April 26, 2019

Pretzel Bars

Posted by HI Cookery under 04 April | Tags: , , |
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Pretzel Bars

April 26: National Pretzel Day

Here is a literal twist for a recipe on National Pretzel Day. Instead of serving the salty snacks, sweeten the celebration by making peanut buttery chocolate pretzel bars. This quick snack only has five ingredients and does not require baking. Pretzel bars are a delicious indulgence in observance of this fun food holiday!

Recipe

(Adapted from the Food Network)

Ingredients

  • 2 cups pretzels chips or rods, crushed
  • 1 ½ sticks (12 tablespoons) butter, melted
  • 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
  • 1 ¼ cup creamy peanut butter, divided use
  • 1 ½ cups chocolate chips

Directions

In a zipper top bag, place the pretzels. Roll and crush them into a fine powder. Combine in a bowl with the sugar. Melt the butter.

Mix in the melted butter into the pretzel-sugar mixture. Add ONE cup peanut butter and stir until moistened and it comes together. Press into an ungreased 8×8-inch square pan.

In a separate bowl, melt the chocolate chips the remaining ¼ cup of peanut butter by microwaving in 30-second intervals. Stir until melted and smooth. Pour over the pretzel mixture and spread out the top with a spatula. Refrigerate for an hour to set the chocolate. Cut into squares.  Yield: 16 squares.

Notes

 

April 26, 2012

Chocolate Pretzel Cookies

Posted by HI Cookery under 04 April | Tags: , , , , |
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Chocolate Pretzel Cookies

Chocolate Pretzel Cookies

April 26: National Pretzel Day

We tend to associate pretzels with plane food. But the airlines are getting so stingy nowadays that sometimes only beverages are served, if at all! That is okay as we can do without the salty snacks. A homemade alternative, such as chocolate pretzel cookies, would suffice! They are perfect for passengers on long flights. They look just like the hard pretzel snacks but with a sweet twist—literally—in that the salt is actually sugar on the surface! Try these treats for traveling and prepare chocolate pretzel cookies for National Pretzel Day.

Recipe

(Adapted from Martha Stewart)

Ingredients

  • ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 teaspoon instant espresso or coffee powder (we used Muvaldi brand instant Kona coffee)
  • 3 tablespoons boiling water
  • ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • ½ teaspoon coarse salt (we used Hawaiian sea salt)
  • 1 egg
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 egg yolk mixed with 1 teaspoon water
  • sanding sugar (we used Wilton brand white sparkling sugar)

Directions

Combine the cocoa and espresso/coffee powders with the boiling water in a small bowl. In a mixing bowl, cream the butter with the sugar. Add the vanilla and coarse salt.

Chocolate Pretzel Cookies

Beat in the egg. Stir in the cocoa-coffee mixture. Gradually add the flour until a smooth dough is formed. Place on a plastic wrap and flatten out into a disc. Cover and refrigerate for half an hour. Pinch out 24 balls from the dough.

Chocolate Pretzel Cookies

Roll out a ball into a foot-long rope. Turn it up into a “U” shape. Twist down and overlap into a pretzel shape.

Chocolate Pretzel Cookies

Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Continue making the rest of the cookies, spacing them about an inch apart. Brush each pretzel cookie with egg wash. Sprinkle sanding sugar. Bake in a preheated oven at 325 degrees F for 30 minutes, rotating the baking sheets halfway through cooking time. Remove from the oven and let cool on the sheets for about 10 minutes. Peel the cookies from the parchment paper and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Chocolate Pretzel Cookies

Notes

  • Danke (thanks) to Lisa L. for the delicate white embroidered apron from Germany on which the chocolate pretzel cookies are displayed in the final food photo above.
  • Prepare these pretzels for a party—German style! These chocolate pretzel cookies make a delicious Deutsch-inspired dessert for Oktoberfest.