Pretzel Turtles

This recipe is out of Everyday with Rachael Ray Dec/Jan 2008. This recipe calls for dark chocolate, but I think milk chocolate would be yummy too! Time doesn't include time needed for setting chocolate.

• Ready In: 1 hr 10 mins
• Serves: 50
• Yields: 50 turtles

Ingredients

• 1 (14 ounce) bag  soft  caramels (4 dozen)
• 1 (10 ounce) bag  pretzel nuggets
• 12  ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped
• 2  cups  natural almonds, toasted and finely chopped

Directions

1. Unwrap the caramels, then using a rolling pin, roll out each one into a 1/8 inch oval. Wrap a caramel around each pretzel nugget, pinching the ends to seal.
2. In a double boiler over simmering water, melt half the chocolate, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Add the remaining chocolate, remove the top of the double boiler from the saucepan and stir until smooth.
3. Place the almonds in a shallow bowl. Line a baking sheet with wax paper. Using a fork, dip a caramel covered pretzel in the chocolate to coat, tapping off any excess chocolate. Transfer the pretzel to the almonds and toss to coat; place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining pretzels. Let stand until set about 3 hours.