Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, and I’m already thinking about what treats to make for my family and friends. I wanted to create something that was both easy and delicious, and that’s when I came up with these homemade chocolate-covered pretzels. They’re the perfect combination of sweet and salty, and they’re so easy to make that even your favorite littles can help out.
Some of you reading today may be new, so let me introduce myself! My name is Kim and I’m so glad you’re joining me at my Cottage in the Mitten! I live in the beautiful four season state of Michigan. I’m passionate about my faith, family, a good cup of tea and I love home decor! Another tidbit about me, I make blankets for a cause and I would love for you to read all about that in my post The Journey.
“All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt.” —Charles M. Schulz
The Story of Valentine’s Day
Valentine’s Day can also be referred to St. Valentine’s Day or the Feast of St. Valentine. It’s always celebrated on February 14th. It was originally celebrated as a Christian feast day which honored one early Christian martyr named St. Valentine. Over the years, it has become a significant cultural, religious, and commercial celebration of love and romance all over the world.
A Touch of Nostalgia: Remembering Past Valentine’s Day Fun
When my sons were young, I was big into decorating & baking for Valentine’s Day. Heck, I even served heart shaped pizza! Now that they are out of the house, I have toned down what I do for the heart holiday.
However, I still use a few holiday touches and of course, chocolate is always necessary!
Speaking of chocolate, on to how to make chocolate covered pretzel rods. They are super easy and fun to make! There is no baking involved and I promise everyone will love them!
Gather Your Supplies
The ingredients are few and you’ll be happy to see that no special kitchen tools are needed. I’m guessing many of you will already have some of the ingredients on hand.
You will also need one sheet of wax or parchment paper and a cooling rack to lay the pretzels on after they are dipped in chocolate. I lay the wax paper under the cooling rack so you can sprinkle the pretzels directly on the cooling rack. Any access will fall onto the wax paper.
Melting Chocolate & Dipping
I suggest that you use chocolates of your choice. For this recipe, I used vanilla almond bark, chocolate chips and strawberry candy melts. I did so because it’s what I already had in my pantry.
The most important tip…Make sure that you melt the chocolate you decide to use, according to the package directions. Typically, 50% power works best. Melt for about a minute, take it out, stir and repeat the process until it is the right consistency.
I melt all of the different chocolates I am going to use before I start dipping. If you prefer to melt one chocolate at a time and dip some of your pretzels, that works too.
When dipping the pretzels in the chocolate, I only dip one pretzel at a time. You may think that sounds time consuming but it really isn’t. Once your chocolate is melted, the dipping goes fast.
No need for bulky bowls! I melt everything in one and use a spoon to coat those pretzels like magic. Drip off the excess, then onto the cooling rack they go!
Sprinkle with Love
There are so many fun options out there to decorate with. The easiest is sprinkles. I had a multi set with all sorts of Valentine shapes and colors. If you can’t find something like that, red, pink and white sprinkles work just as well!
I decorate the pretzels while the chocolate is still soft. That being said, I dip 3 or 4 pretzels then I decorate them with sprinkles. If you dip anymore than that the chocolate will be too hard and the sprinkles will not adhere.
Repeat the process until you are finished. Once they are decorated, I transfer them to a piece of wax or parchment paper.
**Make sure you remove the pretzels from the cooling rack before they are completely dry. If you don’t, they will stick to the rack and break in half when you try to remove them.**
Easy & Sweet Valentine’s Day Treat
Ingredients
- Pretzel Rods
- Chocolate (your choice) Follow melting directions on package
- Sprinkles Red, Pink and White
Instructions
- Melt chocolate according to package directions. Do not over cook. I typically melt at 50% for a minute. Repeat the process until thoroughly melted.
- Dip pretzel rod into chocolate – one at a time. Let excess chocolate drip off and transfer to cooling rack. Dip 3 or 4 pretzels and then decorate with sprinkles. Repeat the process until all your pretzels are complete.
- Before the decorated pretzels are completely dry, transfer pretzels from cooling rack to wax or parchment paper.
Packaging & Gifting Ideas
These yummy treats aren’t just for your pleasure. They make amazing homemade Valentine’s Day gifts. Perfect for classroom parties or neighborhood treats, just place a few pretzel hearts in a clear cellophane bag, tie it with a red or pink ribbon, and attach a simple Valentine’s tag.
