Peppermint Patties

I'm wordless. Mainly because my mouth is, yet again, full of something that came out of my kitchen.

I've always been a fan of mint chocolate candy. My mother is partly to blame for this. While I was growing up in Finland she would buy After Eights for any occasion that was even slightly of any importance.

Then once I moved here, and the After Eights supply wasn't quite as bountiful, I moved on to Peppermint patties. But nowadays I don't enjoy spending money on store bought candy, only on pounds and pounds of butter and sugar. And this recipe gives me another reason to leave those shiny, individually wrapped peppermint patties on the store shelf and go home and whip up a nice stash of delectably fresh mint patties.

Note: I ended up with more patties than indicated on the recipe, and I could've used more chocolate coating. Next time I'll melt 4 cups of chocolate chips with 4 tablespoons of shortening. 

And those leftover patties that you may have (if you are lucky)? Use them for brownies by layering the patties on top of half of your brownie batter and then covering them with the rest of the batter. Simple but brilliant!

Homemade Peppermint Patties (from savorysweetlife.com)

(Makes around 32 patties)

1 can sweetened condensed milk

5 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted

1 Tablespoon peppermint extract

3 cups semisweet chocolate chips

3 Tablespoon shortening

1. Add condensed milk, 2 cups of powdered sugar, and peppermint extract to a large mixing bowl.  Mix everything on medium speed using the paddle attachment until all the ingredients are well incorporated. Add more powdered sugar, a half cup at a time, until the dough is pliable like firm modeling clay.

2. Roll 3/4″ balls of dough between the palms of the hands. Press each ball down slowly and set the flattened disk on a flat cutting board or plate.  Transfer peppermint disks to the freezer for no longer than 30 minutes.  

3. While the dough is chilling, temper the chocolate coating. Place chocolate chips in a microwavable bowl.  Melt the chocolate in 30 second increments, making sure to stir after each time until chocolate is smooth.  Stir in shortening to thin the chocolate.  

4. Remove patties from the freezer. Place a patty on the tines of the fork and dip in the chocolate until completely covered.  Allow excess chocolate to drip off the patty before setting each one on top of wax or parchment paper. 

5. Allow the chocolate coated peppermint patties to completely set up.  This can be done quicker by placing the patties in the refrigerator.  The peppermint patties are ready when they are dry to the touch.