Easy 3-ingredient Christmas Candies—great for gifting or enjoying! Try white chocolate peppermint hearts, pretzel hug bites, thin mint Oreo cups, and easy turtles.
White Chocolate Peppermint Hearts
A few quick tips:
- I recommend a high quality white chocolate for flavor purposes, and for the best possible melt. My favorite white chocolate to use is Guittard or Ghirardelli. (You can use chocolate chips or the baking bars for peppermint hearts.)
- Line the pan with parchment paper for easy removal of these peppermint hearts
- Add some string into the chocolate before it sets and make these into ornaments! 🙂
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White Chocolate Peppermint Hearts
White chocolates and sprinkles fill the center of two candy canes to look like a heart!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 20 miniature candy canes unwrapped
- 6 ounces white chocolate high quality chips work/taste best!
- Holiday sprinkles
- 1/2 to 1 teaspoon vegetable oil optional
Instructions
- Prepare a sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- Set the candy canes on the tray—two together to form hearts all over the tray.
- Melt the white chocolate in the microwave in bursts of 15 seconds, stirring between each burst for 10–15 seconds. Patiently melting the chocolate will make sure it doesn’t burn!
- If needed, add the oil to slightly thin the chocolate. Add very slowly and just if the chocolate is too thick.
- Pour the chocolate into a plastic bag and snip off the tip with scissors.
- Pipe the melted chocolate into the centers of the candy cane treats. Gently wiggle the candy canes to get the chocolate smooth.
- Sprinkle immediately with sprinkles.
- Let set.
Video
Recipe Notes
Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week. Keep in a cool, dry place to prevent melting. For longer storage, refrigerate for up to two weeks.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 99kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 0.6g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1.25g | Cholesterol: 2mg | Sodium: 8mg | Potassium: 28mg | Fiber: 0.02g | Sugar: 16.3g | Vitamin A: 10IU | Calcium: 20mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Rudolph Noses Christmas Candies
A few quick tips:
- I like square pretzels best for these Christmas candies, but regular twist pretzels work too.
- Stick with plain pretzels instead of butter-flavored ones.
- Use these cute Rudolph Noses as an edible table centerpiece. Alternate between kisses and hugs for extra color and visual appeal.
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Rudolph Noses
Rudolph Noses are the easiest festive treat! Melt a Hug, Kiss, or Rolo onto a pretzel, press in a holiday M&M, and let it set. Sweet, salty, and totally snackable!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 25 pretzels squares or twists
- 25 Hugs or Kisses or Rolos, whichever you prefer, see note 1
- 25 holiday M&M candies
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Do not preheat using convection settings (see note 2).
- Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and place the pretzels on the tray.
- Unwrap the hugs/kisses/rolos and place on top of the pretzels.
- Bake for 3–4 minutes or until the hugs/kisses/rolos are soft but not melted.
- Press an M&M candy into the center of the hugs/kisses/rolos right out of the oven.
- Allow the chocolate to harden.
Recipe Notes
Note 1: I tried out caramel kisses for these and they didn’t work—caramel oozed out everywhere. Stick to solid chocolate kisses.
Note 2: I’ve had a few people report issues with the kisses crumbling; this means the oven was too hot or the chocolate was baked too long. I recommend trying 1 rudolph nose at first to test. If it crumbles, reduce the baking time for the rest. Do not use convection oven settings.
Thin Mint Cups
A few quick tips:
- You can find the Andes Mint baking chips next to all the other chocolate chips in the baking aisle of the store. (They are in a green bag!)
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Thin Mint Cups
These Thin Mint Cups are a chocolate-minty dream! A creamy Oreo-mint filling gets sandwiched between layers of smooth Andes Mint chocolate. Easy to make, fun to eat, and perfect with sprinkles on top!
Equipment
- Mini muffin liners
- Blender or food processor
Ingredients
- 16 regular Oreo or chocolate sandwich cookies
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 1 to 2 bags Andes Creme De Menthe baking chips see note 1
- Sprinkles optional
Instructions
- Prepare a mini muffin pan by lining with mini muffin papers.
- Pulse the sandwich cookies in a blender or food processor until they resemble fine crumbs. You do not need to separate the cookie from the creme.
