is a healthier twist on the holiday classic! It has a layer of dark chocolate topped with homemade vegan white chocolate and crushed peppermint candies. You’ll adore this vegan peppermint bark! It’s perfect for your holiday parties or holiday gifting.

Ingredients

Units Scale

For the dark chocolate

  • 6 ounces dark chocolate, chopped

OR make your own dark chocolate

  • 1/2 cup refined coconut oil, melted
  • 1/2 cup cocoa powder
  • 3–4 tablespoons maple syrup, to taste

For the white chocolate

  • 4 oz. (132g) edible raw cacao butter, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons (48g) refined coconut oil
  • 1 tablespoon (16g) smooth natural cashew butter
  • 1/3 cup maple syrup
  • 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, OR 1/4 teaspoon vanilla bean powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract

Instructions

  1. Line a 9×9” baking pan or small baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. In a microwave safe bowl, melt the dark chocolate in 30 second increments, stirring between each, until smooth and melted. Alternatively, whisk together the melted coconut oil, cocoa powder, and maple syrup until smooth. Pour chocolate onto the prepared pan and place into the refrigerator or freezer to set.
  3. While the dark chocolate sets, make the white chocolate. In a medium-sized heat-safe bowl, place the cacao butter and coconut oil. Heat indirectly by creating a make-shirt double boiler. Place the bowl over small pot of simmering water, making sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Allow the cacao butter and coconut oil to melt, stirring occasionally. The mixture will be thin.
  4. With the mixture still over the simmering water, add the cashew butter and mix to combine. Add the maple syrup, salt, and vanilla and mix until smooth. Remove the bowl from the pot and allow to cool for about 10 minutes before adding the peppermint extract and whisking again to ensure everything is incorporated.
  5. Once the white chocolate is slightly cooled, pour over the set dark chocolate. If desired, sprinkle with crushed peppermint candies or cacao nibs. Return to the refrigerator to set for about an hour. Break up with your hands or cut into pieces with a knife.
  6. Keep stored in the refrigerator or freezer.
This Chocolate Peppermint Bark is a healthier twist on the holiday classic! It has a layer of dark chocolate topped with minty homemade vegan white chocolate and a sprinkling of crushed peppermint candies. You'll adore this gluten-free, paleo and vegan peppermint bark!

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