Something Special About December: Cookies and pretzels, covered in chocolate

Today’s Something Special About December is a tasty treat and a daddy-daughter tradition.

Years ago I was looking for something fun to make to slip into Christmas packages heading out of state, and to share with co-workers.

We started by dipping Oreos in melted chocolate chips, using a double boiler, carefully carrying the dripping cookies over to the counter, where Caroline could smother them in sprinkles.

This created a pretty big mess, with a trail of chocolate from the stove to the counter. Then there was the burned fingertips from trying to keep a double boiler going.

When there wasn’t enough chocolate left in the bowl to cover a cookie, we started dipping mini pretzel sticks, just because we didn’t want to waste chocolate.

We learned several things.

First, Double-Stuff Oreos don’t work because the center melts while the chocolate coating cools, sending the top cookie sliding off.

Then, we found that while people liked the covered cookies, they loved the pretzels. There’s a neat sweet and salty thing going on, and they’re easier to eat.

We’ve improved our technique over the years, discovering melting chocolate in the craft stores and switching to an electric fondue pot, which makes a world of difference – and keeps the floor a lot cleaner.

And we’ve switched from making a lot of dipped cookies and some pretzels to some cookies and a whole bunch of pretzels of varying shapes.

This year was a little different, with my sprinkle applier off at college, so I was pressed into double duty. They might not look as pretty, but should still taste good!