Peanut butter and chocolate are really a match made in heaven, a fact that no one should dare argue (unless of course you are peanut allergic!). So it comes as no surprise, to me at least, that one of my favorite treats is the Peanut Butter “Truffles” from Go Dairy Free: The Guide and Cookbook. As I was putting together a gift for a fellow blogger,I stumbled across a wonderful idea to take these a step further… Using heart-shaped pretzels to create the base for decadent (not to mention cute!) Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Hearts!
These confections are very easy, so you can have them prepared before your loved one even realizes that you forgot what day it was. The salty pretzel with the nuttiness of the peanut butter and the sweet chocolate is a match made in heaven. The pretzel also gives it a crunchy base for some textural interest.
If you prefer your PB and chocolate sans pretzels, you can always shape the filling into a heart before dipping.
Special Diet Notes: Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Hearts
By ingredients, this recipe is dairy-free / non-dairy, egg-free, vegan, plant-based, and vegetarian. Optionally gluten-free and soy-free.
For nut-free: Replace the peanut butter with Sunbutter or other seed butter.
- ¾ cup creamy peanut butter (I used unsalted)
- ¼ cup margarine (I used Earth Balance Vegan Margarine), softened or melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon plain milk alternative, any type (or as needed)
- 12 ounce bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips (I use TJ’s. Ghirardelli’s are made without milk, but for milk allergy-friendly, try Enjoy Life brand or Tropical Source’s dairy-free version)
- 1 bag smallish twisted pretzels (I used spelt ones, you can use regular, GF, whatever you like!)
- In a large bowl, combine the PB, margarine, and vanilla. Sift in the powdered sugar and salt, and mix until homogenous. You want the dough to be somewhat stiff and easy to shape, but if it is too stiff (may depend on your PB) add 1 tablespoon of milk alternative, or more as needed. If it is actually too sticky, pop it into the fridge to chill for 30 minutes or so.
- Melt the chocolate chips in a bowl (I usually just start with half of them and melt more as I need them). Roll a small ball of the PB mixture, place it on top of a pretzel, and smash it down with another pretzel, making sure to line the two pretzels up. If desired, fill in with additional PB to further shape like a heart.
- Dip the PB pretzels in the chocolate, ensuring that they are coated. Lift them out with a fork, tapping the fork several times on the bowl to smooth the chocolate a bit and get rid of excess chocolate (unless you like excess chocolate!). Place them on a silpat or wax paper lined baking sheet, and pop them in the freezer for about 15 minutes to chill and harden. Store in the fridge.
- *You can also shape the PB dough itself into balls or heart shapes, for some chocolate-dipped confections sans pretzels.
