Break Apart Christmas Tree Candy Bark Recipes

MELTING SNOWMAN BARK

Steps:

• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Put the white chocolate in a medium microwave-safe bowl and melt in the microwave at 50 percent power for 30 second intervals, stirring after each, until it is completely smooth.
• Melt the semisweet chocolate in a small bowl in the microwave at 50 percent power in 15 second intervals, stirring after each until it is completely smooth. Transfer to a piping bag with a small plain tip (#2 or #3). (Alternatively, transfer to a resealable plastic bag and snip off a corner.)
• Spoon 12 ovals of white chocolate onto the parchment for the melted snowman bodies, leaving several tablespoons of white chocolate behind in the bowl. Top each oval with a truffle for a head. (If the truffle has a flatter side, attach it facing up for the hat decoration option, so the hat will adhere. If you are making the earmuff option, place the more rounded side up.)
• For the hat decoration: Cut each licorice gumdrop in half crosswise. Lay the flat disc-shaped piece on a flat surface and use the heel of your hand to flatten it into a larger disc shape. Attach the other half of the licorice back onto each using the sticky sides to adhere to each other. Dip the bottom of the licorice candies in the reserved white chocolate and attach to the tops of the truffles for hats.
• For the earmuff decoration: Spread white chocolate on the rope licorice and attach to the truffles for earmuff headbands. Dot white chocolate onto the mini candy-coated chocolates and attach to the sides of the truffles to make the earmuffs.
• For the body and face decoration: Stick the pretzel pieces into the white chocolate for arms and arrange some of the mini candy-coated chocolates down the center for buttons. With scissors, cut the gummy belts in half lengthwise, trim the ends to make scarves and set aside.
• Spread a little white chocolate on the orange candies and attach for noses, holding in place until the chocolate hardens. Pipe the semisweet chocolate on for the eyes and mouth. Refrigerate until set, about 30 minutes.
• Wrap the gummy scarves around the snowmen and pinch to attach at the front. Serve immediately or keep refrigerated until ready to serve. Dust the melted snowmen with confectioners' sugar if desired.

CHEESE-STUFFED PEPPER CHRISTMAS TREE

Steps:

• For the popcorn garland: Thread 10 feet of unflavored, unwaxed dental floss through a sewing needle. Knot one end of the floss. Thread the needle through the softer part of each piece of popcorn, avoiding the harder shell. (Threading through the shell may cause the popcorn to break.) Slip off the needle and knot the other end of the floss to make a popcorn string.
• For the pepper garland: Poke a hole in one side of a pepper with a chopstick about 1/2 inch from the stem end, taking care not to pierce through the other side of the pepper. Twist the stick to slightly widen the hole. Repeat with the remaining peppers.
• Mix together the goat cheese, thyme, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl until combined. Transfer to a pastry bag fitted with an 1/8-inch round tip. Carefully pipe the cheese filling into each pepper through the hole; do not overstuff the peppers or they may split. Refrigerate until ready to use. (This step can be done a day ahead.)
• Separate the kale into small, medium and large leaves. Using the largest leaves, start at the bottom of a 24-by-6-inch Styrofoam cone and begin to cover the cone with the leaves stem-end up. Overlap each leaf slightly and secure with a toothpick through the widest part of the stem, leaving about 1/2 inch of the toothpick showing. Work your way up the cone in rows, going from the larger leaves to the smaller leaves and overlapping the leaves and rows slightly, until only about 1 row of the cone remains exposed. To make the last row, position the kale leaves stem-end down, forming the top of the tree and covering the tip of the cone. Cover any thin areas or exposed Styrofoam with the remaining leaves. Chill until ready to decorate.
• Cut twenty 18-inch-long pieces of narrow decorative ribbon. Tie each piece around the stem of a pepper in a secure knot.
• Wind a 12-foot-piece of wider decorative ribbon around the tree, starting at the bottom and working your way up. Attach a pepper to the wider ribbon on the tree using the narrow ribbon to tie a decorative bow, so the pepper dangles from the wider ribbon (it should be secure but also be easy to untie and remove). Continue with the remaining peppers, spacing them about 6 inches apart on the wider ribbon. As you're working, hook each pepper bow to a toothpick end for support, adding additional toothpicks if necessary, until the tree is covered on all sides with the peppers. Decorate with the popcorn strand. Carefully transfer to a gold foil-covered 12-inch cake plate.

