Halloween peppermint brownies

Time flies and it's already Halloween in two short days!  

I may not be very big on Halloween but it's good to get into the spirit a little bit with some pumpkin carving, trick-or-treating, and a few fun treats.  I find that as the kids get older, the fervor behind Halloween is quieting down so maybe I should try to enjoy it as much as possible while my son is still dressing up and excited to "boo" his friends and neighbors.  

The kids at school are having a Halloween bake sale today and I made these simple peppermint brownies for the sale.  I considered making a batch of owl cupcakes but when I saw this simple idea for making Halloween "faces" using peppermint patties on brownies from Martha, it seemed like an easy/tasty project to try.  I love an excuse to make brownies!

I took Martha's idea and made it even simpler.  I actually used a recipe from Joy of Baking that makes brownies that are meant to be somewhere between cakey and fudgy.  I wanted a moist brownie and also one that would hold up well.  Since I made sure to take my brownies out of the oven earlier rather than later, mine turned out more fudgy, which is how we like them.  Instead of embedding a peppermint patty into the brownies (as well as using one for the faces) as per Martha's recipe, I just added a little peppermint extract into the batter to reinforce the flavor, keeping things simple and not too crazy minty.  

I don't know if everyone's a fan of peppermint brownies but my son loves it and selfishly, of course, I was thinking of him.  He wanted a batch for himself and after I let him sample one, he really wanted to keep the entire batch.   In other words, these are my kid-approved!  Somehow, I did manage to pack up most of the brownies and they now reside with many other creepy and not-so-creepy treats awaiting the school bake sale.

Have a fun and safe Halloween!  Once Monday rolls around, it's officially time to talk Thanksgiving and Christmas, and I can hardly wait!

Peppermint brownies topped with candy cane and dark chocolate drizzle

I've made it a point to slow down and enjoy the holidays.  For me, that means being selective about what I choose to take on, keeping my schedule light, getting things done in advance, and just taking the time to sit down and enjoy the season.

There's plenty of cooking and baking (let's not forget eating) involved at this time of year and I enjoy it immensely.  But in an effort to not go crazy or wipe myself out in the name of the holiday season, I've reined in my holiday baking.  I didn't want to look at my Christmas baking list (yes, I have one) like they were must-do's that I had to fit into my schedule.  Instead, I cut it down into a short list of want-to-do's, a handful of recipes that really appealed to me - things I think my family and I will enjoy - so I could also focus on making old favorites.  While there is always room for something new, I want to keep some traditions at Christmastime.

Well, these peppermint brownies were not part of the plan but they made it into my December baking rotation and I'm so glad it did!  It started when I saw these brownies and the look of the chocolate drizzle and crushed candy canes really drew me in.  I suppose I've just got peppermint on the brain come December and, well, brownies are one of the simplest dessert comfort foods that I crave (to make and eat) often.  So since I couldn't stop thinking about peppermint brownies and since brownies are generally easy/no-major-equipment-required affairs, I went for it. 

I was feeling a bit adventurous because instead of following that recipe for the brownies I saw, I did a little spin-off of several recipes, though I kept that original candy cane and chocolate topping that I liked so much.  For my version, I also called on the brownie recipes from Baked, Smitten Kitchen's favorite based on unsweetened chocolate, as well as Pioneer Woman's mint brownie bites, which has melted Andes Mints in it!

I started with the Baked brownie recipe in mind because I adore the fudgy texture of those brownies but things got really side-tracked from there.  I decided to omit the brown sugar used in the Baked recipe so that the chocolate flavor could come through more.  Along that thought, I went with unsweetened chocolate (what both the Smitten Kitchen and Pioneer Woman recipes use) for deep chocolate flavor.  I had intended to only add peppermint extract for the mint flavoring but couldn't resist the idea of melted Andes Mints!  I have to admit I have them in the house all year round in a candy dish. 

The brownies turned out to be a real hit!  I know it's hard to go wrong with brownies in general but these were moist and had a nice balance of chocolate and clear peppermint flavor.  The Andes Mints really add minty flavor to the brownies themselves while the unsweetened chocolate rounds it out and makes them a bit more serious and less sweet.  The dark chocolate and crushed candy cane on top make them look festive for the holidays and accentuate the flavors going on.

My seven year old loved these, which makes me really happy!  I intended to pack up the majority of these brownies as a gift and he protested and actually asked me to make more "because they're so good!".  I'm not bragging; I just couldn't believe how much he liked them because I think he's been on a bit of a chocolate overload lately (gotten picky with his selection) since I bake so often.  I think the peppermint flavor really appeals to him (the boy can down a large candy cane in minutes) and kids seem to appreciate brownies with a little frosting or topping on them.  Either way, I felt like I hit a home run or scored a winning goal with this one, and it was a pleasant surprise.