From the Kitchen of Susan Wagener

Christmas Pretzel Reindeer

I use the Rival 18-Ounce Electric Gravy Boat Warmer to melt the chocolate chips. They don't make this any longer.

There is one similar called Deni 15501 Electric Gravy Boat with Warming Plate, White and sold on Amazon.com

I have not tried this, but it looks like it should work just as well. The advantage to using this is that it keeps the chocolate the right consistency for dipping the pretzels in without having to reheat it in the microwave or working over a stove top.

Ingredients:

Nestle White Chocolate Chips
Nestle Mini Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
Cinnamon Red Hots
Twisted Mini Pretzels
Parchment Paper
Cookie Sheet
Tweezers

Melt White Chocolate Chips in gravy boat warmer. This may take 15 or more minutes depending on how full it is with white chocolate chips. Once they start to get soft and melt, I use a baby feeding spoon to keep stirring them until they are fully melted.



While the chips are melting, cut a piece of parchment paper to fit into the cookie sheet. You can use your counter top, but the cookie sheet keeps the red hots and mini chocolate chips from rolling off the counter.



Put the red hots in a bowl as well as the mini chocolate chips in another small bowl. Have tweezers ready.



Once the white chocolate chips are melted, dip the bottom half of the pretzel into the melted white chocolate.



Dip just to the bottom of the top two holes of the pretzels.



Lay the pretzel on the parchment paper. Quickly dip 5 pretzels total. If you do more than 5 at a time, the white chocolate will start to harden and you won't be able to decorate them.



Put a red hot on each pretzel for the nose. Push gently into the melted white chocolate.



Take tweezers and pick up a mini chocolate chip and push gently into melted white chocolate for each of the eyes. I usually sit out a dozen mini chocolate chips on the cookie sheet sitting straight up so they are easy to pick up with the tweezers and place on the pretzel.





Let the white chocolate harden on the pretzels (about 2-3 minutes). You should be able to pick them up gently and put on a plate. I usually do five pretzels at a time until the entire cookie sheet is full. Then let them sit until hardened and move them off to a plate.

Keep stirring the melted chocolate as you go to keep smooth consistency.