Cheer up peanut butter cup pretzels

People who know me well, know that when I am in a funk, a good way for me to get out of it is to be in the kitchen. Generally I will bake, but yesterday with the hot temps outside I was hesitant to turn on the oven. Badly in need of some therapy and not wanting the sunburn that would come with weeding mid-day, I grabbed some chocolate and peanut butter from the pantry and went to town creating this super yummy treat....a great bonus was the better mood that followed. Let's face it though, it's difficult to be grouchy in the presence of chocolate especially when peanut butter and pretzels join the party.....try it, I dare you!

Cheer up peanut butter cup pretzels

Ingredients:

1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup creamy peanut butter

16 oz powdered sugar

a few Tbsp milk or cream

chocolate for melting

Mini pretzels

First I mixed up a batch of filling I use when making Peanut Butter Easter eggs. It's super easy and does not require a lot of ingredients.

1. Into a mixing bowl add 1/4 cup of softened unsalted butter and 1 cup peanut butter. Mix together until well combined. Today I did not plan, so I just popped the butter into a glass dish and into the microwave on defrost until it was just beginning to melt, it worked just fine.

2. With your mixer on low, add powdered sugar a little at a time, mixture will look dry. Add milk or cream, no more than a tablespoon at a time. You want the mixture to be well blended and smooth, but be careful not to add too much milk of the mixture will become sticky.

3. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour--you can do this step and leave it sit in the fridge for a day or two. I warn you though, you may have eaten all of the filling by then:)

4. Melt chocolate for dipping, use your favorite method. Mine is to pull out a small sized crock-pot and melt the chocolate that way. I throw it on low and ignore for an hour or two. Use whatever your favorite chocolate, I used Milk Chocolate Almond bark and threw in a few handfuls of chocolate chips.

Messy, but yummy!

5. Place parchment paper or wax paper on a cookie sheet

6. Use an ice cream scoop or cookie scoop to measure out peanut butter mixture. I use an old ice cream scoop, and then cut the scoop into fourths. This gives me just the right amount of filling.

7. Roll peanut butter mixture into a ball and press in between two pretzels.

Mmmmmmm...

8. Dip into chocolate and place onto wax or parchment covered cookie sheet, repeat until you are surrounded by yumminess!! I dip one large spoon into the chocolate, place a filled pretzel on spoon, then use another spoon to pour chocolate over top. Then I gently tap on the edge of the crock-pot, then gently slide onto cookie sheet.

9. Refrigerate until chocolate is set--I throw them into the freezer, it's quicker!

10. Call your family or friends and share....or you can keep them for yourself, although I wouldn't recommend eating them all at once, that will bring on a guaranteed sick stomach and another guaranteed grouchy mood ;)

11. Enjoy all the ooohs and ahhs....it's an amazing mood lifter! Keep leftovers in a cool area or in a zip bag in the fridge.