Turtle Pretzels

My sister-in-law introduced me to these a couple Christmas's ago and I instantly fell in love. They are the perfect combination of salty, crunchy and sweet. And they're so easy to make! She made a special version for me using gluten free pretzels. It's really nice to be able to eat a gluten free variety of what everyone else has.

For such an easy dessert, these taste amazing! This is a great treat to make I f you're not much of a baker. Just assemble, warm in the oven and press down with a pecan while the chocolate is still soft. These turtle pretzels have become a staple Christmas cookie in our house! 

Makes 30 pieces

Ingredients

30 Gluten Free Pretzels - knotted or square shaped (I used 1 small package of Glutino pretzels)

30 Rolos

30 Pecan Halves 

Directions 

Lay out your pretzels on a parchment lined baking tray. 1 small package should contain roughly 30 pieces.

Unwrap Rolos and place one on each pretzel.

Bake at 300 degrees for around 4 minutes.

Working quickly, press 1 pecan half onto each softened Rolo. 

Let cool in the fridge and store in an airtight container on the counter. 

You can also freeze these for a couple months if you want to make them in advance. 

Lay out pretzels and top with Rolos 

Bake at 300 for 4 minutes

Press down with pecans and let cool

Sorry for the poor photos.

It looks like I need to make this recipe again and take some better pictures!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies (flourless)

This is a decadent take on the classic flourless peanut butter cookies. The addition of cocoa powder really takes them to the next level! If you want to go over the top (in the spirit of Christmas, of course) you can add in chocolate or butterscotch chips. 

If you're looking for a gluten free cookie recipe that doesn't use any special ingredients this is a great one. Just make sure you use a new jar of peanut butter with no toast crumbs!

The fork press design is an easy way to let people know these cookies contain peanuts. It's nice to be conscious of all allergies, not just gluten ;) 

Happy gluten free Christmas baking everyone!

Makes 24 small cookies

Ingredients

1 cup Peanut Butter (natural peanut butter doesn't work. You need to use the basic, shelf stable kind)

1 Egg

1 cup packed Brown Sugar 

2 tsp Vanilla Extract

1 tsp Baking Soda

6 Tbsp Cocoa Powder

You can add in 1/2 cup chocolate or butterscotch chips if you want to make the cookies even more decadent.

Directions

Beat together the peanut butter, egg, vanilla and brown sugar until smooth.

Sift in cocoa powder and baking soda and mix until smooth.

Roll into 1-1 1/2 inch balls and press down with a fork to make the pattern shown in photos. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. 

Let cool before removing from pan.

Beat together peanut butter, egg, vanilla and brown sugar.

Sift in Cocoa powder and baking soda.

Roll into balls.

Press down with a fork.

Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes. 

Enjoy!