Day 12: Pretzel Turtles

Turtles are a very popular candy that my mom and I love. A few years ago, we found a recipe for pretzel turtles that looked absolutely delicious so we tried it out. It was made of pretzels, a dove caramel chocolate, and a pecan. They were a hit but we always found them to be extremely messy and they didn't look very pretty which is an important factor to food (duh!). We made them for years because they tasted so good but we were always disappointed in how they appeared. A week or so ago, we found a recipe on Ree Drummond's blog for pretzel turtles that looked 10x prettier than the ones we made and they looked pretty simple to make. So today, we tried making Ree's pretzel turtles. We weren't sure what to expect since we have never made them before but they turned out pretty well. Although they were much more laborious to make than the others.

Here's how you make them!

Adapted from Ree Drummond's Pretzel Turtles:

Pretzel Turtles-

24 whole mini-pretzel twists (we used pretzel waffles)
24 whole individually wrapped caramel squares, unwrapped
8 ounces milk chocolate, melted
24 whole pecan halves

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place the pecan halves in a single layer on a baking sheet and put in oven for 5-6 minutes until they're lightly toasted. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Arrange pretzels neatly on the pan, then top each pretzel with an unwrapped caramel. Place the pan into the oven for 4-5 minutes or until the caramels have softened (not melted). Gently press a pecan half onto each caramel, just enough for the caramel to fill the pretzel. Set them aside to cool completely. Meanwhile, melt the chocolate. When the pretzel/caramels are cooled, remove from baking sheet. Spoon small dollops of chocolate all over the baking sheet, then lightly drop each pretzel onto the middle of each dollop (make sure they are centered). Allow them to cool completely before serving.

They look gorgeous. We drizzled the tops with white chocolate to make it just a little prettier and more "holidayish".

Although they look really good, I have to say they don't compare to the other pretzel turtles we make. They have a great flavor but the texture of the caramels are too chewy while the chocolate is too soft, making it difficult to enjoy the flavor of the candy. Sorry Ree, but I think we'll probably stick with our turtles next year, although yours truly are beautiful. Thanks for reading and I'll see you tomorrow!