Caramelly Goodness!!

OK...here I am once again into the concocting!! With a teenage daughter who has 6 sweet-toothed friends, it never ends!

Here is the recipe first, so you will know how absolutely easy these are!

Caramel Covered Pretzels
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1 bag of pretzel wands (or the jumbo regular pretzels)
50 caramels
2 Tablespoons whipping cream (I use coffee cream)
any type of nuts, chopped finely
Approx 1 cup chocolate chips, any flavor
shortening

Melt caramels and whipping cream over low heat. Dip and completely cover each pretzel with caramel...then place in chopped, using hands to kind of press and cover wands with nuts. Transfer to foil lined pan (can be sprayed lightly with nonstick spray). Put chocolate (about 1 cup) and a dollop of shortening (2 teaspoons or so), in a ziplock bag. Microwave on low heat till melted. Squish chocolate and shortening together until mixed well. Snip a tiny end off one corner of the bag, and drizzle the chocolate over the pretzels. Allow to set and store in an airtight container.
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These are a tried and true favorite at our house. I have been making them for 3 years and always gets rave reviews! They are the kind of thing that you intend to make ONLY to give away, but then you start to melt the caramels and it is all downhill from there. About 5 minutes after the pot is on the stove, I hear the telltale creak of the bottom step and my son is sneaking up, saying, "Whatcha' making, mom?". Then the snowball affect happens...my daughter hears the phrase of anything involving food. It is like a sugar radar. She is standing beside her brother, peering wondrously into the pot. ***Mental note to attach caramel scent to chore list.***

So, by the time the last pretzel is dipped and drizzled, the kids have suffered long enough. So, with only thoughts of keeping my poor starving dentist employed, I give the kids a pretzel. The "mmmmmmms " and "oooohs" are all I need to hear.

Now I scrape the bottom bits of caramel out of the pot, and know that I have done what every good mother should do: maintain the sugar high!