Sweet and salty chocolate covered pretzel rods are a fun and easy to make treat to snack or gift! Customize the toppings to any celebration from birthdays to holidays.
Other favorite Christmas treats include cornflake wreaths and graham cracker toffee.
Table of Contents
Popular Chocolate Covered Pretzel Rods
Beyond snacking, pretzels are in some of my favorite Christmas treat recipes, like Christmas pretzel hugs, rolo pretzel reindeer and rolo pretzel sandwiches.
These chocolate covered pretzel rods have been one of my favorite Christmas desserts ever since a neighbor would bring them over at the start of the holiday season when I was growing up.
The sweet chocolate paired with rich homemade caramels and salty pretzels is heavenly. They curb any sweet and salty cravings! Chocolate pretzel rods are fun to decorate and make great Christmas gifts for neighbors, teachers or friends.
Dipping Essentials
Chocolate
I’ve found that chocolate wafers work best when making this recipe. They’re easy to melt and give a super smooth finish. Plus the consistency on the pretzel is just right…not too thin or thick. I like to use both semi-sweet chocolate wafers and white chocolate wafers.
Caramel
This layer is optional, although I love adding it! It adds the perfect sweet and salty flavor. To make it easy, I used melted down Peters caramel, but you could make your own caramel as well using my microwave caramel recipe or homemade caramels. Werther’s also work great.
How to Make Chocolate Covered Pretzel Rods
- Dip in caramel (optional). Melt the caramels until smooth, then dip pretzels in the caramel about 2/3 the way.
- Dip in chocolate. Melt the chocolate wafers in a double broiler. Or melt in the microwave for 1 minute at 50% power (stir and cook additional 30 seconds if needed). Then dip the pretzel into the melted chocolate 2/3 the way. Lay dipped pretzel onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Add toppings. Immediately add the desired toppings, then let set completely.
Favorite Toppings
Don’t forget the best part: decorating with all your favorite toppings! My must-haves are mini M&M’s, sprinkles and colored chocolates. I love using the red Wilton melts for Christmas pretzels.
- Mini M&M’s
- Sprinkles
- Colored chocolates
- Nuts
- Crushed Oreo’s
- Coconut
- Toffee
- Crushed peppermint
- Mini chocolate chips
Storage
The great thing about these chocolate covered pretzel rods is that they will last for up to 2 weeks if stored in an airtight container or bag. They’re perfect to make a few days in advance if you know your upcoming schedule is going to be super busy.
Just make sure your container is closed or the bag is sealed tightly…no one likes stale pretzels!
Perfect for Gift Giving!
This treat makes a great neighbor gift! I always love to give a gift from the kitchen because I feel it’s a little more personal and thoughtful. And because…who doesn’t love chocolate?
Simply wrap the chocolate pretzel rods in a tall cellophane treat bags and tie with a ribbon. You can even add a cute Christmas tag for an extra special touch. So easy and festive!
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Chocolate Pretzel Rods
Ingredients
- 16 pretzel rods
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate wafers
- 1 cup white chocolate wafers
- 1 cup caramels , optional
Optional toppings: chopped nuts, mini m&m's, sprinkles, crushed oreos, coconut, toffee, etc.
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- If double dipping with caramel, melt the caramels down and then dip the pretzels in the caramel about 2/3 the way. Place on the baking sheet and allow to set. Then when ready to dip in chocolate melt the melting wafers in a double broiler or in the microwave for 1 minute at 50%. Stir and cook an additional 30 seconds if needed. Stir until smooth. Then dip the pretzel into the chocolate 2/3 the way.
- Lay chocolate covered pretzels onto the parchment paper. Add desired toppings immediately. Then allow to set.
Nutrition
Nutrition provided is an estimate. It will vary based on specific ingredients used.
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!
Categorized as: Candy + Fudge, Chocolate, Christmas, Desserts, No-Bake
Jamielyn Nye is the founder and recipe creator at I Heart Naptime. She is also the author of the I Heart Naptime Cookbook. Here you will find easy family-friendly recipes for every occasion.
What is the best way to store them?
I typically store them in a larger covered Tupperware (with layers of parchment paper in between).
You can purchase the tall narrow bags that fit the pretzels perfectly!
Do you immediately dip into chocolate after caramel or do you let the caramel dry first
I let the caramel dry first :)
How do you drizzle lines. What do you use?
Hi Linda! I just placed the melted chocolate in a zip top bag and then snipped the tip of the bag and drizzled chocolate across the tops :)
I had these somewhere where they had dipped them in caramel, rolled them in Rice Krispies
, and then dipped them in chocolate – divine!
Sounds delicious! I’m going to give that a try next time. Thanks for sharing!
Such a great idea to add a peanut butter layer!
We love making these for the holidays! I would definitely recommend doing the caramel layer! So good!
These are fantastic! Not only do they look amazing, but delicious!
These are such an awesome snack idea! They are delicious, cheap and easy to make!
My kids love making these for Christmas gifts! They are so easy and they always have so much fun making their own creations!
Love these so much!! They make great foodie gifts too!
I made these with my nephew and it was so much fun! I prepped everything and decorating was a blast.