Pretzel Shamrocks are a sweet and salty treat decorated with chocolate candies in a shamrock shape for the perfect St. Patrick’s Day Snacks! Shamrock Pretzel Bites are loved by kids and adults alike and are simple and fun to make!
Forget the traditional cabbage and corned beef and let’s make these sweet St. Patrick’s Day treats the new normal! These would be perfect to trap leprechauns!
They are so easy to make, seriously…so easy that I made a batch, ate them all, and then made another batch in the course of about 20 minutes! No Lie! I’m sure my rear thanks me for that moment of complete and utter lack of self-control! My taste buds, on the other hand, were particularly fond of my milk chocolate inhalation escapade.
What are Shamrock Pretzels?
If you love chocolate-covered pretzels you will love shamrock pretzels. You are combining the same flavor combination of sweet and salty but the end result is easier to make and adorned with decorations for different holidays and themes, these being for St. Patrick’s Day!
There are many types of shamrock pretzel variations, but I prefer this method as it does not require any green candy melts, no microwave or microwave-safe bowl, nothing to dip, you don’t need a fork or spoon or pop sticks and you aren’t left with a bowl full of excess chocolate at the end!
What you need for Pretzel Shamrocks:
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- Baking Sheet
- Parchment Paper or waxed paper
- Mini Pretzels
- Hershey Kisses or dark brown candy melts
- Green M&M’s
- Green Tube Icing
In place of the Hershey Kisses, you may also substitute Rolo candies! Add some caramel in there!
These work wonderfully with gluten-free pretzels as well!
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How to Make Pretzel Shamrocks
The process to make these is very simple and a great treat to get the kids involved with helping!
Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and add a layer of mini pretzel twists.
Place an unwrapped Hershey Kiss candy on top of each pretzel and place the baking sheet in the oven. You want the Kisses to melt but not lose their shape or turn runny.
Smoosh (that’s a technical term here!) three Green M&M Candies onto the kiss. You can use regular or the Mint M&M’s are delicious as well! You can see the melted chocolate is soft enough to squish but the chocolate is not running over the pretzels.
Set aside and allow the kiss chocolate to reharden a bit. If it’s still soft, it’s really hard for the next step, which is to use tube green frosting and draw on the shamrock stems.
Using a tube of green icing and a small point tip, pipe on “stems” to your shamrock. If you would like to negate the icing, you can also add an M&M candy but stand it up on its side versus placing it flat as you did for the shamrock leaves.
These are so freaking good that you will want to go ahead and just make a double batch to start. You can make 1 batch but I would be pretty confident to bet that you will need to go back and make one more soon after! {wink!}
Tips & Variations for Pretzel Shamrock Treats:
- If you would like the milk chocolate to be more uniform, press down with the back of a spoon before adding the M&M candies.
- Place the M&M’s with the m side down so that your shamrocks are just green.
- The white chocolate Kisses melt differently than the milk chocolate. You will want to test a few to get the appropriate timing down.
- For the cleanest “stem” lines, wait until the milk chocolate has been set up a bit before piping the icing onto the shamrock pretzel.
- Replace the green icing with an M&M. Instead of placing the candy down flat like you did for the leaves, place it on its side, standing up, so that it gives a long skinny appearance like a stem.
- Sprinkles can be added to the remaining exposed milk chocolate if preferred.
- Mint Chocolate M&M’s can also be used for a minty flavor!
Shamrock Pretzel Storage
Pretzel Shamrocks keep in an airtight container for up to 1 week (if they even last that long).
They can be stored at room temperature or if you live in a warmer climate you can store them in the refrigerator as well.
More St. Patrick’s Day Treats You Will Love
- Lucky Charms Treats
- Copycat Shamrock Shake – super easy with green food coloring
- Leprechaun Popcorn
- Rainbow Treats
- St. Patrick’s Day Oreo Truffles
- Bailey’s Irish Cream Fudge
- Tropical Green Smoothie
- Rainbow Green Smoothie Bowl
- The Best Guacamole
Shamrock Pretzel Bites Recipe
Pretzel Shamrocks
Equipment
Ingredients
- 24 each Mini Pretzel Twists
- 24 each Hershey Kisses, unwrapped
- 72 each Green M&M Candies
- 1 tube Green Icing
Instructions
- Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and preheat oven to 200 degrees F.
- Place pretzels in a single layer and top each pretzel with an unwrapped Hershey Kiss.24 each Mini Pretzel Twists, 24 each Hershey Kisses
- Bake at 200 Degrees for about 7 minutes. The Hershey Kiss should be soft but not completely melted and losing it's shape.
- Remove sheet pan from oven and immediately press 3 green M&M candies onto each pretzel/kiss in the shape of a shamrock.72 each Green M&M Candies
- When milk chocolate is cool, use icing tip on a tube of green frosting to draw on the stems of the shamrocks.1 tube Green Icing
- Enjoy!
Notes
- You want the Hershey Kisses to be soft but not completely melted on your pretzel. 7 minutes did the trick but you might have to adjust depending on your oven.
- Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
- May store at room temperature. If you live in a warmer environment, the refrigerator may be used also to store.
Nutrition Estimate
You might also like these Pretzel Bites:
- Valentine Pretzel Bites
- Eggs & Toast Pretzel Bites
- Apple Pretzel bites – 3 ways
- Green Eggs & Ham Dr. Seuss Pretzel Bites
- Baseball Pretzel Bites
- Basketball Pretzel Bites
- Grinch Pretzel Bites
A few more sweet treats you might want to try:
Holiday Puppy Chow – exchange the colors of M&M’s for the current season
PIN SHAMROCK PRETZEL BITES NOW!
Comments & Reviews
Tobi says
Great idea! I combined you’re recipe and another and featured it in my post on St. Patty’s Sunday school ideas. I linked back here since your idea was my inspiration. Thanks! http://ryanandtobi.blogspot.com/2014/03/childrens-church-st-patricks-day.html
marilyn says
That looks beautiful. Those kids are very lucky to have a teacher as wonderful as you.
God Bless!