Pretzel Toffee (with chocolate, of course)

First things first: Did you see my guest post over at The Brunette One yesterday? It involves s'mores. Just sayin'

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Toffee is freaking delicious. If you don't like toffee, we can't be friends. Or..well, maybe we can be, because then I don't have to share any of my toffee with you. It's the perfect crunch and mix of salty & sweet.

Either way, after searching Pinterest/Google/Blogs high and low, I found a few different toffee recipes and combined/changed them to fit my taste. My two main inspirations were Katie and Erika - so if you'd like to try different toffee versions, check out their blogs!

What you'll need to make it happen:

- 1/3 bag small pretzel sticks (I think these work better because you'll get pretzel in every bite!)

- 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter

- 2 tablespoons water

- 3/4 cups white sugar

- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

- 1/4 teaspoon salt

- 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

- 1 1/2 tablespoons shortening (crisco)

- assortment of pecans, almonds, & mini marshmallows

- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

- Candy thermometer, baking sheet, large saucepan, parchment paper

How to make it happen:

Step 1: Line your baking sheet with parchment paper and loosely line up your pretzels on it. You should have the majority of your pan covered- but not completely full!

Step 2: Make sure your candy thermometer is reading correctly (learn how to do so from this post)

Step 3: Melt butter with water on med-low in saucepan, and once completely melted add granulated sugar, continually stirring to assure sugar doesn't stick to the sides of the pan.

Step 4: Once well mixed, insert your candy thermometer and bring to a boil (med-high) and let cook until it reaches soft crack stage (280-285 degrees). It should take about 10-12 minutes- but really keep an eye on it. It'll go from golden brown to a burned mess quickly! 

Step 5: Take the mixture off the heat and stir in the vanilla immediately. Once incorporated, pour the toffee mixture quickly over your pretzels, spreading to even out if necessary. Let sit for 15-20 minutes until toffee hardens.

Step 6: Melt your chocolate chips with the shortening (either in a double boiler or the microwave), and evenly spread over your toffee & pretzels.

Step 7: Add your toppings. I went with almond slices, sea salt, pecan bits, and mini marshmallows! I figure the more the merrier, right? Once you've finished garnishing your toffee, pop it into the fridge until hardened and break into snacking sized pieces. 

Bring to a boil

This is the color it should be! 

Coat your pretzels

Toppings galore!

The final product

Heaven on a plate

 The biggest tip I'll give on this is to really make sure you watch the toffee once it gets in the 270 degree range. It can jump up quickly and burn- then you'd be one sad baker. Trust. 

If you don't have a good candy thermometer- INVEST IN ONE! They can be used to make toffees, caramels, taffy, and so much more. I have this one from Pampered Chef  that Michael's mom Lorie gave me, and it is beyond awesome. I highly recommend it! 

What's your favorite salty sweet snack?

Do share, I'd love to make it! 

xo, lp

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Pssssst Thanks for all the love and kind words in response to yesterday's post. You all know how to make a girl feel great. Your comments/tweets/emails just added to my excitement for our decision!