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Dear friends,

You are going to love these creamy, crunchy, crunchy, chocolatey Chocolate Peanut Butter and Pretzel Bites!

Buckeyes are one of my favorite holiday treats. The only downside of these chocolate-dipped peanut butter-powdered sugar confections is that they’re very, very rich.

In an effort to figure out how to eat more Buckeyes in a single sitting, I wondered if adding crushed pretzels to the filling might add some salty crunch and cut the richness a bit. 

The Ideal Pretzel and Peanut Butter Filling

I wanted the filling to be both crispy and creamy, which required a great deal of tinkering and tasting. Clearly my devotion to serving you knows no bounds.

In the end, the perfect filling blend contained salted butter, brown sugar, creamy organic peanut butter, powdered sugar and pretzels crushed by hand in small pieces. 

For the coating I used a blend of semisweet chocolate chips and milk chocolate couverture. The mix made a coating with that satisfying snap! when you bite into it, and just the right balance of sweetness. 

If you like Reese’s peanut butter cups, you’ll love these crunchy Buckeyes! 

Could This Be My Ticket to Fame and Adoration?

With so many creative bloggers and cooks online, I wondered if anyone else had tried combining these flavors and ingredients.

Sure enough, a search revealed that none other than Martha Stewart posted a recipe for Peanut Butter Pretzel Candy in 2011.

Martha’s recipe intro calls for “leftover farm-stand pretzels,” an ingredient I confess I’ve never owned being the unsophisticate that I am. But I’m pretty sure if I ever got my hands on a farm-stand pretzel, there wouldn’t be any leftovers.

Shall we cook some chocolate pretzel peanut butter wonders?

Making the Chocolate Pretzel Peanut Butter Balls Recipe

The first step is to crush the pretzels. I put the pretzels in a ziplock bag and smack them with a rolling pin, a technique which is also helpful for dispersing pent-up aggression.

You can also pulse the pretzels in a food processor; you just want them to be in fairly small pieces without getting pulverized.

Reserve the crushed pretzels. In a medium bowl, combine the softened butter, peanut butter and vanilla.

After you stir it for a couple minutes, it will come together and be nice and creamy like this:

Add the powdered sugar and brown sugar.

It will seem too crumbly, but use your hands to knead it and eventually it will come together like this. 

Now add the crushed pretzels. 

The mixture will seem way too crumbly, but just knead it together and eventually it will look like this:

Roll the dough in 1-inch balls. I use a rounded teaspoon of dough and roll them between my hands. Arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet. 

Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight. Now comes the fun part. Melt the chocolate chips and chocolate coating. Stir together until smooth. Dip each ball in the chocolate. I use a fondue fork, but you can use a skewer or even a regular fork. 

Arrange the balls on parchment paper lined baking sheet. You can decorate the tops with sprinkles if. you like.

Or you can put some of the leftover chocolate in a small zip-lock baggie, cut off one corner and drizzle chocolate over the top like this:

Chocolate Pretzel Peanut Butter Wonders make a great holiday gift! 

Here’s the printable recipe: 

If you enjoy these Chocolate Pretzel Peanut Butter Balls, I’d be thrilled if you clicked the 5 little stars above and gave the recipe a 5-star rating.

If you use Pinterest to save and share recipes, here’s a handy pin:

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I love sharing your culinary creations. If you prepare Chocolate Pretzel Peanut Butter Wonders and post a photo, tag me on Instagram or Twitter at @theyoloblog or use #TheYOLOBlog hashtag.

How About You?

What have you been cooking and baking for the holidays? I’d love to hear what you’re creating in the kitchen. 

Best always,

P.S. For another sweet-salty chocolatey treat, you might enjoy these Brown Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies.

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