Embrace your wild side and make these Jungle Animal Pretzel Pops! These treats are so much fun to make with your kids and create their favorite animal!
I've gone wild decorating these Chocolate Pretzel Jungle Animals. I'll admit that most of my edible craft projects are incredibly fun for me to create, but turning ordinary chocolate-dipped pretzel rods into animals has made me downright giddy.
Earlier this week, I decorated some Farm Animal Pretzels using modeling chocolate, and they were cute, really cute, actually. My Farm Animal Pretzels were inspired by Crafts by Amanda's adorably decorated craft sticks. The designs were pretty simple.
With my jungle animals, I decided to kick it up a notch and add a bit more detail. I went a little nuts with the elephant, but all that detail was worth it. He is my absolute favorite design, so far, anyway!
I had just finished making the lion and tiger when my exchange student came home from school.
She was excited to try her hand at designing a pretzel animal and she created the giraffe. It's fantastic, isn't it?
Each animal took me between ten to twenty minutes to design and as simple as the hippo looks, it took the most effort. At first, I just couldn't get the nose to look right. I think I finally got it. You can tell just how much I love the elephant based on the number of pictures I took of it.
My exchange student and I have already made several more to share with you, most of which are much simpler than this herd of jungle animals.
Jungle Animal Pretzel Pops
Before you begin, you can use candies like Tootsie Rolls, salt water taffy, Laffy Taffy, Airheads, or Starburst Fruit Chews to create the decorations, but with these designs, I highly recommend using modeling chocolate (recipe here.). You can make one batch of white modeling chocolate and add coloring to each design.
Tip
To keep the chocolate from cracking on your pretzels. Chocolate shrinks as it cools and when it shrinks onto something hard, it usually cracks. If you take the pretzels out of the bag and allow them to sit at room temperature for several hours or overnight they will soften just enough to keep this from happening, but not enough to become stale.
Ingredients
- melted and tempered white and milk chocolate OR melted white or light cocoa confectionery coating/candy melts
- pretzel rods
- candy eyes or black edible pearls
- homemade modeling chocolate (or candies like Tootsie Rolls, Laffy Taffy, Airheads, Starbust, etc.)
- candy coloring
- black and brown food coloring markers
Supplies
- baking pans lined with parchment paper
- tweezers (used for food only)
- kitchen shears or knife
- optional: rolling pin, small metal cutters
Instructions
Either dip your pretzels into the melted and tempered pure chocolate or melted confectionery coating/candy melts or spoon it over the surface of the pretzel, leaving the tip you are holding, uncovered.
Shake off excess chocolate before setting the dipped pretzels on your parchment paper-lined baking pans. If using pure chocolate, one coat will probably be sufficient to cover the pretzel rods. If using confectionery coating/candy melts, you might want to put on two coats.
Refrigerate if using pure chocolate, and freeze if using candy coating just until set. If freezing, it will only take about 3-4 minutes. Don't leave them in too long or the candy coating will crack.
If you are making an entire zoo full of different animals and are using confectionery coating/candy melts, you might want to consider using an electric skillet to keep small bowls of colored candy coating melted. For detailed instructions, see my Chocolate Making Tips page.
Decorate your pretzels using modeling chocolate or assorted candy.
You can either pinch off pieces of the modeling chocolate or candy and shape them into ears, spots, manes, noses, trunks, etc., or roll the modeling chocolate or candy out using a rolling pin and then cut using small metal cutters or kitchen shears.
I did a combination of the techniques. Then use melted chocolate as "glue" to attach the candy to the chocolate-dipped pretzels. You can use corn syrup to attach pieces of modeling chocolate to other pieces of modeling chocolate, like when adding the nose to the lion's face.
Elephant
dip the pretzel rod in grey candy melts
2 black edible pearls - eyes
ears and trunk from grey modeling chocolate
tusk from white modeling chocolate
Zebra
dip a pretzel in white
2 candy eyes
snout and ears from white modeling chocolate or salt water taffy or Airheads
mane from black modeling chocolate or Tootsie Rolls or black salt water taffy
draw on the nose using a black food coloring marker
Lion
dip pretzel in yellow/orange
2 candy eyes
face and ears from yellow modeling chocolate, Lemon Tootsie Rolls or yellow taffy
mane from orange modeling chocolate, or Orange Air Heads, Starburst, or orange taffy
nose from brown modeling chocolate or chocolate salt water taffy
Monkey
dip pretzel rod in milk chocolate
2 candy eyes
face and ears from brown modeling chocolate or chocolate taffy
nose and fur in ears from tan-colored modeling chocolate or caramels
use a black food coloring marker to draw on the nose and smile
Giraffe
dip pretzel rod in yellow/orange
2 candy eyes
ears and face from yellow modeling chocolate or Lemon Tootsie Rolls or yellow taffy
snout, antlers, and spots from brown modeling chocolate or Tootsie Rolls or chocolate taffy
draw spots on the face using a brown food coloring marker
Tiger
dip pretzel rod in orange
2 candy eyes
ears and face from orange modeling chocolate or Orange Airheads, Starburst, or orange taffy
snout from white modeling chocolate or Vanilla Tootsie Rolls or Airheads
nose from black modeling chocolate, chocolate Tootsie Roll, or chocolate Taffy
draw stripes on the face and pretzel using a black food coloring marker
Hippo
2 black edible pearls - eyes
head and ears from grey modeling chocolate
nose from light grey modeling chocolate
teeth from white modeling chocolate or Vanilla Tootsie Rolls
make indentations for the nose using the back end of a skewer, and use the point to make the spots
Related Recipes
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Stephanie says
These are so stinking cute. I want to run out and get the ingrediants right now to make these.
