Easy King Cake Pretzel Bark: The Ultimate Sweet & Salty Mardi Gras Treat

Looking for a festive Mardi Gras dessert that combines a satisfying crunch with the classic flavors of New Orleans? This Easy King Cake Pretzel Bark is the ultimate holiday snack, featuring a rich, oven-baked toffee layer poured over cinnamon sugar pretzels and topped with a velvety white chocolate finish and a drizzle of the tricolors of Mardi Gras. Forget the hassle of yeast dough; this recipe uses simple ingredients and a quick trip to the oven to create a budget-friendly holiday treat that captures the iconic purple, green, and gold spirit of Fat Tuesday.

Ingredients for King Cake Pretzel Bark - Here's What You'll Need

Steps To Make Easy King Cake Pretzel Bark

1. Preheat your oven to 400°F. Then line the bottom and sides of a large rimmed half sheet pan with parchment paper. If you have oven-proof clips, use them to secure the parchment paper to the pan. Then, place a single layer of Snack Factory Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels, touching but not overlapping, covering the entire bottom of the pan.

2. Next, place a small saucepan on the stove over medium-high heat. Cut the unsalted butter into cubes and add it to the pan.

3. Once the butter has melted, add the brown sugar and cinnamon.

3. Then whisk everything together. Continue whisking occasionally until the brown sugar has melted and the mixture begins to boil.

4. Once the mixture comes to a boil, allow it to boil without whisking or stirring for three minutes.

5. After three minutes add the vanilla extract and remove from the heat.

6. Then, carefully pour the toffee mixture over the pretzels on the prepared pan, making sure to cover each pretzel with the mixture. Then place in a 400°F oven for ten minutes, until the toffee is bubbling.

7. After ten minutes, remove the pan from the oven. Allow it to cool slightly so the toffee will harden before topping with white chocolate. At this point, if you have used them, you can remove the oven-proof clips.

8. Place the Ghirardelli White Melting Wafers in a medium-size microwave proof bowl. Heat in the microwave at 50% power for 30-second intervals until it has melted, and is smooth and creamy. Make sure to stir it after each heating. It took me a total of four minutes.

9. If there is any butter that has separated from the toffee, pour it off before topping it with the white chocolate. Then pour the melted chocolate over the hardened toffee.

10. Use a rubber spatula to spread the melted white chocolate into an even layer, covering the entire surface of the toffee.

11. Next, place the purple, green, and yellow candy melts in piping bags. Place the piping bags in a microwave-proof glass or container so they are standing upright. Melt each color individually in the microwave for 30-second intervals at 50% power until the candy has melted. This should take about three minutes for each color. Make sure you squeeze the melts in the bag after each heating. This will help break them down because they will retain their shape even when melted, and you run the risk of over-melting, which will cause them to thicken. If they do thicken, you will be unable to pipe them.
    If at any point while you're piping the candy melts they begin to get hard and you cannot pipe them anymore, simply place the bag back in the microwave and reheat for 30 seconds at 50% power.

12. After the candy melts have melted, snip the tip off the green bag. Start in one corner of the pan and pipe in one continuous movement across horizontally, in a straight line, until you reach the end. Then, move up slightly and continue across the pan horizontally in the opposite direction. Continue this horizontal movement back and forth across the pan until you reach the end. You should only use about half of the green because you will be making another pass with it after you have piped the purple and yellow.

13. Next, snip the tip off the purple bag. Starting at the same side of the pan that you started the green, but at the other corner, pipe in one continuous vertical movement, in a straight line, until you reach the end of the pan. Then, move over slightly and pipe down vertically until you reach the bottom of the pan. Continue this vertical movement up and down the pan until you reach the end. You should only use about half of the purple because you will be making another pass with it after you have piped the yellow and second pass of the green.

14. Next, snip the tip off the yellow bag. Start in the same corner where you started the purple and pipe in a zig-zag pattern back and forth across the pan until you reach the caddy corner. You should only use about half of the yellow because you will be making another pass with it after you have piped the second passes of the green and purple.

15. To make the second pass of green, start in the same corner you started the purple and pipe next to the purple line in one continuous vertical movement, in a straight line, until you reach the end of the pan. Then, move over slightly and pipe down vertically until you reach the bottom of the pan. Continue this vertical movement up and down the pan until you reach the end. You should try your best not to cover the green, but pipe in between the purple lines.

16. To make the second pass with the purple, start in the same place where you started the first pass with the green. Pipe in one continuous movement across horizontally, in a straight line, until you reach the end. Then, move up slightly and continue across the pan horizontally in the opposite direction. Continue this horizontal movement back and forth across the pan until you reach the end. You should try your best to pipe in-between the first green lines that you piped.

17. To make the second pass with the yellow, start in try same corner where you started the first pass with the green, at the bottom of the pan, and pipe in a zig-zag pattern back and forth across the pan until you reach the caddy corner. You should be piping across the first pass of the yellow, not in the same direction.

18. Allow the melted candy to harden, then remove it from the pan by lifting the parchment out. Place it on a large surface to cut into pieces. To do this, use a large knife and press down where you want to make the cuts. It should break apart pretty easy.

Whether you're looking for a last-minute Mardi Gras snack or a unique alternative to traditional cakes, this Easy King Cake Pretzel Bark is a guaranteed showstopper. Its portable nature and vibrant colors make it a "Mardi Gras magic" experience that brings the party wherever you go. Grab your ingredients, turn up the jazz, and let the good times roll!