Pretzel Birds Nest Cookies

Pretzel Birds Nest Cookies - These charming little spring cookies get their nest-like appearance thanks to crushed pretzels and flaked coconut. After being filled with melted caramel and topped with a few chocolate candy eggs, these sweet heavenly thumbprint cookies are ready for some serious Easter munching.

So, by now you’ve probably taken one look at these cookies and guessed that I made them sometime around Easter, which was over a month ago. The egg-shaped candies pretty much scream holiday, and the amount of time it has taken me to share them is proof of my “nesting” attitude as of late. No, I am not pregnant. Sorry, Mom. Sorry, friends with children, who declare that offspring are the best thing to ever happen to an individual. I’m not buying into your lifestyle. I already take care of two individuals on a daily basis, and that alone can be overburdening on most days. Thankfully, B.O.B. Bob is more manageable than our darling Brenna will ever be.

My “nesting” stems from a need to control my household when there are things going on that are beyond my control. B.O.B. Bob is slowly chipping away at the downstairs bathroom, in an attempt to finally make it the room we have always dreamed of, even though neither one of us knows exactly what shape that dream will eventually take. There have been many heated arguments, especially after the evening when he suggested we leave the new hot water heater and furnace exposed because they were worth looking at. I thought the man had lost his flipping mind. Sure, I want to welcome guests into my home and make sure that they get a glimpse of our fantastic hot water heater and furnace.  Why have we been hiding them for all of these years?

So, in lieu of dwelling on the bathroom that is no longer a bathroom, and merely an empty shell with exposed walls and soon to be non-existent flooring, I am looking to the rest of the house for comfort. I flutter from room to room in search of new ways to create a comfy cozy nest to get me through this anxiety-causing ordeal. I’m convinced that by the end of everything, someone will happen upon me in a “nest” of blankets on the guest room floor, in an attempt to hide from all of the things that I cannot control. Hopefully, the person who finds me will understand my situation, and leave me to roost, but not before getting a glimpse of my fascinating hot water heater and furnace, which really are quite amazing to look at in B.O.B. Bob’s opinion.

Pretzel Birds Nest Cookies - These charming little spring cookies get their nest-like appearance thanks to crushed pretzels and flaked coconut. After being filled with melted caramel and topped with a few chocolate candy eggs, these sweet heavenly thumbprint cookies are ready for some serious Easter munching.

Ingredients:

Cookies:

  • 1 1/2 Cups Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature
  • 2/3 Cup Granulated Sugar
  • 1/3 Cup Light Brown Sugar, Packed
  • 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
  • 1 1/2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
  • 1 1/2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
  • 2 Cups Tiny Twists Pretzels
  • 1 Cup Unsweetened Flaked Coconut

Caramel:

  • 1 (11-oz) Bag Kraft Caramel Bits
  • 3 Tablespoons Heavy Whipping Cream

Decoration:

  • 1 1/2 (10-oz) Bags Cadbury Mini Eggs

Pretzel Birds Nest Cookies - These charming little spring cookies get their nest-like appearance thanks to crushed pretzels and flaked coconut. After being filled with melted caramel and topped with a few chocolate candy eggs, these sweet heavenly thumbprint cookies are ready for some serious Easter munching.

Directions:

Cookies:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Cream butter, sugars, and salt on medium speed for 3 minutes.
  3. Add vanilla; mix for 1 minute.
  4. Add the flour one cup at a time on low speed; mix until the flour is just incorporated.
  5. Crush the pretzels into small pieces with your hands, and stir them into the cookie batter with a silicone spatula.
  6. Place the coconut into a small bowl. Roll 1-inch balls of dough between the palms of your hands, and then roll them in the coconut flakes. Place the coated balls onto a Silpat or parchment paper-lined baking sheet and make a well in each cookie using your thumb.
  7. Bake the cookies for 8 to 10 minutes, or until lightly browned on the bottom edges.
  8. After removing the cookies from the oven, use the back of a spoon to reinforce the well in each cookie. Allow the cookies to rest on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, before removing to a baking rack to cool.

Caramel:

  1. Place the caramel and cream in a medium saucepan, over medium heat.
  2. Stirring constantly, cook the mixture until the caramel bits have completely melted; remove from heat.
  3. Working quickly, fill the well of each cookie with the melted caramel using a teaspoon.

Decoration:

  1. Place three Cadbury Mini Eggs into each cookie’s caramel filled center.

Pretzel Birds Nest Cookies - These charming little spring cookies get their nest-like appearance thanks to crushed pretzels and flaked coconut. After being filled with melted caramel and topped with a few chocolate candy eggs, these sweet heavenly thumbprint cookies are ready for some serious Easter munching.

Suggestions:

  • This recipe will yield approximately 3 dozen cookies.
  • You may need to reheat the caramel mixture a few times while filling the cookies. Be patient. Caramel is a real pain to work with sometimes.
  • Allow the cookies to set on the counter for a couple of hours for the caramel to set, before storing them in an airtight container, separated with wax paper to prevent sticking.
  • In lieu of egg-shaped candies, use any chocolate coated candy you can get your hands on.

Pretzel Birds Nest Cookies - These charming little spring cookies get their nest-like appearance thanks to crushed pretzels and flaked coconut. After being filled with melted caramel and topped with a few chocolate candy eggs, these sweet heavenly thumbprint cookies are ready for some serious Easter munching.

Improvements:

  • Replace the crushed pretzels with crushed potato chips.
  • Add 1 cup of mini chocolate chips to the cookie dough.

Pretzel Birds Nest Cookies

Pretzel Birds Nest Cookies

Ingredients:

    Cookies:
  • 1 1/2 Cups Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature
  • 2/3 Cup Granulated Sugar
  • 1/3 Cup Light Brown Sugar, Packed
  • 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
  • 1 1/2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
  • 1 1/2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
  • 2 Cups Tiny Twists Pretzels
  • 1 Cup Unsweetened Flaked Coconut
  • Caramel:
  • 1 (11-oz) Bag Kraft Caramel Bits
  • 3 Tablespoons Heavy Whipping Cream
  • Decoration:
  • 1 1/2 (10-oz) Bags Cadbury Mini Eggs

Directions:

    Cookies:
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Cream butter, sugars, and salt on medium speed for 3 minutes.
  3. Add vanilla; mix for 1 minute.
  4. Add the flour one cup at a time on low speed; mix until the flour is just incorporated.
  5. Crush the pretzels into small pieces with your hands, and stir them into the cookie batter with a silicone spatula.
  6. Place the coconut into a small bowl. Roll 1-inch balls of dough between the palms of your hands, and then roll them in the coconut flakes. Place the coated balls onto a Silpat or parchment paper-lined baking sheet and make a well in each cookie using your thumb.
  7. Bake the cookies for 8 to 10 minutes, or until lightly browned on the bottom edges.
  8. After removing the cookies from the oven, use the back of a spoon to reinforce the well in each cookie. Allow the cookies to rest on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, before removing to a baking rack to cool.
  9. Caramel:
  10. Place the caramel and cream in a medium saucepan, over medium heat.
  11. Stirring constantly, cook the mixture until the caramel bits have completely melted; remove from heat.
  12. Working quickly, fill the well of each cookie with the melted caramel using a teaspoon.
  13. Decoration:
  14. Place three Cadbury Mini Eggs into each cookie's caramel filled center.
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Pretzel Birds Nest Cookies - These charming little spring cookies get their nest-like appearance thanks to crushed pretzels and flaked coconut. After being filled with melted caramel and topped with a few chocolate candy eggs, these sweet heavenly thumbprint cookies are ready for some serious Easter munching.

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