Caramel Apple Pretzel Bites

These vegan caramel apple pretzel bites start with a chocolate pretzel base, get piled high with diced green apple stirred into dairy-free no-cook SunButter caramel, then finished with a chocolate drizzle and crushed pretzel crumbs. Made in a mini muffin pan for easy bite-sized snacking — no candy thermometer, no baking the caramel, just simple stir-and-assemble fall flavor. Gluten-free and vegan!

SPONSORED BY SUNBUTTER

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If you love a caramel apple, wait till you try this tiny twist. These caramel apple pretzel bites take everything you love about the classic fall treat — sweet caramel, tart apple, a little crunch — and turn it into an easy no-bake bite that won’t end up all over your face. A crushed pretzel base gets pressed into a mini muffin pan and set with melted chocolate, then piled high with diced green apple stirred into a dairy-free SunButter caramel. Finish it off with a chocolate drizzle and a scatter of pretzel crumbs, and you’ve got the sweet-salty, crunchy-chewy combo that makes fall snacking so good. No candy thermometer, no fussy caramel-making, and totally vegan and gluten-free!

Why You’ll Love These Caramel Apple Pretzel Bites

• Sweet, salty, and made for sharing. Crunchy salty pretzel, gooey sweet caramel, tart green apple, and a finish of melty chocolate all in one bite
• No-heat, no candy thermometer. The caramel comes together with a simple whis, no cooking, no worrying about it seizing up or burning.
• Mini muffin pan = perfectly sized. No toothpicks, no messy dipping. Just press, fill, and pop them out once set.
• Vegan and gluten-free. Made with a dairy-free SunButter caramel and gluten-free pretzels, easily vegan and gluten-free.
• Great make-ahead snack. Whip up a batch for a fall gathering, game day, or just to have on hand for sweet fall snacking.

Ingredients You’ll Need

You only need a handful of ingredients to pull these together:

• Pretzels – crushed for the base. Use gluten-free pretzels to keep the whole recipe GF.
• Chocolate – melted and poured over the pretzels to hold them together, plus more for the drizzle on top. Use dairy-free chocolate chips to keep it vegan.
• SunButter – the yummy base of the no-cook caramel. It whisks up smooth and has that naturally caramel-y flavor without any dairy. I used Organic, but any of the creamy varieties will work here.
• Liquid sweetener – maple syrup is my favorite this time of year.
• Coconut oil – helps the caramel set up and gives it that glossy, pourable texture.
• Vanilla + salt – for flavor balance in the caramel. Don’t skip the salt, it’s what makes the whole thing taste like an actual caramel.
• Green apple – diced small and stirred right into the caramel for tartness and crunch. Granny Smith is the classic caramel apple pick here.
  

How to Make Caramel Apple Pretzel Bites

The Chocolate Pretzel Base

Start by crushing your pretzels and melting your chocolate. Press a spoonful of crushed pretzels into the bottom of each cup of a mini muffin pan (or tuck in a whole mini pretzel if it fits), then spoon a little melted chocolate over top to bind everything together. Tap the pan a few times to help everything settle and create a cohesive “crust” layer.

The No-Cook SunButter Caramel

While the base is setting, whisk together the SunButter, liquid sweetener, coconut oil, vanilla, and salt until smooth and glossy. All of your ingredients should be at room temperature, and it’s best to have the coconut liquid/melted. Once it’s silky, fold in the diced green apple so every bite gets that sweet-tart pop. I do recommend dicing the apple very finely, you want small chunks since the cups themselves are mini to start with

Assembling the Bites

Spoon the apple caramel mixture generously over each “crust”, piling it up as high as you’d like. Finish with a drizzle of melted chocolate over the top, then sprinkle with crushed pretzels for extra crunch. Let the bites set in the fridge until firm, then pop them out of the pan and dig in.

Tips for the Best Pretzel Bites

A crushed pretzel base gives every bite an even crunch throughout, but if you’d rather skip the crushing step, a whole mini pretzel works great too and gives you that classic pretzel snap in each bite. Either way, go tart with your apple. A Granny Smith is the move here since its tartness balances out all that sweet caramel and chocolate. A sweeter apple will still work, but the bites will taste more one-note. Dice the apple small so it mixes into the caramel evenly, rather than having one big chunk take over a bite.

The SunButter caramel firms up as it sits, so give it a quick re-whisk if it stiffens before you’ve spooned it over all the bites. Once everything’s assembled, let the bites chill until fully set before popping them out of the pan to minimize messy fingers and make sure the bites hold together properly. When you’re ready to eat, let them sit out for about 5 minutes first. Straight from the fridge the caramel is a little firm, but a few minutes at room temp lets it soften back into that gooey, melt-in-your-mouth texture.

Recipe FAQs

More Fall Apple Recipes You’ll Love

• 5-Minute Caramel Apple Butter — a naturally-sweetened, no-cook caramel apple butter made right in the blender
• Pumpkin Caramel Cheesecake — vegan + gluten-free, with a SunButter caramel swirl
• Caramel Apple Sandwich Cookies — chewy spiced apple cookies glazed green and filled with a salty-sweet medjool date caramel
• Caramel Cookie Dough Protein Bars — chewy grain-free cookie dough layered with gooey caramel and dark chocolate

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