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| Spider Web Pretzel Treats |
I did an earlier post in this series on spider webs because, to me, there's nothing quite like witnessing the tallgrass prairie on a damp and dewy October morning...seeing hundreds of spider webs glistening in morning sunlight, each outlined and threaded in, what looks like, a million tiny diamonds. It's simply amazing! 🕸
Today I conducted two preschool programs at the local library...one in the morning and one in the afternoon. The theme? Spiders and spider webs, of course! 🕷🕸🕷🕸🕷🕸
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| A Variety of Books on Spiders and Spider Webs |
I read two books to the children - Spiders by Gail Gibbons and Aaaarrgghh! Spider! by Lydia Monks.
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| Spiders by Gail Gibbons |
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| Aaaarrgghh! Spider! by Lydia Monks |
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| Happy Children Getting Ready to Learn About Spiders and Their Webs |
Then, I took the children on a "hike" around the library to look for spiders and their webs. These were just pictures of spiders and spider webs that I had printed off, laminated, and put up in various places around the library.
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| Spider in Web |
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| Spider Web in Tallgrass Prairie |
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| Garden Spider in Web |
After the "hike" it was table time. We talked about different kinds of webs (orb, tangle, funnel, sheet, and triangle) and what their purpose is (to catch food). Then, the children did lacing cards of orb and tangle webs and drew pictures of spiders and their webs.
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| Sweet Girl With Lacing Card |
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| Drawing Spider and Web |
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| Drawing Spiders and Webs |
After that, I presented each child with a special treat that I had prepared for them - Spider Web Pretzel Treats.
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| Spider Web Pretzel Treats Were a Big Hit |
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| Spider Web Pretzel Treats Were a Big Hit |
A friend of mine had sent me the original idea from something that she had seen on Pinterest. What I created most likely would be considered a Pinterest fail because what I ended up with looks nothing like the original.
Since the library programs are geared for preschoolers, and my supplies were limited, I didn't feel that the webs needed to be big, so I broke the pretzels in half and made tiny webs instead. I wasn't good at slinging the candy coating at all, but I think the finished product turned out just fine. The children seemed to enjoy them and that's all that really mattered.
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| The Spider Web Pretzel Treats That I Came Up With |
Some of the children recycled their spider by gluing them to the pictures of spider webs that they had drawn.
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| Spider and Web Drawings With Recycled Spider |
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| Spider and Web Drawings With Recycled Spider |
To make the treats here is what I did...
SPIDER WEB PRETZEL TREATS
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| I started with a package of Snyder's of Hanover Stick Pretzels... |
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| ...and a package of Wilton Bright White (Vanilla) Candy Melts... |
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| ...and a cheap package of black spider rings. |
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I cut the circle part of the spider rings off leaving
just the flat spider portion of the rings to be used. |
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| After melting the candy melts in a double-boiler, I put about a quarter-sized blob of melted candy on a wax-papered, flat surface. |
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After breaking pretzel sticks in half, I used eight
half-sticks to form evenly spaced spokes in the circle
of melted candy. I laid out a dozen of these at a time. |
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Next, using a fork, I started slinging melted candy
around in a circle over top of several of the spoked-
pretzels at a time. Like I said, I wasn't real proficient
at this and never did figure out how to get it to come
out as nice as the ones pictured in the original recipe. |
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I topped each spoked-pretzel web with another blob of
melted candy and embellished each with a flat plastic
spider. After that, I left the webs to cool completely allowing
the candy to re-harden. At that point, using a large
spatula, I removed the finished webs from the surface and
layered them between pieces of waxed paper on a cookie
sheet, sealing the whole thing with plastic wrap. |
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One bag of candy melts made about three and
half dozen Spider Web Pretzel Treats. |
Well...that's it for this time! Does anyone here know how to sling that candy to make it come out right? If anyone tries making this treat, I'd love to hear how yours turned out, so, please, share your advice and experience in the comments below.
Until next time,
~Rebecca
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Looks like the kids had so much fun! I bet those spider web treats tasted great. It looks to me like they piped the candy coating on the ones in the Pinterest picture. I don't see a fork giving such even results.
ReplyDeleteThe kids seemed to really enjoy it, Jean, and, yes, the treats did taste great! How can you go wrong with sweet and salty??? LOL! You might be right about the piping. I think the instructions said to use a spoon...which I tried...but that didn't work either. Next time (if there is a next time) I'll try that. Thanks for the idea! Blessings! :)
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