MINTY CHRISTMAS TREE CUTOUT COOKIES

Steps:

• For the cookies: Whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Mix the mint and vanilla extracts with the egg in a small bowl with a fork.
• Beat together the butter, granulated sugar and confectioners' sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer on low speed until the butter has picked up the sugars, about 30 seconds. (If using an electric hand mixer, beat about 2 minutes.) Increase the speed to medium and beat, stopping halfway to scrape the bowl, until slightly creamy, about 1 minute (about 3 minutes with a hand mixer).
• Reduce the speed to low, slowly add the egg mixture and beat until combined. Add the flour mixture a heaping cup at a time in 2 additions, stopping a few times to scrape the bowl and beaters. (If using a hand mixer, increase the speed as the dough gets thicker to keep the beaters spinning.) Once all the flour is just incorporated, increase the speed to medium (higher with a hand mixer) and beat until the dough is very smooth, about 2 minutes (about 5 minutes with a hand mixer).
• Turn the dough out of the bowl and bring it together. Divide the dough into 2 even pieces, each about 11 ounces. Shape each piece into a 6-inch square and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate the dough for at least 3 hours and up to overnight.
• Remove one of the dough squares from the refrigerator and let soften until just pliable but still cool and firm, about 15 minutes. Position oven racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment.
• Dust a piece of parchment with flour. Dust the dough square with flour and roll it out on the parchment to a thickness of about 1/4 inch. Lift the dough occasionally by sliding a metal spatula or bench scraper underneath to make sure it isn't sticking to the parchment. Cut out Christmas trees with a 2-inch cutter as close together as possible and transfer them to the prepared baking sheets, leaving 1 inch between the trees. Gather together the scraps and roll and cut more cookies. Chill the cookies on the baking sheets in the freezer for 10 minutes before baking.
• Bake, rotating the baking sheets from front to back and top to bottom halfway through, until the cookies are light golden brown, 18 to 20 minutes. Cool the cookies about 5 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, remove the second dough square from the refrigerator to soften until just pliable but still cool and firm, about 15 minutes. Repeat the rolling, cutting, chilling and baking procedures with the second dough square.
• For the green royal icing: Combine the confectioners' sugar and meringue powder in a large bowl. Add 3 tablespoons water and beat with an electric mixer on low speed until the frosting thickens. The icing should be pure white and thick but not fluffy and bubbly. (If the frosting is overbeaten, it will get aerated, which makes it harder to work with. If this happens, let the frosting sit for a bit to settle, then use a rubber spatula to vigorously beat and smooth out the icing.) Add the green and red food coloring and beat until evenly distributed and the color is a deep hunter green. Put the icing in a resealable plastic bag and snip the corner to make a tiny opening (or put the icing in a piping bag with a 1/16-inch tip).
• To decorate: Pipe a dot of icing onto the top point of each tree. Stick a chocolate nonpareil candy on each dot. Pipe the icing onto the cookies in zigzags to make a tree design. Sprinkle white nonpareils around the icing as snow. Let the icing set at room temperature, at least 1 hour.

CANDY BARK

Steps:

• Line a baking sheet or pan with foil.
• Put the chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Bring a saucepan filled with an inch or so of water to a very slow simmer; set the bowl over, but not touching, the water, and stir with a rubber spatula. Just before the chocolate is completely melted, add the oil and stir to blend. Remove from the heat and stir vigorously until completely smooth. Set aside and let cool until just slightly warm, about 8 minutes
• Add all but a few pieces of the candy and quickly stir to combine. Spread the chocolate mixture on the prepared baking sheet so it's about 1/2 inch thick and the candy is coated. Scatter the remaining candy on top. Set aside at room temperature until firm, about 2 hours. Remove from the foil and break into pieces. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

CHOCOLATE TREE BARK

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
• Arrange crackers onto the prepared baking sheet.
• Stir butter and sugar together in a bowl until the sugar dissolves; drizzle over the crackers.
• Bake crackers in preheated oven until golden brown, about 10 minutes.
• Spread chocolate chips over the crackers to cover completely immediately after removing the baking sheet from the oven, allowing the residual heat to melt the chocolate. Sprinkle nuts over the chocolate layer before it re-solidifies.
• Cool the bark to room temperature. Once the chocolate is again firm, break the sheet into pieces to resemble tree bark.