5  | 

I found this helpful Thank You! Your vote will be tallied soon!

In my house the hands-down favorite dress-up outfit is fairies. Gossamer wings, fluttery skirts and sparkly wands make for the perfect game of pretend. The girls race around the house bestowing us all with sprinklings of fairy dust, wishes granted and spells cast. I recall my own fairy costume as a child, and as fun as it was, it was never the same without the wand. Waving of hands or nodding of heads didn't cut it when a spell really needed to be performed, and it's the same for my girls. There's just something about the waving of the wand that completes the picture.

These wands aren't the waving kind, but they sure are just as popular. Any size pretzel will do, but my kids like the smaller versions, and my bet is that it has something to do with less pretzel and more chocolate. The largest pretzel rod is great for dipping, but fairies are little and dainty, which is why we chose smaller this time. Our favorite pretzel stick is the honey wheat kind, but the littlest sticks are just as good when dipped. White chocolate is prettier for wands since it's also the perfect backdrop for the many colors of sugar, sprinkles and confetti available. Set them up in 'sparkly' colored sugars for a pretty presentation.

Fairy Wands

Hands-On Time: 15 minutes
Ready In: 45 minutes
Servings: Negotiable

Ingredients:

Pretzel Sticks - several dozen if using the smaller ones
White chocolate chips - a 12 ounce bag covers quite a bit
1 tablespoon shortening
Several colors and shapes of sugar, sprinkles and confetti

Directions:

1. Melt chocolate chips and shortening together until smooth.
2. Dip the top third of each pretzel stick into the melted chocolate.
3. Sprinkle with sugar or confetti sprinkles.
4. Set on waxed paper, parchment or foil and let stand until set, about 15 - 30 minutes.
5. Stand up in colored sugar.