Homemade Chocolate Dipped Pretzel Rods

Happy Holidays, Astoria!  Hope that everyone is enjoying some quality time with the ones you love.

In preparation for tomorrow's family party at my brother-in-law and sister-in-law's house, I decided to make these gourmet, hand-dipped pretzel rods.  Originally wanting to make gourmet chocolate bark, I changed my mind at the last minute when I realized I had all these amazing toppings at home and went with the sweet/savory combination instead.

Deciding to preserve the Utz's packaging, I dressed it up with some festive holiday paper and stuffed the decorated pretzels back into the container.  I can't wait to see how they're received tomorrow, but I've already had a happy guinea pig (aka Dan) tell me that they've passed the test with flying colors. Hope you enjoy making your own variations.

Homemade Chocolate Dipped Pretzel Rods

Ingredients:
Large container of Utz's old fashioned pretzel rods (you can use any brand you like, but I like Utz's since they're nostalgic for me)
1 container of dark chocolate melting wafers (such as Ghirardelli brand)
1 container of white chocolate melting wafers (such as Ghirardelli brand)
1/2 cup of artisan toasted coconut chips
1/2 cup of craisins, chopped
1 cup of maple bacon bits
Colorful sprinkles or non pareils
Truffle salt
Chopped walnuts

Directions:
Melt chocolate wafers in the microwave until silky smooth (about 1 1/2 minutes).
Dip each pretzel rod in the chocolate individually and then sprinkle with your favorite topping, above.  You can also use any other topping you'd like.

Lay dipped pretzel rods on a parchment lined cookie sheet and then place into the fridge for about an hour, or until the chocolate sets.  Place back into the pretzel rod container and serve.

Chocolate Covered Bacon - Ultimate Gluttony

This past weekend's Superbowl really called for something special, with our very own G-Men in the game (and victorious!).  I spent the entire game (and post celebration) at my brother-in-law and sister-in-law's house, where they hosted the ultimate Superbowl shin-dig, with more food that anyone can even dream about, and a full table of decadent desserts.

I made my own contributions as well, with this slightly wacky yet fitting idea of chocolate covered bacon, inspired by people's general bacon mania.

There really wasn't much to it except for choosing really great quality uncured bacon and some delicious dark chocolate for the coating.  I cooked the bacon on 475 for about 15 minutes and then let it cool completely.  While this was happening, I heated up the dark chocolate until it was completely melted and then painted it onto the bacon with a small wooden spoon (you can also use a pastry brush).  Making sure to leave a little piece of bacon au naturale, it provided a nice handle to grip this thing and take a perfect bite.  I then put it into a fridge to cool for about an hour, and served it cold.

Wowza...it was good.  The onslaught of smoky and salty goodness from the bacon, complemented the dark chocolate exterior shell.  Each bite was revolutionary, and by the nearly empty plate in just minutes, I think my guests too were in agreement.