Melissa says
These are amazing! Awesome works of art. 🙂
Tiffany@Fizzy Party! says
Oh my goodness those are adorable. I bet kids would love these.
Linda V @ Bubble and Sweet says
Oh My Goodness these are too adorable. I just love the giraffe, and the monkey, awe the zebra has the cutest hair and the tiger is the sweetest. I can't pick a favorite, love them all 🙂
Beth Jackson Klosterboer says
I'm with you Linda, it is so hard to choose which one is the cutest. Every time I look at them, I change my mind.
Anonymous says
WOW! You and you pretzel animals are amazing! I can't pick a favorite, all of them are amazing 🙂
Brenda @ sweetsimplestuff
Beth Jackson Klosterboer says
Thanks, Brenda. I'm glad you like them:)
The Partiologist says
Oh my, I didn't think they could get any cuter, but they have. It would be impossible for me to pick a favorite because I love them all. You should have a little neighbor boy/girl name them - and BTW, Ilim did a fantastic job!!! 🙂
Beth Jackson Klosterboer says
She and I have been in the kitchen this afternoon making some more. It's so nice to have someone to work with, especially someone who is so enthusiastic.
sugarswings says
love them all! great detail, any kid or grown up would love these!!
Beth Jackson Klosterboer says
Thanks!
Jennifer OConnor says
These pretzels are so cute!
Beth Jackson Klosterboer says
Thank you, Jennifer.
Carrie - Worth Pinning says
Those are crazy cute!
Beth Jackson Klosterboer says
Thanks, Carrie.
Anonymous says
Kind of thought my first post didn't send properly so last 2 annonymous posts above are mine & now out of order. Here goes from 1st post.
You want us to decide which jungle animal we like the best??? Are you KIDDING me - they're all wonderful. The close-up photos are especially nice in that they show all the details.
The elephant has it's trunk in the "up" position (which means good luck) and it also makes him/her look happy.
Your exchange student made the giraffe - she learned from the best. Kudos to her. Bet her fellow exchange students are jealous she got such a fun and creative hostess.
Have never made the moldeling chocolate (little intimidated at the thought), but it would be much easier than buying candies & trying to attach them. Just make a batch, color it various colors and you're good to go. Just looked at your post for the recipe and you make it look so easy so will give it a whirl.
My "stash" of cookie cutters & tiny cutters has increased since following you, taking on a life of its own. In 1st post I suggested maybe it would be fun to give your jungle creatures names (hence the ideas above). "Lucy the Lion"
Thanks for taking us on an African safari without our having to even update our passports.
Tavette
Beth Jackson Klosterboer says
It is always so wonderful to read your comments, Tavette. My exchange student has had a wonderful time here, and I'm so happy to see her creativity blossom under my tutelage. It is so nice to have her work with me in the kitchen.
Modeling chocolate can be a bit tricky, but honestly, once you master making it, it is so fast and easy to work with. I can pour corn syrup into a small bowl of chocolate and turn it into modeling chocolate without measuring anything. I just know how it should look and feel. The most important thing to remember is to allow the chocolate to cool to 90-91 degrees Fahrenheit before adding the corn syrup.
Good luck and let me know if you have any questions when you give the recipe a try.
Anonymous says
"Herman the Hippo" - "Murphy the Monkey" - "Leonard or Leopold the Lion", "Jeromy the Giraffe" ..... still thinking. Know your readers will come up with some good names.
Beth Jackson Klosterboer says
I love each and every name. SO FUN!!!!
Anonymous says
Yah - let's think of cute names for these oh-too-adorable jungle animals. like (maybe) "Ziggy the Zebra". Just thinking....
Tavette
Beth Jackson Klosterboer says
I love that you want to name them! That is so fun!
Kalamity Kelli says
When your exchange student goes home, they are going to have talent like no one else - probably in their entire country! Very lucky - I love the giraffe - and the elephant!
Beth Jackson Klosterboer says
I am so happy that she has had so much fun learning a new skill. She really has mastered chocolate making. She was nervous to make an animal, thinking it wouldn't turn out well. She was thrilled to see how well she did. She made some more animals for our pet collection which I'll post in a few days.
The Bearfoot Baker says
You are killing me with cuteness! I love your creativity!!
Beth Jackson Klosterboer says
I thought it was so funny to see two comments about killing with cuteness. I laughed out loud and my husband asked what was so funny. He immediately commented "No animals were harmed in the making of these pretzels" 🙂
Lisa@hooplapalooza says
ok Beth so i really cannot pick a favorite. i just know i would have a difficult time eating these, as i would rather stare at them all day. their cuteness kills me :>D
Beth Jackson Klosterboer says
No animals were harmed in the making of these pretzels :> My husband, thought that was a funny response!!!!
Laura says
I ran across your blog today via pinterest. I just want to commend you on your creativity. I am really impressed with the cute and colorful food you make! My boys would be very impressed if I made any of the food you have blogged. Thanks for sharing your creations on this blog!
Beth Jackson Klosterboer says
Thanks, Laura. I'm glad you stopped by and enjoyed my projects.
Anonymous says
P. S. The Elephant is my favorite too. Trish Butler
Anonymous says
Beth, I'm at a lose for words and that doesn't happen very often. I love them all, but the details on the hippo are great. See what happens when you take some time for yourself? Magic! Thank you once again for you talent and time. Trish Butler
Faygie Fellig says
incredible! awesome! you are soooo talented.
Jill @ KitchenFunWithMy3Sons.com says
Very cute Beth! The Elephant is my favorite!:)