Dark Chocolate Peppermint Cups

Up next for 12 Days of Treats are these Dark Chocolate Peppermint Cups! Yep, just like a peanut butter cup but filled with the most dreamy peppermint cream. Think like an Oreo or, even better, like Trader Joe’s Candy Cane Joe-Joe’s. I have eaten more Candy Cane Joe-Joe’s than I’ll ever admit. Ever.

Believe it or not, you can have these Dark Chocolate Peppermint Cups done in under an hour (an hour!), including chill time for the chocolate and the filling. Have everything out and ready and you’ll be done in no time. I don’t know if you’re catching the vibe of my holiday treats thus far, but everything is pretty quick, easy and no fuss. Which is how I’m feeling about everything holiday as I’ve done zero shopping and still don’t have a tree. Really want to remedy that this week. Wish this for me.

This weekend, both Amisha and I are going to share all of our holiday sweet treats styled in cookie boxes. We tried to make it so that we could shoot all of our cookies together but alas, I couldn’t swing a trip up to San Francisco. Next year this is happening…we’ve already been talking about it. This weekend I will also share some tips for gifting cookies and treats and sweet stuff, so keep your eyes open for that!

Without further ado, let’s get our 12 Days of Sweet Treats on…

12 Days of Sweet Treats with the lovely Amisha (@thejamlab / thejamlab.co)

1. Five-Spice Snickerdoodles
2. Peppermint Bark Cookie Bars
3. Spiced Butterscotch Walnut Fudge
4. Dark Chocolate Peppermint Cups
5. Rose Marshmallow Chai Marsala Cookies
6. Chocolate Peppermint Olive Oil Skillet Cookie
7. Woodland Deer Macarons with a Spiced Amaretto Salted Caramel Buttercream
8. Burnt Sugar Muscovado Truffles
9. Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies with Bailey’s Buttercream
10. Espresso Chocolate Chip Cookies
11. Raspberry Hazelnut Linzer Cookie With A Cocoa Hazelnut Praline Buttercream
12. Dulce De Leche Baci Kisses
13. Thandai Thumbprint Cookies with Pear and Spice Jam Buttercream

See my full Holiday Cookie Box and Amisha’s here!!! Have fun!! xo

Before We Get Started

• CHOCOLATE. You can use either semi-sweet or a darker, less sweet chocolate, depending on your taste. You’re going to place 1 tablespoon of chocolate in the bottom of the cupcake paper and then set it in the fridge for 15-ish minutes to set. So there’s going to be some sit-around-and-wait time for the chocolate. I find when I just keep the chocolate bowl over the pot of warm water (with the burner turned off), the chocolate stays liquid enough for the whole procedure. Stir it periodically to keep it fluid. If it starts to firm up a bit, turn the burner back on low to loosen it up a bit.
• PEPPERMINT. You can use those cute round peppermint candies or candy canes for this. Depending on what candy cane you use, your filling will look more or less pink. I used these Hammond Candy Canes for this and it turned out quite pink (and I quite liked it). But those candy canes are a bit pricey, so I typically use these instead. You can get these latter candies year round making this a perfect January-to-December treat, as it should be.
• SHORTENING. I use the shortening in both the chocolate and the filling. It’s great for the chocolate as it keeps it soft…I don’t want it crisp in these. For the filling it’s great as it lends a bit of an Oreo-filling vibe which I love so. I have seen people sub in some coconut oil, in a one-to-one ratio, in both the filling and the outer chocolate shell. 
• LINERS. Use regular muffin liners for these. Prior to serving, you can trim the the sides of the liner down a bit so it looks like a more traditional peanut butter cup situation. You might be tempted to trim the liners before you make the cups and let me just tell you, it doesn’t work. The futzing with the liner will make the creases become less uniformed and un-crisp. I don’t know if ‘un-crisp’ is a word…but it works here and we’re committing to it.
• TEMPERING. There is nothing tempered here because tempering drives me insane. But more importantly, we don’t want the chocolate to have any snap. We stash them in the fridge and they’ll last for several weeks in an air-tight container. To serve, I like them after 10-15 minutes of time at room temperature. 
• SHIPPING. This is not an ideal cookie to ship as they’re happier when stored chilled.
• FLAIR. So many options for flourish on these beauties. I usually put crushed peppermint candies over the tops but I have to say, I like the sprinkles. All of the sprinkles featured here are from Williams-Sonoma (not sponsored ;)). They’re from this holiday sprinkle kit here.

Let’s make some delicious Chocolate Peppermint Cups, shall we?

Dark Chocolate Peppermint Cups

A cool, peppermint Oreo-like filling laced with crunchy bits of peppermint candy is encased in dark chocolate — a holiday party in your mouth!

5 from 2 reviews

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Course: Dessert

Keyword: Chocolate, Peppermint, Dessert, Baking

Servings: 12 Cups

Author: Rebecca Firth

Ingredients

For the Chocolate

• 2 ½ cups (300 g) dark chocolate, coarsely chopped 
• 3 tablespoons (39 g) vegetable shortening
• 2 tablespoons (10 g) unsweetened dark Dutch-processed cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon (4 g) real vanilla extract
• 1/3 teaspoon (2 g) sea salt

For the Peppermint Filling

• 3/4 cup (98 g) powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter room temperature
• 2 tablespoons (26 g) vegetable shortening
• 4 teaspoons (20 g) milk
• 1/2 teaspoon (2 g) peppermint extract
• 2 tablespoons (16 g) finely crushed peppermint candies

For the Garnish

• Additional crushed peppermint candies or sprinkles

Instructions

• In a regular size muffin tin, place 12 fluted muffin liners.
• In a medium, heat-safe bowl add the chocolate, shortening, cocoa powder, vanilla and sea salt and set over a medium saucepan of simmering water. Do not let the bowl touch the water or let the water come to a boil. Stir frequently until melted and smooth and then turn off the heat. Fill each muffin liner with 1 tablespoon of melted chocolate and place the muffin tin in the fridge for at least 20 minutes to set up.
• In a small bowl, thoroughly blend together the powdered sugar, butter, shortening, milk and peppermint until smooth. Stir in the crushed peppermint candies until evenly distributed and set the bowl in the freezer to firm a bit. Once chilled through, roll 1 heaping teaspoon of the peppermint filling into a ball and press down to form a flat disc. Place one disc on top of the chocolate in the center of each muffin liner and then cover with an additional 1 tablespoon of melted chocolate. Tap the muffin tin on the counter to smooth the chocolate over the top. Set in the fridge for 4 minutes. Once the chocolate is not quite set (but firmed up a bit) sprinkle each cup with either crushed peppermint candy or sprinkles. Place in the fridge to firm up and set out for 5-10 minutes prior to serving.

Thanks for baking with me! Please rate + comment this recipe and tag me on social @displacedhousewife #displacedhousewife so I can see your beautiful treats! xo