These 3-ingredient Peppermint Bark Pretzels start with crunchy & salty pretzels, are topped with softened peppermint white chocolate kisses, and finished with a chocolate candy topping. These addicting little treats taste like peppermint bark and take minutes to make!
Love all things peppermint bark? Try our homemade peppermint bark or these favorite peppermint bark cookies next!
Peppermint Bark Pretzels
After working through the testing of these Peppermint Rice Krispie Treats, I had a good amount of chocolate candy cane kisses leftover. While I love those candies, and could eat more than my fair share in a sitting, I wanted to put them to use in another easy treat.
So I combined my love for this turtle candy and peppermint bark to make a sweet and salty inspired treat. These little pretzel bites have the peppermint and chocolate combo that makes peppermint bark so addicting plus they’ve got a delightful crunchy & salty addition with the pretzel base.
Peppermint Bark Pretzels Ingredients
Only 3 ingredients, plus one optional one for this holiday treat!
- Snap Pretzels. While pretzel twists will work, I’ve always had the best results with snap pretzels. They hold in all of the chocolate topping nicely. I don’t recommend the butter flavored snap pretzels, they detract from the peppermint flavor.
- Candy Cane Kisses. These kisses have a smooth white creme with tiny bits of crunchy peppermint candy.
- M&Ms. Grab regular or holiday colored M&Ms to top these peppermint bark pretzels with. I typically pick out just the red, but add in some green for more Christmas coloring.
- Optional: crushed peppermint. If you’d like even more peppermint flavor, sprinkle on some crushed peppermint before the white chocolate candy cane kisses harden. Use either peppermint crunch sprinkles or candy canes that have been finely crushed.
Quick Tip
I’ve found the easiest way to evenly crush candy canes is with a mini food processor. I like this one in particular. A small powerful blender also works. Alternatively, add the unwrapped peppermint candies to a large plastic bag (or two; the peppermint has a tendency to rip through plastic bags as it is crushed), seal the bag without air in it, and then crush with a rolling pin or meat mallet until fine crumbs are formed.
Peppermint Bark Pretzels Tips
- Line pans: Make sure to use parchment paper or a Silpat liner to prepare the pans before adding the pretzels. This will ensure the candies come up nicely once the chocolate has solidified.
- Watch carefully: Watch the candy cane kisses while they’re in the oven; if they bake too long, they’ll get too melty and will end up too hard (and can even get crumbly) once they’re cooled.
- Embrace the less-than-perfect appearance. The candy cane kisses spread quite a bit once they’re baked and don’t necessarily spread evenly over the pretzel. While they won’t all look amazing, they’ll all taste fantastic! (Baking for shorter amounts of time or at a lower oven temperature won’t melt the chocolate enough to allow for the M&Ms to be pressed in enough).
- Work quickly: Press the M&Ms in quickly before the candy cane kisses harden too much.
More holiday treats
- Peppermint Bark Muddy Buddies with chopped up peppermint bark candies
- Salted Caramel Cookies with homemade (easy) caramel sauce
- Christmas Snack Mix with red & green candies
- No Bake Peppermint Cheesecake with a chocolate cookie crust
- Honeycomb Candy with a chocolate topping
Peppermint Bark Pretzels
Ingredients
- 30 Snap pretzels
- 30 unwrapped Candy Cane Kisses (Hershey's makes these)
- 30 M&M candies
- Optional: 1 candy cane, finely crushed (See Note 1)
Instructions
- PREP: Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Line one large, or two smaller, sheet pans with a silpat liner or parchment paper (don't skip lining the pan!)
- BAKE: Lay the pretzels out on the sheet pan. Place an unwrapped candy cane kiss on top of each pretzel. Bake for 3-4 minutes (See Note 2) or until the chocolates are soft but not melted.
- M&M: Immediately out of the oven, press an M&M on the top of each candy cane kiss. If desired, sprinkle with crushed peppermint while the chocolate is still melted.
- ALLOW TO SET UP: Let candies stand at room temperature for about 1 hour or until chocolate is hardened and candies can easily be picked up from the tray (place in the fridge to speed up the process; we actually like these best chilled and straight from the fridge!)
Video
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
These are easy to do and so good. Wondering if ok to make ahead and freeze?
Do these store well. I was thinking of making them for Christmas and giving some as gifts. Peppermint Bark Pretzels