Tuesday, June 19, 2012

No Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Balls

As I said in my last post, I skipped baking for the second meeting of my book club. It was just not happening that week. Turned out I didn't have much time to bake for the 3rd meeting either. So I searched Pinterest to find something quick and easy. It didn't take me very long to stumble upon these Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Balls from Make Happy.


Just a few ingredients, no baking involved, and I had everything on hand? Sounds perfect!

I mashed up the pretzels:



Mixed up the "filling"




Made the balls:



Then attempted to dip them after they chilled in the fridge for awhile:




Finished product:






The Verdict:
I thought they were delish. I love, love, love the combo of peanut butter and chocolate. Throw in some salty pretzels too and I am in heaven. They were a bit heavy, so I don't think I could eat too many. They were also pretty ugly - I am a terrible dipper. I don't think I ever get the chocolate the right consistency.

Things to Note/Consider:
Follow the directions. I just dumped everything together and tried to mix it all. Apparently I was supposed to mix the brown sugar, butter, and peanut butter together first. That would have made life easier. Also, they have a tendency to melt if left out (and on your fingers). I think using candy melts might help that. The recipe is supposed to make 22 balls. I think I got less than that and I made them sort of small. Our book club is small, but if I was going to something bigger, I would definitely double the recipe.

Overall, I think I will be making them again. They were an easy dessert option that seemed to be well liked. Marisa even has a recipe that makes this in a bar form - perhaps I should try that since I suck at dipping. Anyone have any tips on how to make it come out a little better?


Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Balls
1 1/2 C pretzels
1/2 C creamy peanut butter
1 Tbsp butter, softened
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1/8 tsp salt
3 Tbsp powdered sugar
1 C semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • Crush pretzels into small bits
  • In a small bowl, combine peanut butter, butter, brown sugar and salt. Stir until all ingredients are completely blended and smooth.
  • Add pretzel bits to peanut butter mixture and mix thoroughly.
  • Add powdered sugar and, again, mix thoroughly
  • Prepare a chilling tray--a dinner plate covered with waxed paper works well.
  • Take about a teaspoon of the peanut butter pretzel mixture into your fingers and gently pat it into a ball with your fingertips. (The powdered sugar will make the peanut butter less sticky, but it's still too sticky to roll well, hence the patting.)
  • If the peanut butter starts sticking to your fingers, your fingers are too warm. Run your fingers under cold water for a minute to chill them, and begin rolling again.
  • Place the peanut butter balls onto the plate. When you have rolled all the balls, place the entire plate into the refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes.
  • After the peanut butter balls have chilled, prepare your chocolate. Pour the chocolate chips into a small microwaveable bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds and stir. If needed, microwave for another 10 seconds and stir again. Continue until the chips are completely melted, which means they stir easily into smooth, fluid chocolate with no lumps.
  • Place one peanut butter ball into the melted chocolate and gently roll it around with a fork until completely coated. Remove from the bowl with the fork and place back on the waxed paper plate. Repeat for all other balls.
  • Once all the peanut butter balls are coated in chocolate, return the plate to the refrigerator and chill another 30 minutes.

3 comments:

  1. When I dip cake bites, I stick a tooth pick in the cake pop. I dip it, then let the extra chocolate drip off then on a cooling rack covered in wax paper, with the tooth pick still in the pop, i stick the tooth pick through the wax paper and cooling rack and pull the tooth pick all the way out. It's a little tedious but works wonderfully. and the "ugly" part is on the bottom so they look smooth.I hope this makes sense... :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for the tip! How do you melt your chocolate? I try the microwave at 50% power in small intervals, but I think I always scald it. It always seems a bit thick. I am thinking maybe a double boiler might be better?

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  3. Oh man those look soooo good. Can you just ship me some?

    ReplyDelete

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