Easy Halloween Pretzel Rods (5 Designs)
Sweet, salty, and spooky, these Halloween treats come together fast and let kids get creative. Dip, decorate, and create five festive designs: Mummy, Frankenstein, Ghost, Jack-O'-Lantern, and Witch Finger.
Equipment
- Spoon or offset spatula
- Piping bags (or zip-top bags with tiny corner snipped)
- knife or toothpick (for scoring witch finger knuckles)
Ingredients
- 40 pretzel rods
- 6 oz (170 g) white candy melts
- 6 oz (170 g) green candy melts
- 6 oz (170 g) orange candy melts
- 4 oz (113 g) black candy melts (for decorating details)
- 16 candy eyeballs
- 2 tablespoons chocolate jimmies
- 10 almond slices
Instructions
- Prep your workspace: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Melt candy melts or white chocolate in 30-second intervals in the microwave, stirring between each round until smooth.
- Spoon melted candy onto the parchment paper in a long puddle
- Place each pretzel rod into a puddle of melted candy, rolling the pretzel and coating about ⅔–¾ of the rod. Hold the pretzel up to drain excess melted candy.
- Add toppings while the coating is still wet so everything sticks before the candy sets.
- Allow pretzel rods to harden at room temperature for 10–15 minutes, or refrigerate for 10 minutes to speed up the process.
- Once the base coating is firm, melt black candy melts and pour into a piping bag fitted with a #3 Wilton tip to draw faces, stitches, or other details. Use the same piping method with white candy melts for mummy bandages.
Design-Specific Instructions:
- Mummy: Coat with white candy melts, add 2 candy eyeballs while wet. Once set, pipe white candy melt zigzag lines for bandages.
- Witch Fingers: Break the bottom of the pretzel rods off, or you can leave them whole if you prefer. Coat with green candy melts, press almond slice into tip while wet. Score shallow lines for knuckles.
- Frankenstein: Coat with green candy melts, sprinkle chocolate jimmies at top while wet for hair, press in 2 candy eyes. Once set, pipe black candy melts for stitches and smile.
- Ghost: Coat with white candy melts. Optional: spoon extra white candy at the bottom for "ghost tails." Once set, use a piping bag fitted with a #3 Wilton tip and melted black candy melts to pipe two eyes, then pipe a small "O" mouth.
- Jack-O'-Lantern: Coat with orange candy melts. Once set, pipe jack-o'-lantern faces with black candy melts.
Video
Notes
Please take a look at the full blog post above for step-by-step decorating ideas for each design: Mummy, Frankenstein, Ghost, Jack-O'-Lantern, and Witch Finger.
Candy melt amounts: The measurements listed will coat 40 pretzel rods with a standard coating. If you prefer a thicker coating or kids tend to use more candy per pretzel, you may need an extra 2-4 oz of each color.
Work quickly: Candy melts set fast, so add decorations right away. Make it a craft: Set up a decorating station and let kids create their own designs. Storage: Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week. Gifting idea: You can wrap individual rods in cellophane bags tied with ribbon for party favors or treats.
Piping bags: If you don't have piping bags with tips, use zip-top bags with a tiny corner snipped for decorating.
Remelting: If the candy hardens on the parchment while working, peel it up and toss it back in the bowl to remelt; nothing goes to waste.
