101 Days of Christmas: Peppermint Chocolate Pretzel Treats

source: Mandi Ehman

To be honest, I find Christmas baking with my kids underfoot to be a bit stressful, especially when I’m trying to get a lot done very quickly; however, I loved Shaina’s tips for including kids in holiday baking. Another tip I would add to her list for is to choose easy recipes rather than one that has to be rolled or folded or decorated just so.

These peppermint chocolate pretzel treats are one of my very favorites for making with the girls. It helps to have some extra hands to help with unwrapping the Kisses and topping them with M&Ms anyway, and even our four-year-old could handle this one without any help (I’m sure our 2-year-old would have enjoyed helping too, but I was too afraid she would sneak a bite of these very-gluten, very-dairy treats and be in pain later!).

Ingredients:

• square or shaped pretzels with a tight grid
• Hershey Kisses, chocolate or peppermint
• Christmas M&Ms

Directions:

Preheat oven to 170 degrees F.

On a baking stone or cookie sheet, lay out pretzels. Unwrap Kisses and place one in the center of each pretzel.

Note: If you’re doing a mix of Kisses, you’ll want to make them in separate batches because they’ll melt at different speeds.

Bake for 5-7 minutes. Your Kisses will be shiny and should be soft enough that the M&Ms sink into them easily when pressed on top. (If they’re not soft enough, they won’t stick to the pretzel on the bottom. But if you let them get to soft, they’ll puddle. The good news is they’ll still taste good either way!)

Pull them out of the oven and quickly begin pressing M&Ms into the top of each one. The Kisses will be slightly melted, so expect this part to be a little messy for little ones.

Let cool completely.

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	Mandi Ehman is the founder and publisher behind Life Your Way as well as a wife and homeschooling mom to four beautiful girls. She lives with her family on a little slice of heaven in wild, wonderful West Virginia and loves coffee, chocolate, easy meals, beautiful things and minimalist spaces.