Looking for fun Halloween cookies to make with your kids this year? Here are a few favorites:
Autumn Spiced Fall Leaf Cookies
Twix Stuffed Chocolate Cookies
Happy Spooking!
Tag Archives: pretzels
Eleventh Annual Twelve Days of Christmas Cookies: Chocolate Caramel Pretzel Cookies
DAY 2: Chocolate Caramel Pretzel Cookies
A chocolate cookie loaded full of sweet and salty goodness: chocolate chips, pretzels, and pecans. All wrapped around a gooey caramel center.
Recipe adapted from Two Peas & Their Pod
RECIPE:
Chocolate Caramel Pretzel Cookies
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 ½ cups flour
¾ cup Dutch process cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
1 cup coarsely chopped pretzels
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans, optional
1 pkg (11 oz) caramel squares (about 24)
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla.
In a small mixing bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Gradually beat into butter/sugar mixture, until just mixed. Stir in pretzels, chocolate chips, and pecans.
Cut caramel squares in half and set aside.
Using a cookie scoop, place level scoops of dough on baking sheets, about 2” apart. Roll each scoop of dough around a caramel square half. Return to baking sheet.
Bake for 10 minutes; cookies will still look slightly underdone. Cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheets and then remove to wire racks to cool completely.
Makes about 4 dozen cookies.
Adapted from Two Peas & Their Pod
NoEmptyChairs.me
Chocolate Halloween Pretzels
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An alternate heading and photo I probably should have led with:
What Not To Do When You Move
In the spirit of putting away some extra food for a rainy day, I have a 5-gallon bucket full of chocolate chips (of various varieties). Shown above: what used to be a bag of Ghirardelli 60% Bittersweet Chips, Costco-sized bag. My favorite.
Don’t judge my food storage choices. When the zombie apocalypse hits, what do you really want to eat: cracked wheat porridge or chocolate?
Before moving last year, I did not think about the effects that a month of sitting in the back of a moving truck in June/July, would have on my precious bucket of chocolate chips. So instead of a bucket full of chocolate chips, I had a bucket full of chocolate bricks. I have finally made it through the last bag!
The struggle is real.
This is certainly a lemonade from lemons kind of first-world dilemma. We ended up with some fun chocolate dipped pretzels to share at a recent Fall Fest.
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Don’t want to bother remelting the chocolate block? It also makes a good paperweight.
Twelve Days of Christmas Cookies: Chocolate Covered Pretzels
DAY 5: Chocolate Covered Pretzels
It is usually the simplest treats that are my kids’ favorites. These chocolate covered pretzels definitely fall into that category. They are easy to make, and fun for kids to help with. Adding the sprinkles is a coveted job in our kitchen.
For easy dipping, pour melted chocolate into a tall narrow container, like a drinking glass, wide mouthed canning jar, or a Pyrex measuring cup. For easy cleanup, line your glass or jar with a Ziploc bag. Fold the top edge of the bag back over the lip of the glass. When you are done, just throw the bag away: no scrubbing chocolate out of the glass.
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RECIPE:
Chocolate Covered Pretzels
Pretzel Rods
Dipping chocolate: dark, white, and/or colored
Variety of sprinkles
Melt chocolates using a double boiler (or melt slowly in the microwave). For easy dipping, pour chocolate into a tall narrow container, like a drinking glass, wide mouthed canning jar, or a Pyrex measuring cup. (For easy cleanup, line your glass or jar with a Ziploc bag. Fold the top edge of the bag back over the lip of the cup) Use a spoon, if needed to coat about 2/3 of the pretzel rod with the chocolate.
Place dipped pretzel on a sheet of waxed paper. Drizzle with contrasting colors of chocolate, if desired (for easy drizzling, use a squeeze bottle, or a Ziploc bag with a hole poked in one corner). While chocolate is still wet, garnish with sprinkles. Let dry completely before storing.
NoEmptyChairs.me
Twelve (More) Days of Christmas Cookies: Turtle Pretzel Snaps
DAY 11: Technically, these are a candy, not a cookie, but they still make a great addition to any holiday cookie tray. Sweet & salty; crunch & chewy. A great combination of tastes and textures.
These candies are a simple, fun alternative to traditional Turtle Candies. They are also an easy treat to make with kids. They can do almost all of the work themselves.
The base of these treats is a Pretzel Snap: the square criss-crossed shaped pretzels that look kind of like a window pane. Place the pretzels in a single layer on a lined baking sheet. You can use a Silpat, parchment paper or foil to line the pan. Top each pretzel with half of a caramel. Instead of a caramel, you can also use a Rolo candy. I prefer the flavor of the plain caramel, topped with a bittersweet chocolate chip. Using plain caramels also allows me to make some “chocolate free” candies for Little A. But the Rolos do save you one step.
Bake the caramel topped pretzels for about 5-7 minutes, until caramels (or Rolos) are soft. Remove from oven and immediately top with a chocolate chip. I like the Ghirardelli bittersweet chips, for both the flavor and the fact that they are slightly bigger than normal semi-sweet chocolate chips. (If you are using Rolos, you don’t need to use any chocolate chips) The chocolate will melt by the time you have finished putting one on each caramel. Press one M&M or toasted pecan half into the soft chocolate. Let candies cool completely before moving from baking sheet. 
RECIPE:
Turtle Pretzel Snaps
Pretzel Snaps (criss-cross shaped)
Caramels or Rolos
Chocolate chips (if using plain caramels); I like the larger Ghirardelli bittersweet chips
Peanut M&Ms
Whole Pecans, toasted (optional)
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Lay pretzel snaps in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with a Silpat, parchment paper or foil. Cut caramels in half and place one half on each pretzel (Alternately, top each pretzel with a Rolo candy). Bake for 5-7 minutes, or until caramels are soft. Remove from oven and immediately top each caramel with one chocolate chip (omit chocolate chips when using Rolos). When chocolate is soft, press an M&M or pecan half into the chocolate. Let chocolate harden before moving to a serving plate.
NoEmptyChairs.me
TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS COOKIES (2010) RECAP:
DAY 1: Raspberry Crumb Bars
DAY 2: Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
DAY 3: Chocolate Nutella Cookies
DAY 4: Glazed Lemon Poppy Seed Cookies
DAY 5: Almond Macaroon Brownies
DAY 6: Trail Mix Cookies
DAY 7: Cream Cheese Cut-Out Cookies
DAY 8: Chocolate Revel Bars
DAY 9: Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl Cookies
DAY 10: Caramel Pecan Bars
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