You will never want to go back to store bought once you've tried these Homemade Peppermint Patties! They have a creamy peppermint center that's chilled then dipped into a rich, melted chocolate. They're easy to make and are absolutely delicious!

Ingredients Needed

• Powdered Sugar. You'll need 1, 1 pound box or 3 ¾ cup. If measuring by the cup instead of a scale, make sure it's firmly packed. Set aside some extra powdered sugar for coating the rolling pin, wax paper, and circle cookie cutter as well.
• Unsalted Butter. Only 3 tablespoons are needed, but make sure it's softened to room temperature. This will help make it easier to blend in with the other ingredients.
• Evaporated Milk. Not to be confused with heavy cream or sweetened condensed milk. ¼ cup is needed. I used a 4 ounce can of evaporated milk—the smallest I could find—so with the remaining amount, I chose to make another batch of peppermint patties.
• Peppermint Extract. I used McCormick's brand, but use what you're able to find. 2 teaspoons are needed.
• Vanilla Extract. Just a ½ teaspoons needed to help round out the peppermint and chocolate.
• Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips. You'll needed 1, 12 ounce bag. I don't recommend using milk chocolate chips as a substitute.
• Paraffin Wax. Only ½ square is needed. This does a fabulous job of thinning the chocolate, adding some shine after the melted chocolate has set, and preventing the chocolate from melting if the peppermint patties are left out at room temperature. I recommend keeping them chilled though.
• Unsweetened Cocoa Powder. I sprinkled some on top of each peppermint patty. It's totally optional.

Substitutions

Vegetable Shortening or Coconut Oil. I understand paraffin wax—also used with my Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Eggs—is not for everyone and can be a little harder to find in some areas. In its place you can use either 2 tablespoons of vegetable shortening or 2 tablespoons of coconut oil. Both will do a good job of thinning the chocolate and the coconut oil will help give it a little shine after the chocolate has set.

Recommended Tools

• Stand Mixer or Hand Mixer
• Spatulas
• Rolling Pin
• Forks or Candy Dipping Tools. The latter is nice to have, but quite honestly the forks do just as good of a job.
• Circle Cookie Cutter. Recommended size is ¼ inch.
• Baking Sheets. One for placing the cut out peppermint patty rounds and another for after they've been dipped in the melted chocolate.
• Wax Paper. Makes for removing the peppermint patty rounds and finished peppermint patties much easier!
• Paper Towels. Good for placing your candy dipping tools on or wiping them off.
• Paring Knife. For cutting off any excess hardened chocolate around the peppermint patties.

How to Make Homemade Peppermint Patties

Mix up the peppermint filling. A stand mixer is my preference for making the creamy peppermint filling. Beat together the powdered sugar and softened unsalted butter over low speed. Don't mix it any faster or you'll end up with powdered sugar everywhere! Add in the evaporated milk and the extracts.

Roll out then chill the peppermint patty filling. Generously sprinkle powdered sugar over a sheet of wax paper, then roll the filling out to your preferred thickness. My preference is ¼ inch thick. Chill the dough in the freezer for a minimum of one hour.

Cut out the rounds. You'll need a circle cookie cutter or something similar that can cut out the peppermint patty rounds. I found that using a 1.5 inch size circle cookie cutter works best. Mine are from a set of 10 Ateco circle cookie cutters. If you prefer, you can freeze the rounds for another 30 minutes in the freezer. This is super helpful for dipping them into the melted chocolate.

Melt the chocolate. I prefer to use a double boiler for this step, but a bain-marie is a very good substitute as well. Don't forget to add 1 - ½ inches of water to simmer in the bottom saucepan. If using the paraffin wax, melt this first then add in the chocolate chips. For the other substitutes, you can melt these at the same time as the chocolate.

Dip the peppermint patty rounds. Working as quickly as possible, with a fork or candy making tools, take a peppermint patty round and dip it in the melted chocolate. Lift up, then gently tap the fork on the edge of the double boiler a few times to allow any excess chocolate to drip back into the pan.

Carefully place it on a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Repeat until you've covered each peppermint patty round in the chocolate.

As a dip the peppermint patty rounds I keep the double boiler on a very low heat, stirring it every so often with a spatula.

What is a Bain-Marie?

A bain-marie is a french technique that uses gentle heat to melt or cook foods like chocolate or custard. It's also used to heat the granulated sugar and egg whites for a swiss meringue.

To create a bain-marie, bring 1 - 1 ½ inches of water to a simmer in a saucepan. Set a heatproof bowl, bigger than the mouth of the saucepan, over the simmering water. The bottom of the bowl should not touch the water.

Following the recipe below, place your wax into the bowl and melt over low heat. Once fully melted add in the chocolate and stir, using a spatula, until smooth and creamy.

If you're using vegetable shortening or coconut oil as a substitute, you can melt this together with the chocolate. Only the paraffin wax needs to be melted first.

Optional Circle Cookie Cutter Options

If you don't have circle cookie cutters, you can try using the top of a medicine bottle or you can roll the peppermint patty filling into 1 inch balls and flatten to about ¼ inch with the bottom of a glass.

Coat the bottom of the glass with some powdered sugar to prevent the round from sticking to the glass.

Helpful Tips for Working with Peppermint Patty Filling

Cold is key! Keeping the peppermint patty filling cold for as long as you can will help you throughout this process. Freezing the filling for a minimum of one hour will help when it comes time to cutting out the rounds.

Several hours or—my preference—overnight in the freezer is even better.

Freezing them again for about 30 minutes after you have cut out the rounds, is also helpful. While not required, it does help keep peppermint patty rounds from falling apart as you dip them into the hot, melted chocolate.

Use a non-stick surface. For rolling out the peppermint patty filling, having a non-stick surface underneath the wax paper will help everything from moving around too much. I like to use my Tovolo Mat for recipes like this. It's equally great for rolling out pie crust too!

Coat your tools! Generously sprinkle some powdered sugar on top of the wax paper and to the rolling pin which will help the peppermint patty filling from sticking to everything. It's also a good idea to coat your circle cutter with powdered sugar.

Prep your dipping station. Before dipping the peppermint patty rounds into the melted chocolate, make sure you have prepped your area. Doing so will allow you to work quickly through this part of the recipe. I place a baking sheet lined with wax paper to the side of where I'll be dipping my peppermint patty rounds into the chocolate. I also keep a few sheets of paper towels to place my forks onto or wipe them off.

I also prefer to keep my peppermint patty rounds in the freezer, pulling out only a few ahead of time as I go. If you take them all out at once, they'll start to warm up to room temperature which can lead to them falling apart on you in the melted chocolate. Not fun!

More Chocolate Treats to Enjoy!

• Chocolate Covered Cookie Dough Hearts
• Cookies and Cream Fudge
• Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookies
• Homemade Chocolate Truffles
• Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Hearts