Preheat the oven to 350°Fahrenheit/ 175°Celsius and line an 8×8 baking pan with parchment paper, making sure there is some overhanging to make it easier to remove the brownies.
Melt the butter and chocolate together. You can either do this in the microwave, stirring every 20 seconds, or in a double boiler. Once the chocolate and butter has completely melted, whisk to combine.
¾ cup unsalted butter, 4 oz dark chocolate
Add the sugar, light brown sugar and eggs. Whisk until smooth and thick.
½ cup light brown sugar, ½ cup granulated sugar, 2 large eggs
Add the oil and vanilla extract, whisking again until smooth.
¼ cup vegetable oil, ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
Pour in the flour, salt and cocoa powder. Fold everything together with a rubber spatula until there are no more streaks of flour left.
1 teaspoon kosher salt, ¾ cup all purpose flour, ¼ cup cocoa powder
Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 24-28 minutes. A toothpick inserted should come out with a few wet crumbs. Let the brownies cool completely in the pan.
Make Peppermint Layer
Don't start this step until the brownies are completely cool!
In a large bowl with a handheld electric mixer, or in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and cream cheese together. Beat for about 1-2 minutes until smooth.
¼ cup unsalted butter, 3 oz cream cheese
Add the confectioners' sugar, salt, and peppermint extract. Beat again for 1 minute until light and fluffy.
2 ½ cups confectioners' sugar, pinch kosher salt, ½ teaspoon peppermint extract
Spoon this on to the cooled brownies. Use an offset spatula to cover the brownies evenly. Place in the fridge for a few hours or in the freezer for 20 minutes.
Make Chocolate Topping
While the peppermint layer is chilling, make the chocolate ganache top.
In a microwave safe bowl, melt the butter and chopped chocolate together. Melt in 20 second increments, whisking to make sure the chocolate doesn't burn.
¼ cup unsalted butter, 6 oz dark chocolate
Once the chocolate is melted, take the bowl out and whisk until it is smooth.
Pour this chocolate over the peppermint cream cheese layer. Use an offset spatula to smooth out the top. Sprinkle over the crushed candy canes. Do this step right away as otherwise the chocolate will harden pretty quickly!
3 candy canes
Slice and enjoy!
Notes
My recipes have been developed and tested in metric grams. I highly recommend using a weighing scale and measuring out your ingredients the metric way. Small Batch: looking to make a small batch of peppermint bark brownies? Use a 4.5"x8.5" loaf pan and halve all of the ingredients! Then follow the steps above to make small batch peppermint bark brownies. Room Temperature: I make sure that all of my ingredients are at room temperature before I start the recipe, so pull out all of the ingredients about 2 hours before you start baking.Salt: If you don’t have kosher salt, halve the amount of salt called for in the recipe. 1 teaspoon kosher salt = ½ teaspoon fine salt.Butter: I use European style butter, like Kerry Gold, in my recipes. This will make your finished bake much creamier and richer.Peppermint Extract: make sure you are using peppermint and not just mint. Mint extract can almost taste like toothpaste! Storage: keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can freeze the bars for up to 3 months. Let them defrost in the fridge overnight before eating.