I love cooking and baking during any season, but especially the holiday season. Sugar cookies, chocolate chip cookies, oatmeal cookies, and fudge wrapped up in pretty boxes are my go-to gifts for people with whom I work closely. One of my ideas of heaven is when I can sit in the dark admiring the tree after everyone has gone to bed while the smell of peppermint and brown sugar floats through the house. I also really love saving time.

If you're in need of a quick no-bake holiday recipe that's going to impress, this post is for you. My new go-to recipe is "Shortcut Peppermint Bark Cookies!"

My version is an adaptation from The Pioneer Woman, and you can check out her original recipe here. I've only tweaked it a little bit, but it made a world of difference. Here's the recipe.

Shortcut Peppermint Bark Cookies

30 Oreos

20 ounces of White Chocolate Chips

2 tbsp Vegetable Oil

1/2 tsp Peppermint Extract

Mint flavored sprinkles, like these.

Melt the white chocolate chips in a double-boiler. If you don't have one, pop a metal bowl over a pot filled with maybe an inch or two of simmering water. When you dump the chips in the bowl add 1 tbsp vegetable oil while stirring. As they melt, add in the other tbsp and continue to stir with a rubber spatula. The vegetable oil emulsifies the white chocolate, which is notoriously difficult to melt because it overcooks easily and gets all lumpy. Add in the peppermint extract and stir, then start an assembly line. I found that a fork along with a baking sheet covered with parchment paper worked best. I just tossed an Oreo in the melted white chocolate, flipped it once, fished it out with the fork, and jiggled it a little bit so the excess chocolate would slide away. I placed the now enrobed Oreo on the baking sheet lined with parchment and sprinkled some little candy cane sprinkles on top, as a hint of what is to come.

There you have it! Let me know if you give this a try in the comments. I hope you love it as much as I have.

Onward!

Kathryn