Chocolate Covered Pretzel Milkshakes have the sweet and salty flavor of pretzels mixed right into the drink!
Maybe I’ve been wrong this whole time. Maybe I’ve been barking up the wrong tree with this food writing thing. Maybe I’m wasting my time taking food photos. Maybe my life’s purpose, my main mission, my raison d’être, is just to shove random things in a blender with ice cream.
I mean, it worked with pie. And now, I’ve discovered that it works with chocolate-covered pretzels, too. What’s next? Crème brulee? Steamed beets? Sardines? WHO KNOWS? I’ve not yet begun to truly milkshake.
Yes, folks, I turned chocolate-covered pretzels into a milkshake flavor, and I’m not sorry.
It all started when I was reading this post from my friend Lynn at The Actor’s Diet. She mentioned stopping by a Dairy Queen and getting a “Choco Covered Pretzel” flavored Blizzard. It sounded amazing, but she said it actually wasn’t very exciting, and people would be better off just making their own at home instead.
“Maybe I will,” I whispered with determination under my breath. “Maybe I will.”
A chocolate-covered pretzel milkshake really is just what it sounds like. It starts with a handful of chocolate-dipped pretzels (homemade or store-bought) in the blender, chopped into small pieces. After adding some milk and ice cream, it’s all blended together to form an ultra-thick shake with small chunks of chocolate and salty bits of pretzels. The texture is similar to that of a cookies & cream milkshake, but the more savory flavor of the pretzels and the hit of salt make it a nice change from more traditional milkshake flavors. Here’s a close-up so you can get an idea of the texture of the finished product:
Since I’m all about gilding the lily (or dipping the pretzel, if you will) I added a few finishing touches, like streaks of fudge sauce and caramel in the milkshake cup, and a topping of whipped cream and chopped chocolate-dipped pretzels. They were nice additions, but honestly the plain milkshake is pretty bangin’ on its own.
It’s been ridiculously hot in LA this week, and these milkshakes were the perfect way to cool down during the heat wave. (Actually air conditioning would have been the perfect way, but ours isn’t working for a few more weeks. Not that it bothers me, no sir. I’m an oasis of serenity in this boiling cesspool of an overheated apartment.) We really loved them, and I think they’ll be out go-to treat this summer, and our new quick dessert when we have company over and don’t want to heat up the house. Try it, love it, and then tell me what other random things I should turn into milkshakes!
Recipe Notes: I’ve included optional instructions for making your own chocolate-dipped pretzels. Since they’ll be blended into the milkshake, there’s no need to temper the chocolate—regular melted chocolate will work just fine. But if you want to double or triple the batch and have extras for munching on, you might consider tempering the chocolate following these instructions. Tempering the chocolate will give the pretzels a nice shine and will make the chocolate more stable at room temperature.
🥛More Milkshake Recipes
Chocolate-Covered Pretzel Milkshakes
Ingredients
For the Chocolate-Covered Pretzels:
- 4 oz semi-sweet chocolate
- 10 large salted pretzels
For the Milkshake:
- 1 cup chocolate-covered pretzels, about 10 large pretzels, store-bought or homemade
- 1 quart vanilla ice cream, 4 cups, slightly softened
- 1/2 cup milk
- Optional garnishes, like whipped cream, fudge sauce, or caramel sauce
Instructions
Make the Chocolate-Covered Pretzels:
- Chop the semi-sweet chocolate into small pieces. Melt the chocolate in the microwave in 30-second increments, stirring after every 30 seconds to prevent overheating. Stir until the chocolate is melted and smooth.
- Cover a baking sheet with parchment or waxed paper. Use a fork to drop a pretzel in the chocolate, and push it down until it’s submerged. Take it out of the chocolate, let the excess drip back into the bowl, and then place the pretzel on the baking sheet. Once all of the pretzels are dipped, refrigerate the tray to set the chocolate, for about 15 minutes.
Make the Milkshake:
- Place the chocolate-covered pretzels in a blender. Blend them on medium speed until they’re broken up and in small chunks. No need to blend them to fine crumbs for now.
- Add the vanilla ice cream and the milk, and blend everything together. Stop the blender a few times and scrape down the sides with a spatula, to encourage even blending. Stop blending when the ice cream is no longer in chunks, and your milkshake is nice and thick. Pour into two large glasses and garnish with toppings of your choice, like whipped cream, fudge sauce, caramel sauce, or chopped pretzels.
Recipe Notes
Measuring Tips
Our recipes are developed using weight measurements, and we highly recommend using a kitchen scale for baking whenever possible. However, if you prefer to use cups, volume measurements are provided as well. PLEASE NOTE: the adage “8 oz = 1 cup” is NOT true when speaking about weight, so don’t be concerned if the measurements don’t fit this formula.
Want to learn more about baking measurements and conversion?
Sold. We are doing it.
Dooooo it!
“Maybe I’m wasting my time taking food photos”
Don’t be worry you don’t waste time when you are doing exactly what you want to do(even if people think differently) 🙂
Milkshake looks wonderful
Thanks! I could not agree with you more!
BRAVO!!!!!!!!
“You are the wiiiind beneath my wiiiiings!”
Steamed beets? No way, man–you’d have to go with roasted.
I love this so much. Few things in the world are as pure as the love of a good milkshake!
I am an avowed beet-hater, so it would be quite a challenge to make a beet milkshake palatable. I think it might involve a 10:1 ice cream:beet ratio…
I am So craving this milkshake now! I’m a DQ addict and have never noticed the chocolate covered pretzel blizzard … How did I miss that one!?!
I never see DQs so I don’t know if they have regional flavors or not–maybe that explains it? I think Lynn was in New Mexico when she spotted it. Time to recreate one in your kitchen!
And here I’ve been, all this time, CHEWING my pretzels like a sucker! When I could have been DRINKING them. Boy, do I feel foolish.
Looks amazing.
Haha rookie mistake! Save the chewing for bubble gum, and get thee to a blender!
These milkshakes look INSANE! Love the fudge & caramel stripes… might as well go all out when you’re making a milkshake!
Right? If you want to be healthy, make a smoothie. If you’re making a milkshake, might as well go crazy.
I am completely head over heels in love with this milkshake recipe!
Sooo many good milkshake ideas! Why do I have a blender I’ve never used? You’ve given my life (and my blender) a purpose.
I request something involving amaretto, nutella, or marshmallow next time. All 3? Things could get wild in that hot apartment…
I am loving the amaretto idea! Not so sold on amaretto-Nutella-marshmallow, but maybe you’re a culinary genius and I just don’t have the right vision. Thanks lady! 🙂
Oh, I can’t wait to make one of these! I think I’ll have to do it when the kids aren’t around so I don’t have to share with anyone! 🙂
Kids are the worst moochers! Why are they so obsessed with taking food from their hard-working parents? 🙂