Christmas Pretzels are the easiest holiday treat around! They use just 3 ingredients - pretzels, Hershey hugs, and M&Ms. They are super easy to make and they last for weeks so are the perfect make ahead holiday treat.
Christmas Pretzels are great to add to your cookie tray or Cookie Charcuterie Board. Also try making these Easy Christmas Sugar Cookies with Sprinkles or Brown Butter Sugar Cookies.
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⭐Why I love them
- 3 Ingredients - Just pretzels, Hershey's Hugs, and M&Ms!
- Kid-Friendly - Not only do kids love to eat these, but they are great for them to help out making as well.
- Make Ahead Friendly - You can make a big batch and keep them for a couple of weeks to munch on all holiday season.
🥘Ingredients
- Bag of Pretzels - Either circles, squares, or holiday shapes. Just be sure to use regular pretzels and not the butter flavor.
- Hershey's Hugs - They're like regular chocolate Hershey's Kisses but swirled with white chocolate
- M&M's - I like to use the holiday colored ones.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
📖Variations
There are lots of ways to mix up this Christmas Pretzels recipe - see some of my favorite variations!
- Other Holidays - Try using different colored M&M's to adapt them for different holidays.
- Other Types of Hershey Kisses - Instead of Hugs, you can also use regular Hershey's Kisses or any other flavor of Hershey's Kisses.
- Sprinkles - If you want to make them extra festive, you can sprinkle on holiday sprinkles after you press in the M&Ms while the chocolate is still melty so they stick.
🔪Step by Step Instructions
Making Christmas Pretzels is about as easy as it gets! And it's a great recipe to get the kids involved. The really young ones can help unwrap the Hugs or place them on top of the pretzels.
Photo 1 - Start by unwrapping the Hershey's Hugs and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat for make easier removal. Create an even layer of pretzels on the baking sheet and top each pretzel with a Hug.
Photo 2 - Bake in preheated oven for about 3-5 minutes until the Hug is starting to soften. You can use a spoon to gently press into the Hug to test them. Don't let them cook to the point where the chocolate is totally melted. Place baking sheet in refrigerator to allow Hugs to harden again.
🍽Leftovers and Storage
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container for 1-2 weeks at room temperature or in the fridge. They can even be stored in the fridge for up to 3 months.
💭Recipe Tips
- Parchment Paper or Silicone Liner - Make sure to use one to line your baking sheet. If you just make the pretzels directly on the baking sheet, the chocolate will stick to the sheet and they will be hard to remove without breaking the pretzel.
- Don't melt the chocolates fully - You want the Kiss or Hug to still have some shape. I recommend removing from the oven, testing one with an M&M or the back of a spoon. If you can't smoosh the chocolate down enough, you can put the sheet back in the oven for a minute or two. If you bake too long the chocolate will fully melt into a puddle.
🎁Give them as gifts!
Because these treats last so long, they are great as gifts. You can wrap some in a cellophane bag with a holiday ribbon, fill a small mason jar or holiday tin. Perfect DIY holiday gift or hostess gift.
👩🍳Recipe FAQs
I love to use the holiday shaped pretzels to make the treats extra festive. But you can also use the small pretzel squares, circles, or even mini twists. The pretzels need to be small enough so the Hug is just smaller than the pretzel. Even though they are square, do not use butter snaps.
I love the Hug and Pretzel combo but you could use a regular Hershey's Kiss with the pretzel instead. The recipe will not change.
Pretzels of all varieties have become a popular option for the holidays! Some favorite ways to make pretzels treats are these Christmas Pretzel Hugs, making Rolo Pretzel Turtles, or dipping pretzels in chocolate and covering with sprinkles or chopped nuts.
It depends how many you want to make! There are about 70 Hugs or Kisses in a standard 12 oz bag. But there are about 320 M&M's in a standard 10oz bag. If you want to use one full bag of M&M's, you'll need 4-5 bags of Hugs. I typically use two bags of Hugs and use the leftover M&M's for something else.
🍪Related Dessert Recipes
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PrintRecipe
Christmas Pretzels
Christmas Pretzels are the easiest holiday treat around! They use just 3 ingredients - pretzels, Hershey hugs, and M&Ms. They are super easy to make and they last for weeks so are the perfect make ahead holiday treat. Make a big bowl of Pretzel M&M Hugs for your next holiday party!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 70 treats
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 bag Hershey's Hugs
- 1 bag Pretzels, Holiday shapes, rings, square snaps, or tiny twists
- 1 bag M&M's
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 225° F. Line 2 baking sheets with silicone mats or parchment paper.
- Layer Pretzels. Place pretzels on the prepared sheets in an even layer. Unwrap Hugs and place in the middle of each pretzel.
- Bake. Bake in preheated oven until the Hug starts to melt down - about 3-5 minutes. Remove sheet from oven and try to press on M&M into a Hug. If the Hug flattens easily, continue with all the pretzels. If there is resistance, put back into the oven for 30 seconds - 1 minute.
- Cool and Chill. Allow the baking sheets to cool and then place in the refrigerator so the chocolate can fully set up - about 10-20 minutes.
- Store and Enjoy. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They keep well for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
How Many Bags? There are more pretzels and M&M's in a bag than there are in one bag of Hugs. If you want to make more than 70, you can use a second bag of Hugs. If I'm making a big batch to last me all season I'll use 4 bags of Hugs, 1 bag of M&M's, and a little less than 2 bags of pretzels.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 piece
- Calories: 37
- Sugar: 1.7 g
- Sodium: 76.1 mg
- Fat: 0.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 6.7 g
- Fiber: 0.3 g
- Protein: 0.7 g
- Cholesterol: 0.1 mg
Katie says
These are my family's favorite!