Easy No Bake Chocolate Easter Nests
By Rebecca St.Clair
These easy no bake chocolate Easter nests are rich and delicious. The perfect easy dessert especially when filled with mini chocolate Easter eggs for the perfect fun and festive Easter treats.
No-bake chocolate Easter nests are little personal sized treats of sweet and tender chocolaty goodness.
A smooth, velvety layer of decadent chocolate, rich with a deep cocoa flavour. Coated around a mixture of chewy oats, crisp and salty pretzels, and coconut.
Once set the chocolate Easter nest is delicately crisp on the outside yet soft and chewy on the inside and filled with sweet mini chocolate Easter eggs. They’re the ultimate combination of simplicity and decadence.
What are chocolate Easter nests?
A hot lush chocolate sauce is poured over oats, pretzels, and coconut and becomes a rustic little “cookie”, formed into a nest shape.
My chocolate Easter nests are made pretty simply but some variations are made with dried Chow mein noodles, marshmallows, pretzels, cornflakes, nuts, peanut butter, or potato sticks mixed in.
How to make No Bake Chocolate Easter Nests
Since these treats are no-bake, you will first have to heat up a few ingredients on the stove top to make the chocolate sauce.
Once everything is melted together, you simply pour it over the oats, pretzels and coconut. When the mixture starts to cool, it will become thicker and can be formed into nests.
This recipe uses cocoa powder to make the sweet chocolate sauce for the chocolate nests, which I prefer. Some recipes that call for melting chocolate chips, will melt and become messy in your fingers. The use of cocoa powder will help keep the chocolate intact.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
No-bake – No need to wait for these to bake! These treats are made on the stove top. Which makes them extra soft and chewy.
Quick and easy – These come together in no time and all in one bowl.
Simple ingredients – Made with simple pantry staples, plus some fun and festive candy eggs!
Kid-approved – If the chocolate doesn’t bring everyone to the table the cute little nests with colourful eggs inside sure will!
Freezing and storing no bake chocolate Easter nests
Freezing
These treats freeze extremely well. To freeze your no-bake chocolate Easter nests,
- Allow the nests to cool and set.
- Freeze in a single layer on a cookie sheet for 1 hour.
- Place the nests into a freezer bag, or air-tight container.
- Store them in the freezer for up to 3 months.
In the Fridge
To keep no bake chocolate Easter nests fresh, store them in the refrigerator, in an air-tight container, for up to 2 weeks.
Store at room temperature
This is my favourite way to store them, if we will be eating them right away. Stored at room temperature, no bake chocolate Easter nests will remain fresh for up to a week. They remain soft, chewy, and full of flavour, when stored at room temperature.
If using the other methods of storage, allow the nests to return to room temperature before serving.
What type of oats to use for Chocolate Easter Nest
Quick-Cook Oats
For no-bake treats, in general, quick-cook oats are the best choice. Since the oats need very little time to cook and soak in the liquid to make them soft.
Quick-cook oats are like rolled oats or old-fashioned oats, because they are all rolled flat and thin. This shortens their cook time.
However, quick-cook oats go through even more processing. They are partially steamed and rolled even thinner. This allows them to cook in a matter of minutes.
With these no bake chocolate Easter nests, we are not really cooking the oats on the stove top, but just stirring hot chocolate sauce into them.
Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats
Rolled oats or old-fashioned oats would be a good second choice. They will result in a chewier nest.
Other oats
Steal-cut oats, Scottish oats, and oat groats would not be recommended to make no-bake chocolate Easter nests, as they have a much longer cook time.
Ingredients
Oats – Quick oats are best for this recipe as they have the shortest cook time.
Coconut – Unsweetened desiccated shredded coconut perfect for making the nests look realistic.
Butter – For flavour, richness, and the making the perfect thick chocolate sauce.
Milk – For a smooth chocolate sauce.
Sugar – the sweetness component.
Salt – Balancing out the sweet flavours.
Cocoa – Provides the rich chocolate.
Vanilla – Flavour.
Pretzels – This optional add in can be replaced or used along with other things like dried Chow mein noodles, marshmallows, cornflakes, nuts, peanut butter, or potato sticks.
Chocolate eggs – I used candy coated chocolate eggs but jelly bean or other Easter eggs can be substituted.
Method
- In a large bowl, mix together the oats and coconut. Break the pretzels into smaller pieces and add them into the bowl. Set aside.
- To a sauce pot, over medium heat, mix the butter, white sugar, milk, cocoa powder, salt, and vanilla.
- Stir and simmer 3-4 minutes to dissolve the sugar.
4. Remove from heat and add in the dry mixture.
5. Stir well to make sure everything is well coated in the chocolate.
6. Set aside. As the mixture starts to cool it will thicken.
7. Drop spoonful’s into a lined muffin tin.
8. Using a spoon shape into nests.
9. Add a few of the mini Easter eggs into the centre of each nest.
10. Allow the nests to cool completely and fully solidify. You can speed up the process by placing the tray in the refrigerator.
11. Remove from the tray and serve.
East No Bake Chocolate Easter Nests
Soft chocolate nests of sweet coconut, salty pretzels, and chewy oats. These simple no-bake nests are the delightful rustic Easter treat you've been looking for.
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups quick oats 250 g
- 1 cup shredded desiccated coconut 100 g
- 1 cup pretzels
- ½ cup butter 115 g
- 1 2/3 cup white sugar 334 g
- ½ cup milk 125 ml
- 6 Tablespoons cocoa powder 50 g
- ½ teaspoon salt 2 g
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 10 ml
- Mini chocolate Easter eggs (Like Eggies or Mini Eggs)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix together the oats and coconut. Break the pretzels into smaller pieces and add them into the bowl. Set aside.
- To a sauce pot, over medium heat, mix the butter, white sugar, milk, cocoa powder, salt, and vanilla.
- Stir and simmer 3-4 minutes to dissolve the sugar.
- Remove from heat and add in the dry mixture.
- Stir well to make sure everything is well coated in the chocolate.
- Set aside. As the mixture starts to cool it will thicken.
- Drop spoonful's into a lined muffin tin.
- Using a spoon shape into nests.
- Add a few of the mini Easter eggs into the centre of each nest.
- Allow the nests to cool completely and fully solidify. You can speed up the process by placing the tray in the refrigerator.
- Remove from the tray and serve.
Notes
Feel free to mix in things like Dried Chinese noodles, marshmallows, cornflakes, nuts, peanut butter, or potato sticks.
Nutrition Information
Yield
15Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 223Total Fat 9gSaturated Fat 6gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 2gCholesterol 30mgSodium 153mgCarbohydrates 33gFiber 2gSugar 26gProtein 2g
Nutrition information isn't always accurate.
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