Christmas Cookies for Santa: A White Christmas

Staring at the white coconut flakes and chocolate fudge, another thought popped into my head. What if Santa loved white chocolate, but I kept baking with milk, semisweet, or dark? Not willing to take that risk, I bought a bag of white chocolate chips to play with.

Although my biscotti contained white chocolate, the chips were dispersed throughout the cookies, leaving some bites without. To ensure Saint Nick fully satisfied his white chocolate cravings, I melted the entire bag to make a large pile of peppermint bark. With so many pieces of smooth, creamy chocolate to eat, Santa would automatically put us on his “Nice List” for next year.

Peppermint Bark

makes a lot! (around 2-3 cups)

To get extra fancy, melt a layer of semisweet or dark chocolate for underneath the white chocolate. Be sure to firmly press the peppermint pieces into the chocolate; otherwise they’ll fall off when you break the bark into pieces!

1 (12 oz) package white chocolate chips

6 candy canes, unwrapped

Pour the chocolate chips into a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 1 min. Stir, and continue microwaving for 5-10 sec intervals, stirring between each, until the chocolate is completely melted. (Mine took 1 min 15 sec.)
Double- or triple-bag the candy canes. Using a rolling pin, smash the candy canes into small pieces. Pour the pieces into a strainer or colander with small holes, and shake over the white chocolate. The fine pieces will fall into the bowl. Stir them in.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, and pour the white chocolate mixture onto the pan, smoothing it thin using a spatula. Sprinkle the remaining larger pieces of candy cane over the top, pressing them firmly into the chocolate. Cool for 1-2 hrs. Break into pieces.