Chocolate Peppermint Brookies

These crowd-pleasing Chocolate Peppermint Brookies start with a dense, chewy chocolatey brownie, a layer of peppermint Oreos, followed by a chewy layer of extra chocolate chip cookie dough and finally finished off with a smooth peppermint ganache and peppermint candy sprinkle. All the quintessential flavors of the holiday season wrapped up into one little square.

To me, chocolate and peppermint are the greatest marriages of all time. It's like PB&J or beer and pizza, they just work magically together and delight your tastebuds. So much so that Starbucks makes an ungodly amount of money each year on Peppermint Mochas alone. I'm pretty sure my boyfriend is the main contributor to that profit margin.

Part chocolate chip cookies, part brownies, these bars are the best of both worlds. Add a peppermint flavor Oreo cookie in the center and you have the love child of a "slutty brownie." Listen- don't come after us for this name. The internet named these bars this well before we wrote this post! We're doing our part in renaming them! But let's be real, we will still totally show up with a plate of these (insert original name) to party with the girls!

If you prefer to eat your brookies in cookie form, we've got the recipe for that! You can add your favorite holiday candies- the candy cane- to them too! And if you love the chocolate peppermint combo as much as we do, make sure to check out our Peppermint Bark Layer Cake.

WHY WE LOVE THIS PEPPERMINT BROOKIES RECIPE

• These chocolate bars carry a big punch of peppermint and a great way to use up all those cute candy canes you bought!
• Perfect for the big chocolate fan- with 3 layers of chocolate baked into the part brownie, part cookie, and ganache layer, there is no shortage of chocolatey flavor.
• Great for cookie exchanges. These bars cut and travel well so make a batch for your most incredible cookie swap! Or, wrap them up for a delicious edible holiday gift. Last year, we gave bags out with our Christmas cards to our best friends and family members.
• Simple ingredients! There are no special/gourmet ingredients in this dessert. Everything can be found at your local grocery store.

BROOKIE RECIPE INGREDIENTS

Chocolate Peppermint Cookies Layer 

• Unsalted butter
• Light brown sugar
• Granulated white sugar 
• Large egg
• Pure Vanilla extract
• All purpose flour
• Salt
• Baking soda
• Chocolate chips
• Peppermint pieces

Peppermint Brownie Layer

• Unsalted butter, 1 stick
• Vegetable oil- melted coconut oil will work too
• Granulated white sugar
• Cocoa powder
• Salt
• Vanilla extract
• Large eggs, cold
• All-purpose flour
• Chocolate chips
• Peppermint pieces or candy cane pieces
• 12 chocolate peppermint sandwich cookies, like oreos 

Peppermint Ganache

• Chocolate chips (I like dark chocolate)
• Peppermint extract, optional
• Butter
• Cream or half and half

HOW TO MAKE THESE PEPPERMINT CHOCOLATE BROOKIES

These chewy chocolate chip cookies combined with fudgy brownie cookies in bar form with a surprise peppermint twist are so delicious and easy to make!

Cookie Layer

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
2. Generously spray a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray or line with parchment paper or aluminum foil; set aside.
3. Begin by creaming the butter and sugars together.
4. Add egg and mix in vanilla.
5. In a separate bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
6. Gradually add dry ingredients to wet mixture, mixing until just combined.
7. Stir in chocolate chips and chopped candy canes.

Brownie Layer

1. In a large bowl, melt butter, oil, sugar, and cocoa powder in the microwave on high for 45 seconds. Remove and stir together. If the choc/butter mixture is not completely melted, put back in microwave for 30 sec. Let sit for about 3 minutes to cool slightly.
2. Add cold eggs to the batter and whisk rapidly until combined.
3. Add vanilla, salt, and flour and whisk until smooth.
4. With a wooden spoon, stir in chocolate chips or chunks and peppermint candies.

Assembly

1. Pour brownie batter into the prepared baking dish. Pro Tip- You can also start with the cookie dough and add the brownie batter as the final layer.
2. Add a layer of Oreos on top of the brownie batter.
3. Cover Oreos with dollops of cookie dough.
4. Bake until knife is inserted and when remove is clean, about 30-35 minutes.
5. Cool on a wire rack until room temperature.

To make the ganache, combine chocolate chips, cream and butter in a small pot.

1. Cook on medium low temperature until melted, stirring constantly. This can also be done over a double boiler.
2. Once done, pour the melted chocolate mixture over Brookies and sprinkle with chopped candy canes.

SUBSTITUTIONS AND ADDITIONS

• Use brownie mix- if you're short on time, use a store-bought brownie or cookie mix.
• Use different chocolate- I typically use semi-sweet or dark chocolate, but milk chocolate would be delicious too! Or, make white chocolate peppermint brookies by using white chocolate chips!
• Skip the peppermint additions and just make traditional brookie bars or use andes mints and mint oreos for a mint chip bar.
• Swap out the chocolate chip cookie dough for sugar cookies.
• If you really want to accentuate the chocolate flavor, add a teaspoon of espresso powder to the brownie recipe. This will enhance the chocolate-y flavor. I use this in all my chocolate cake recipes.
• Skip the chocolate ganache and use a cream cheese frosting garnished with chocolate nonpareils or candy canes instead!

CHOCOLATE PEPPERMINT BROOKIES FAQS

How do you get smooth clean brownie cuts?

For the cleanest slices, chill the finished brookies or brownies thoroughly, then use a warm knife to slice them. You can run the knife blade under hot water and wipe it dry with a kitchen towel between each cut.

Why do you use cold eggs when making homemade brownies?

This is probably one of the only baking related recipes that suggests using cold eggs. The reason for this is when you are making homemade brownies, you heat up the butter/sugar mixture. Despite allowing it to cool for a few minutes, the eggs could begin the cooking process when added if the mixture is still too hot. By using cold eggs, it brings the temperature of the butter/sugar mixture down and reduces the chances of cooking.

MORE HOLIDAY COOKIE RECIPES WE THINK YOU'LL LOVE

• No-Bake Oreo Christmas Cookies
• Soft Christmas Sugar Cookies
• Pecan Caramel Cookie Cups

Enjoy the original photos that were posted with this recipe back in 2015!