Enjoy Your Treats!
I hope you enjoyed this super easy homemade Valentine’s Day treat! These simple chocolate covered pretzels are more than a quick dessert, they’re made with a little bit of homemade love, too! What’s better than that?
From my Cottage to yours, Happy Valentine’s Day, my friends! See you next time!
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Hi Kim Pinned this easy and pretty treat! I am going to make these for my book club next month! laura in Colorado
Oh, thank you! Glad you like them! They are so easy and perfect for a book club gathering. Have fun!
What a cute sweet treat!
Thanks!
Kim these are so cute! I love a sweet and salty combo 💕 Pinned
Thanks, Cindy! 💛 I love sweet and salty too!
Kim, what a cute idea – and so easy. Wouldn’t these make a sweet Valentine’s Day gift idea.
Thanks, Carol! The perfect little treat!
Such a fun idea. My granddaughter would love this. Hugs to you.
They are fun to make, too! My granddaughter loved them!
These are such a fun idea to have for any party. I love to have these so people can snack away and they are wonderful to use as a coffee stirrer too.
Thanks, Marty! They were fun to make too! Happy Valentine’s Day!
Your pretzel sticks look so cute and delicious. It’s just the right amount of chocolate sweetness when you want something crunchy. Love the cute sprinkles too!
Thanks Michelle! Sweet and salty is the best!
Such a good reminder that we can make cookies with a Valentine’s theme instead of Christmas. These would be perfect on a charcuterie board. Pinned:)
Oh, that’s a great idea too! Happy Valentine’s Day, Lora!
I love this so much! You knocked it out of the park Kim. Pinned!
You’re always so encouraging! Thanks so much, Kim!!
These are so very pretty! I just love the different colors on them. They’d be so cute at a hot chocolate bar for winter!
Yes, that would be a great way to have them, too!
I’m so hungry…but also too tired to move off the couch!! Wish I had a couple of these right now!!
Wish I could drop some off for you!
Kim, I made chocolate covered spiders for Halloween and then some choc. pretzel rods with the leftover chocolate. Soooo good! A teacher I worked with in the past introduced me to them, then my daughter and I would make them for Christmas presents for her friends at high school.
Really fun to make! Thank you for the reminder as I can make some for students at school for our after-school Makers Space group.
Happy Valentine’s hugs,
Barb 🙂
Oh, I’m sure your after-school group would love them! Happy Valentine’s Day!
These are so cute, Kim. They would be great to make with the grandchildren.
Yes, I’m sure yours would love them!
One of my close friends has made these every Christmas… they are one of my fave desserts! Yours are so pretty, Kim… perfect for Valentine’s! Pinned!
Thanks Julie! They were fun to make! Your grands would love them!
These turned out so cute! Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Thank you!
Weren’t those the good ol’ days when the kids were little and we went all out to make them feel loved? I’ve only made these once and it was a Christmas years ago. I remember loving them though. Perfect amount of salty and sweet. Yours are so cute with the colors and sprinkles. We’ll need to try these again. Thank you for joining us. Hope your Valentine’s Day is special this year. pinned
They were good days!! Thank you so much for having me, Cindy! Such a fun group to share with!
Kim, your chocolate covered pretzels are so fun and festive! I love the combination of sweet and salty. My kids at school would love these. Thank you for sharing! Pinned!
Thank you, Lynne! Always such a fun treat!
Ahh chocolate! A favorite thing is dark chocolate. One of the important things I would take to an island, if given that challenge.
Love the quote and links here. Your Valentines pretzel rods look almost to good to eat.
Haha! That’s awesome! I don’t know what I would take!
These are almost too pretty and festive to eat, I love them! I can’t wait to try this over the weekend and to share them on my Friday Faves post today. They’re the perfect way to celebrate the season. Hope you have lots of fun celebrating, CoCo
Thank you so much for the share, CoCo! Happy Valentine’s Day!
Great tips on the pretzels. I love making them.
Thank you, MaryKay! Easy and yummy!
I love dipped chocolate pretzels especially for Valentine’s day. I make some too and my grandkids love them! Thanks for linking up at my linky party 🙂
Hugs, Karin
Karin, my grands love them too! They are fun to make together. Have a great week!