We all associate the color green with St Patrick’s Day and these Grasshopper Bars are a perfect green color to celebrate this Irish national holiday. Traditionally a grasshopper is an after dinner cocktail which is sweet, green and mint-flavored. These grasshopper bars take the color and flavor of the traditional cocktail and layer it into delicious bars.
It really is easy to make – the most difficult thing is waiting for the individual layers to cool! The crust is made with chocolate wafer cookies and butter. The middle layer is the green peppermint mixture made by heating marshmallows in a saucepan with milk. Once the marshmallow mixture cools to room temperature, beat in cream until stiff peaks form. Finally the top layer is a chocolate ganache made with cream and melted chocolate chunks.
To make Grasshopper Bars, you will need the following ingredients:
Heat ½ cup of milk in a saucepan over medium heat until hot but not boiling. Stir in 3 cups marshmallows and 2 tablespoons butter and keep stirring until it melts. Stir in 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 2 teaspoons peppermint extract, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, and 6 - 8 drops liquid green food coloring if using. Remove from heat. Let the mixture cool in the saucepan until it reaches room temperature.
Line a 7x10-inch baking pan with parchment paper. Leave a 2 inch overhang on 2 of the sides to make it easy to remove.
Place cookies in a food processor and pulse to create fine crumbs. Add 6 tablespoons of butter and pulse until fully combined. Press the crust evenly into the bottom of the prepared baking pan. Place in the refrigerator.
When the marshmallow mixture has cooled, fold in 2 tablespoons of cream into the mixture to loosen it. Using an electric mixer, beat one cup of whipped cream until stiff peaks form. Gently fold in whipped cream into marshmallow mixture.
Spread the marshmallow mixture over the top of the chilled crust and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, until set.
Heat 1/2 cup of cream in a small pot over medium heat. When it is hot, but not boiling, remove from the heat and stir in 6 ounces of finely chopped chocolate. Stir until the chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is smooth.
Spread the topping over the marshmallow mixture and chill in the refrigerator until set.
Chop into bars and serve on St Patrick's Day!
These Grasshopper Bars are a perfect green color to celebrate St Patrick’s Day. Try them out this year and make sure you tag your green baking photos with #cookmerecipes.
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