OHHH yes 🐢🍫🍯 — turtle clusters are dangerously snackable. Here’s a classic, no-fail version plus a couple of fun upgrades.
🐢 Classic Turtle Clusters
Ingredients
- 2 cups pecan halves
- 1 cup soft caramels (or caramel bits)
- 2 tbsp heavy cream or milk
- 1½–2 cups chocolate (semi-sweet or dark), chopped or chips
- Flaky sea salt (optional but elite)
👩🍳 Instructions
- Toast pecans
Lightly toast in a dry pan or oven (175°C / 350°F, 5–7 min). Cool. - Form clusters
Place 3–4 pecan halves in small piles on parchment paper. - Melt caramel
Heat caramels with cream gently (microwave or stovetop) until smooth. - Spoon caramel
Drizzle or spoon caramel over each pecan cluster. - Melt chocolate
Melt chocolate until smooth. - Top with chocolate
Spoon chocolate over caramel, letting some pecans peek out. - Finish
Sprinkle lightly with flaky salt. Chill 20–30 minutes till set.
🔥 Pro Tips
- Use good chocolate—it makes a huge difference.
- Don’t drown the pecans; let the layers show.
- If caramel is too thick, add cream ½ tsp at a time.
- Store in an airtight container (if they survive that long).
😏 Fun Variations
- Pretzel turtles: add a mini pretzel under the pecans.
- Dark chocolate + espresso salt for grown-up vibes.
- Peanut or cashew turtles if pecans aren’t your thing.
- White chocolate drizzle for fancy bakery looks.
If you want, I can give you a 5-minute microwave-only version, a holiday gift batch, or a clean-cut square version for packaging 🎁🍫
