Peppermint Patties

Peppermint Patties are a classic holiday confection, the intense minty flavor enrobed in a glossy, rich semi-sweet chocolate is a refreshing delight to the palate. Peppermint patties make a wonderful addition to a dessert buffet, or can be packaged up smartly to give as gifts.

You have to love a confection which requires only 4 ingredients, the only catch to this recipe is that the “patties” need to be made the day before and allowed to dry before they are dipped in chocolate.

Ingredients
yield 15 dozen 1 inch patties

7 cups powdered sugar
3 egg whites
3 teaspoons peppermint extract
1 pound semi-sweet chocolate (we prefer Guittard, Callebaut or Scharffenberger)

Whip the egg whites on high until frothy. Sift the powdered sugar into a mixing bowl. Add the frothy eggs and stir them together. Sprinkle in the peppermint extract. Stir mix together. Dust a work surface with powdered sugar (we like to work on a Silpat for easy clean-up). Knead the dough until it becomes stiff and glossy.

Dust the ball of dough with more powdered sugar and roll it out with a rolling pin until it is about 1/4 inch thick.

Use a small canape cutter (we used a 1″ scalloped circle) to cut out shapes. Place the shapes on a cookie rack and allow to dry overnight.

Once dry, melt the chocolate over a double boiler. For tips on melting or tempering chocolate click here.

Drop a circle into the melted chocolate, and turn it over to coat both sides using a fork. Lift the circle from the chocolate and tap the fork against the edge of the bowl to remove any excess chocolate.

Place the circle on a silicone mat and allow the chocolate to harden and repeat — don’t worry, it goes quickly!!

If the chocolate doesn’t harden within 1/2 hour, the chocolates may need to be moved to a cooler room.

What a refreshing addition to a dessert buffet.

Another favorite dessert we like to make this time of year are Pavlova’s, meringues, crispy on the outside, chewy within, topped with whipped cream and sprinkled with berries or pomegrante jewels.

We’ve baked a batch in regal looking cupcake crowns for a dessert buffet, they should be easy to serve (we dusted the cups with a little flour). A couple dozen more will travel to Christmas Eve dinner with us in an airtight container, where we will whip the cream and serve them for dessert.