Preheat your oven to 350º F. Grease an 8x8-inch baking dish with butter or oil of choice, then cover the bottom of the pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, add the gluten-free flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt and whisk everything together until combined. Set aside.
In a large bowl, mix together melted butter and granulated sugar with a hand mixer for 1-2 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs, vanilla, and peppermint extract and mix thoroughly.
Gradually add in the dry ingredients and egg mixture until just combined and no streaks of flour remain.
Pour brownie batter into the prepared 8x8-inch baking dish. Bake at 350ºF for 22-25 minutes or until the edges are completely set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with just a few crumbs. Let the cake mixture cool completely. (I recommend cooling the brownies at room temperature for 20 minutes, then placing them in your fridge to accelerate the cooling process.)
Mint Filling (see notes for buttercream alternative)
In a medium bowl, combine softened cream cheese and butter and mix until smooth and creamy. Stir in the milk and peppermint extract, then gradually mix in the powdered sugar and mix until smooth. Add any additional milk if you need to thin out your frosting.
Once the brownie/cake mixture is completely cool, spread the peppermint frosting on top of the brownies. Refrigerate the layered brownies for 30 minutes to one hour until cold.
Chocolate Topping
In a microwave safe bowl, add chocolate chips and butter. Melt in 30 second increments, stirring in between, until chocolate is completely melted. Whisk to combine. Pour over the peppermint buttercream and spread with a spatula. Allow chocolate to harden completely before cutting into bars and serving.
Pour the chocolate over the peppermint buttercream and spread it with a spatula. Allow the chocolate to harden completely before cutting it into bars and serving.
Notes
(1) Let each layer cool completely before cutting. (2) Clean off your knife with a towel in between cutting the squares to create clean picture-ready lines. (3) If your brand of gluten-free flour blend does not have xanthan gum in the mix, add 1/4 teaspoon of xanthan gum to the recipe. Bob's Red Mill's 1-to-1 gluten-free flour blend contains xanthan gum, so no need to add it.(4) Store the final mixture in the refrigerator and take them out just before serving. Store leftovers in a sealed container in the refrigerator.(5) Since there is cream cheese frosting in this recipe, you will need to keep any leftovers in the refrigerator.(6) Don't love cream cheese? Use this buttercream filling instead:Ingredients:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups powdered sugar
2 Tbsp milk
1 1/4 tsp peppermint extract
1-2 drops of green food coloring (gel), to get desired minty color
Directions:
Cream all the ingredients together in your standing mixer until smooth.
Spread over cooked and cooled brownies in lieu of the cream cheese filling.