Are you hosting Thanksgiving dinner this year? We will be serving a traditional feast at our house this Thursday, and while I’m looking forward to spending time with family and enjoying an outrageously delicious meal, all of the food preparation can become a bit stressful and tiresome. That’s why it’s always nice to find some simple and fun ways to brighten up the Thanksgiving table…and these cute little Reese’s Turkeys do just the trick! Turkey never tasted so sweet!
These adorable and delectable peanut butter-filled chocolate turkeys are the perfect-sized treat to follow such a big meal. Or at least the perfect intermission between the turkey feast and the pumpkin pie dessert. π And the best part? They provide a fun and engaging way for your kiddos to contribute to the holiday festivities! I don’t know about your little ones, but our little nugget loves helping out in the kitchen. So, giving her an entire dessert to create all by herself (minus some help melting the chocolate in the microwave and cutting up a few Reese’s Pieces) just makes her whole day. And it gives us time to focus on all of the other dinner components. It’s a win-win!
If you’re kiddos still have some Halloween candy leftover, you may even get lucky and forgo an extra trip to the store for ingredients. We always have chocolate chips and candy eyeballs in the cupboard…so I just snagged a handful of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups (regular and small) and a few bags of Reese’s Pieces from our daughter’s Halloween haul.
Reese’s Turkeys
Ingredients:
- Reese’s Milk Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups (regular-size)
- Reese’s Milk Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups (small-size)
- Reese’s Pieces
- Chocolate Chips
- Candy Eyeballs
Instructions:
- Start by unwrapping all of your Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. If they feel a little soft, place them in the refrigerator for a few minutes.
- In a small microwave-safe bowl, melt a few spoonfuls of chocolate chips. Place them in the microwave for 20-30 second increments, stirring in between, until the chocolate melts completely.
- Place the melted chocolate into a small Ziploc bag. Cut a very small hole in one corner of the bag, so that you can pipe the melted chocolate onto the peanut butter cups.
- Place a dab of melted chocolate in the lower/middle of a regular-sized peanut butter cup. Place a small-sized peanut butter cup on top of the melted chocolate and press down gently.
- Pipe a small amount of melted chocolate around the remaining top area of the regular-sized peanut butter cup. Add your Reese’s Pieces (i.e. turkey feathers) in whichever colors/patterns you choose.
- Pipe two small dots of melted chocolate onto the small-sized peanut butter cup. Gently press a candy eyeball onto each dot of chocolate.
- Next, you want to carefully cut a few orange Reese’s Pieces in half. This step should be completed by an adult, with the use of a sharp knife.Β
- Once the beaks are cut, place a small dot of melted chocolate below the two candy eyeballs (in the center) and gently press a the beak into the melted chocolate.
- Repeat the above steps for each Reese’s Turkey that you wish to make.
- Let the turkeys sit for a few minutes (or pop them into the refrigerator) so that the melted chocolate can harden completely.
- Then it’s time to gobble them up! Enjoy!
Our little nugget had a great time making a small batch of these adorable Reese’s Turkeys! It proved to not only be a fun holiday activity…but an educational one as well. She counted out and paired up candy eyeballs, practiced creating different patterns with the turkey feathers, and put her fine motor skills to good use as she carefully added the various components onto each turkey. And when all was said and done…she was incredibly proud of her Thanksgiving contribution.
If you’re looking for another fun and easy way to add a little more holiday pizzazz to your Thanksgiving table, check out our festive Turkey Cheese Ball! It’s another recipe that is sure to make your little ones (and your Thanksgiving dinner guests) smile!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
