Vanilla or Peppermint Buttercream

Vanilla or Peppermint Buttercream

Cream the butter until soft.

Add the sugar and then the milk and extract. Cream till soft. Spread on cool cupcakes.

Note: If you cannot decide, make to small sample portions. I found most people preferred the vanilla buttercream over the peppermint

Peppermint Bark

Break up peppermint candy into little shards. Break or chop up chocolate and place in a microwave safe container or double boiler pot.

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler, or melt in your microwave. Careful to not scorch the chocolate my checking and mixing every 30 seconds. Pour out onto a cookie sheet lined with wax paper and spread out. Sprinkle the candy shards on and gently press them in.

Let it sit and cool in the fridge or freezer. Break apart and eat. The candy may melt and sweat a bit, so you want to keep the bark cold.

Note: As always with chocolate, quality really does make all the difference. Good quality can be a bit steep, but it's worth it. (Hence, why I do not make chocolate cupcakes often.) Do yourself a favor and shell out the extra couple of bucks.