Christmas Chocolate Trees Recipe tastes like a snappy chocolate bark with a fun crunch from a pretzel trunk and a sprinkle-studded finish. It suits kid helpers and busy hosts, and takes about 30 minutes total. I pipe these while holiday music plays and my kid steals the pretzels.
Easy Christmas Chocolate Trees Recipe
Christmas Chocolate Trees Recipe uses simple pantry chocolate and a quick piping method. You melt, pipe, and sprinkle. The freezer does the hard part while you sip cocoa.
You need zero baking skills and only basic tools. The design looks fancy, but the steps feel straightforward. Smudges still look like branches, so the trees stay charming even when little hands help.
Ingredients You Need
- 12 to 16 pretzel rods or thick pretzel sticks (gluten-free pretzels work)
- 12 ounces dark or semi-sweet chocolate chips or baking wafers (I like Ghirardelli or Guittard for smooth melt)
- 4 ounces white chocolate chips or wafers, optional for snowy accents
- 1 to 2 teaspoons neutral oil or refined coconut oil, optional for shinier set if you skip tempering
- Assorted holiday sprinkles, nonpareils, mini stars, crushed peppermint, or shredded coconut
- Pinch of fine sea salt, optional to sharpen the chocolate flavor
Pantry shortcuts and swaps:
- Candy melts hold shape well and resist warm rooms. Use them if your kitchen runs toasty.
- Use milk chocolate for a sweeter bite, or stick with dark chocolate for a richer snap.
- No pretzels on hand? Use paper lollipop sticks or thin candy canes as trunks.
Equipment:
- 2 piping bags or zip-top bags
- Small round piping tip (like Wilton #3 or #4) for clean lines, optional
- 2 sheet pans lined with parchment or silicone mats
- Microwave-safe bowls or a double boiler
- Small offset spatula or spoon
- Cooling space in the fridge or freezer
How to Make Christmas Chocolate Trees
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes, plus 10 minutes to set
- Line sheet pans with parchment. Arrange pretzel sticks with 4 inches of space between each.
- Melt dark chocolate. Microwave in a bowl at 50 percent power in 30-second bursts until smooth, stirring between bursts. Or set a bowl over barely simmering water and stir until glossy.
- Stir in 1 teaspoon oil if you want an easier drizzle. Add a pinch of salt if you like a sweet-salty bite.
- Fill a piping bag with the dark chocolate. Snip a small tip. Test a squiggle on parchment to gauge flow.
- Pipe a small dot of chocolate on the parchment. Press the top of a pretzel into the dot to anchor it.
- Pipe the tree branches over the pretzel. Start near the top with a short line across the pretzel, then pipe longer lines as you move down. Let chocolate overlap the pretzel so it bonds.
- Add sprinkles right away. The chocolate firms fast, so decorate each tree right after piping it.
- For snow caps, melt white chocolate and pipe a zigzag or a star at the top. You can also drizzle thin stripes for a birch-tree look.
- Chill the trays. Slide them into the fridge for 10 to 15 minutes or the freezer for 5 to 7 minutes until the chocolate sets firm.
- Lift the trees by the pretzel base. If a branch breaks, glue it with a touch of warm chocolate and chill again.
Tips & Common Mistakes
- Dry bowls and tools fully. A drop of water seizes chocolate and turns it grainy.
- Keep the room cool. Warm rooms soften piped branches and reduce definition.
- Pipe thicker lines near the base. Thin lines snap more easily during lifting.
- Work in small batches. Pipe 4 to 6 trees, then sprinkle, then move on so the chocolate stays tacky for decor.
- Use decent chocolate. Baking wafers melt smoother than some chips that contain stabilizers.
- Skip overheating. Melt at gentle power and stir often to avoid burnt notes.
- Anchor the pretzel with a chocolate dot. The trunk stays put and the tree holds shape.
- Store with parchment between layers. Direct contact scuffs the decoration.
- Want extra shine without tempering? Stir in a little oil and chill briefly, not for hours.
Variations I’ve Tried
- Peppermint bark trees: Mix crushed candy cane into dark chocolate and drizzle with white chocolate.
- Pistachio-cranberry trees: Sprinkle chopped pistachios and dried cranberries for salty-sweet pops of color.
- Matcha snow: Tint white chocolate with a pinch of matcha for pale green branches.
- Triple chocolate: Pipe dark chocolate trees, add milk chocolate stripes, then a white chocolate star.
- Nutty crunch: Press toasted almond slivers or hazelnut bits into the branches for texture.
How to Serve Christmas Chocolate Trees
Set the trees on a cookie platter alongside gingerbread and sugar cookies for a festive forest scene. Perch one on each cupcake or brownie square as an instant holiday topper. Tuck a pair into hot cocoa with whipped cream for a photo-ready mug. Wrap two or three trees in clear bags with ribbon for sweet gifts.
Make-Ahead and Storage
Store the chocolate trees in an airtight container with parchment between layers. Keep them at cool room temperature for up to 5 days, or in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. Freeze for up to 2 months; thaw in the fridge, then let them sit at room temperature for 10 minutes before serving. No reheating needed; if a branch loosens, warm a teaspoon of chocolate and use it as glue.
Nutrition Information
Approximate per tree (based on 16 trees): 140 calories; 9 g fat; 13 g carbs; 2 g protein; 45 mg sodium. Values vary by chocolate type, toppings, and size. Contains gluten if you use regular pretzels; use gluten-free pretzels for a gluten-free option. Contains soy or dairy if your chocolate includes them.
Christmas Chocolate Trees Recipe
Ingredients
Instructions
- Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Melt the dark chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl or over a double boiler, stirring until smooth.
- Spoon the melted dark chocolate into a piping bag or a zip-top bag with a small tip cut off.
- Pipe tree shapes onto the parchment paper, about 3 inches tall and 2 inches wide, making sure the bottom of each tree overlaps a pretzel stick as the trunk.
- Melt the white chocolate and drizzle it over the chocolate trees for a snow effect.
- While the chocolate is still wet, scatter mini sprinkles over the trees to decorate.
- Allow the chocolate trees to set at room temperature or refrigerate for 15-20 minutes until firm.
- Carefully lift the trees from the parchment paper and arrange on a festive platter.