- Beat the crumbs with the room-temperature cream cheese until a thick mixture forms.
- Chill the dough for at least 30 minutes.
- Starting with 1 bag, melt all the baking chips in a large, microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in bursts of 15 seconds, stirring between each burst for 10–15 seconds.
- Spoon melted chocolate into the bottom of the prepared muffin cavities—not a lot here.
- Allow to set completely. (If you don’t work fast, the Andes mints harden quickly—that’s okay, just pop them in the microwave for another 15 seconds or so.)
- Remove the dough from the fridge and form into small balls. Flatten those balls to thin and completely flat disks and place on top of the set chocolate.
- Spoon more melted chocolate to cover the disk of chocolate.
- Add sprinkles to the top if desired.
- Allow to set at room temperature.
Recipe Notes
Note 1: If you want a lot of chocolate, you’ll go through 1 and 1/2 to 2 bags. It’s hard to give an exact measurement because it depends on the size of your oreo filling and how large your final cups are.
Simple Turtle Christmas Candies
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Turtles
These Turtles are the ultimate sweet-and-salty treat! Melted Rolos on pretzels get topped with a crunchy pecan for a quick, irresistible bite. Simple, delicious, and perfect for snacking!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 25 pretzels twist or square
- 25 rolos
- 25 pecans
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (see note 1).
- Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and place the pretzels on the tray.
- Unwrap the rolos and place on top of the pretzels.
- Bake for 3–4 minutes or until the rolos are soft but not melted.
- Press a pecan into the center of the hugs and kisses right out of the oven.
- Allow the chocolate to harden.
Recipe Notes
Note 1: I’ve had a few people report issues with the chocolate “crumbling”; this means the oven was too hot or the chocolate was baked too long. I recommend trying 1 turtle first to test. If it crumbles, reduce the baking time for the rest. Do not use convection oven settings.
You must try these!
Thank you Audrey 🙂
So, not making anything, but rather combining commercial items. I suppose it lets the toddlers do something while one boils sugar or tempers chocolate couverture. I wouldn’t use the word ‘ingredient’, which implies items like cocoa mass, yeast, flour, sugar. I would recommend, rather, admitting that this is combining snack and candy items to make decorative objects.
Ingredient is a much shorter term though. I don’t think all of that would fit in my title! 😉
I like “ingredients” better. Everyone knows what you mean.
Wow so negative…
Yep, my thoughts exactly.
These look like a lot of fun for my grandkids thanks
I had so much fun with my toddler making these 🙂 Hope you enjoy Dee!!
Oh my gosh, my 6 year old is extremely excited about making those candy cane hearts for her friends. Thank you so much for the recipe!!
That is so fun to hear!! You are welcome 🙂 Enjoy!
Every year my 2 daughters and I make a homemade gift for our large extended family. These candy cane hearts are perfect for my 7 and 4 year old to do mostly unassisted and it’s not just another ornament or decoration the family feels obligated to keep. I’m so excited!!
What a fun tradition! 🙂 I hope your daughters love making these and the family loves eating them 🙂
WHY AM I ADDICTED TO YOUR COOKING VIDEOS!?
legit can’t stop watching, they look amazing Chelsea! xo
Omg you make my day!! 🙂 Thank you! XO
Will definitely be making some of these treats
Awesome! Hope you love them 🙂
I copy these recipes into my word processor. If I decide to make one, I just print it out and head for the kitchen. If the recipe gets ingredients all over it, I just trash it. I can always run off another!
That’s a great idea! Thanks for sharing your tips Jayne! 🙂
I buy sheet protectors and put all my printed recipes in them then I put them in a binder. That way you don’t waste paper and they are right at your finger tips when you need them. I just take out the recipe I want to use and put it in my book holder while making it. If you splash anythinh on it you just wipe it off. Works great!
Awesome idea! Thanks for sharing Sherry 🙂
That’s what I do, too. A quick wipe and any messy residue is gone.
These are so cute! What a fun Christmas treat!
Thank you Lindsay! 🙂
hey girl these look amazing! Yummy!
Thank you Shawnna! 🙂