Monster Eye Pretzel Snack Bites

Usually, these types of snacks are prepared with a chocolate center, but to keep these Monster Eye Pretzel Snack Bites as halloween-like as possible, use a combination of yellow, green, and orange candy melt wafers instead! Top them with a candy eyes and halloween-themed sprinkles! Not only are they super cute, but they’re also super delicious!

The first time I made a version of these Monster Eye Pretzel Snack Bites was back in 2016. I don’t make them too often, and when I do, it’s usually around Christmas or some other holiday. Actually, I did make them for Valentine’s Day and used red and pink candies for the tops. They were quite cute! When I make these at Christmas, I make a huge batch, and will oftentimes fill in the gaps in my giveaway cookie boxes with them.

Candy monster eyes were the best option for me when preparing this recipe because I wanted to make them look a little spooky for halloween. However, if I could not find candy monster eyes, I would have considered using halloween coloured M&Ms, but they’re hard to keep in stock in our home. Whenever I have them, I need to use them up fast, because John.e will eat M&M candies for breakfast! You think I’m joking, but I’ve seen it happen!

I have a cabinet in our kitchen that is totally dedicated to my baking supplies. I keep flour, sugar, baking soda and things like that in the pantry. But, in this one cabinet, I keep things like pretzels, M&Ms, Mini Eggs, Hershey Kisses, chocolate chips, etc. Both John.e and McKenna know that the cabinet is off-limits at all times! It’s the only way I can keep things from being eaten before I get the chance to bake with them.

If you plan to use any type of candy coated chocolate as a topping instead of candy eyes, buy more than you need – especially if they are sold in packaging that is not see-through! Sometimes, I swear these bags of candy like Mini Eggs, Smarties, or M&Ms, are thrown against the wall in some grocery stores because the candy is all chipped off of the chocolate. I always buy an extra bag so I can at least salvage enough to make whatever it is I’m making at the time. Does that mean I’m always expecting the worse? Ha!

INGREDIENTS NEEDED TO PREPARE THIS RECIPE

The following is a list of the ingredients needed to prepare this recipe. For exact amounts and measurements, refer to the printable recipe card located near the bottom of this post.

• Pretzels – You will need to use mini pretzels for this recipe. As you can see, I used the mini squares, but you can use the mini pretzels with the traditional knot shape.
• Candy Melts – You will need one candy melt for every pretzel base. When it comes to candy melts there are different colours, so you don’t have to use yellow, orange, and green like I did, but if you want them to look halloweeny, you might want to consider those colours.
• Candy Monster Eyes
• Sprinkles

LET’S TALK SPRINKLES!

Where do you buy sprinkles?  Do you have a favourite vendor or brand?  A few Christmases back, I changed my sprinkle game.  I would always buy sprinkles from the baking supply section at Bulk Barn, but not anymore – no way!  Let me tell you how this all went down.

In November 2018, I was baking a few Christmas goodies and just could not source sprinkles that looked anything like what I was imagining in my head. John.e was on a major sprinkle hunt.  He used to work in close proximity to Michael’s, HomeSense, Winners, and Marshall’s.  He purchased at least ten different sprinkle colours, shapes, and brands.  But, I wasn’t impressed with any of them as much as I was with Sweetapolita.

After Christmas, I needed Valentine’s sprinkles, so I tracked down the brand and found their online store.  I ordered enough sprinkles to last a lifetime!  Shopping for sprinkles online might seem a little over the top, but I’ve never once pretended to shy away from getting what I want! For these Monster Eye Pretzel Snack Bites, I use some jimmies that were coloured black, orange, green, and purple.

WHAT ARE CANDY MELTS?

Candy melts are small, round discs that are made to emulate white chocolate. They come in a wide range of colours and are usually melted down and used in confections such as the coating on cake pops. I think the term candy melts is owned by Wilton, which is the only type I’ll use.

I use Wilton’s because I have used the brand many times before and have never been disappointed, but also because they have a lot of different colours to choose from. Oh, and the price is always good too!

If you cannot find candy melts, you can either order them online here, or you can use generic brands that can be found at your local baking supply store. The generic brands are sometimes called melting wafers. As you can see, I used yellow candy melts in this case, which is pretty obvious! Ha!

HOW TO MAKE MONSTER EYE PRETZEL SNACK BITES

First, preheat your oven to 250 degrees F. While the oven is heating, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and arrange the pretzels evenly without allowing them to overlap or touch. Next, place one candy melt in the center of each pretzel. It’s always a good idea to buy more candy melts than you need because some are bound to be broken. Set the broken ones aside and use them in any recipe that requires you to melt the candy melts.

Once all of the pretzels are topped with a candy melt, place the baking sheet in the oven on the middle rack for exactly 3 minutes. Once done, remove the tray from the oven and immediately place two candy eyes onto the now soft candy melt and slightly press them in. This will ensure that they stick to the confection. Immediately top with sprinkles.

Allow the pretzels to cool completely before transferring them to a bowl or a cellophane bag. I highly recommend that you allow these to cool at room temperature. Sometimes, if you refrigerate melted candy melts, they will cool too quickly which will force the milk solids to separate. That’s when you will get that unappealing white streaky mess on your candy melt. It looks like powder or residue. It’s completely harmless, but not pretty. Allowing the candy melts to firm back up slowly is the best route.

STORING, PACKAGING, & FREEZING

When it comes to most snacks and treats, they taste best at room temperature, but they don’t hold up well to being left out on your countertop for long periods of time. They will stay fresh in a cookie jar or food-safe container with a lid for 3-5 days if left to sit on your kitchen countertop. You can store them in a food-safe container in your fridge. When you want one, two, or half a dozen, take them out of the container and place them in a single layer on a plate. Let them sit at room temperature for 5 minutes and they’re ready!

If you plan to freeze your Monster Eye Pretzel Snack Bites, I would advise against it. In almost all cases, freezing results in some measure of moisture being absorbed into the frozen item. And, condensation forms during the thawing process. In the case of a pretzel, it’s pretty safe to assume that you will lose that crisp crunch.

But you really don’t need to freeze snacks and treats, because for the most part, they are ready in very little time and you should easily be able to prepare them the day you plan to eat them or serve them to guests.

QUESTIONS?

If I have not answered all of your questions in the text above, don’t hesitate to reach out to me! You can contact me by sending me a message in the comments section further down the page. I will try my best to answer as soon as possible! You might reach me even faster by following me on Facebook and sending me a private message. Scroll down below the recipe card to find my Follow Me on Social Media box and never miss another recipe!