Name: 3 Ingredient Best Chocolate Pecan Turtles Recipe
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 2 min
Total time: 47 min
Yield: 12
Cuisine: North American
Ingredients: 60 Pecan halves (or about 1 1/4 cups); 6 ounces Caramels; 4 ounces of chocolate (chocolate bar or chocolate chips, about 3/4 cup); Flakes of salt for a hint of flavor

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The recipe for the best chocolate pecan turtles is right here. These decadent morsels are perfectly chocolatey with a buttery caramel layer and the pecans give a crunchy bite that’s a deliciously sweet treat to make and enjoy all year round.

Making it is so ridiculously simple and effortless, that you could actually get your kids involved in making these too! (They don’t have to look perfect, they’ll taste delicious!!).

Serve them as a part of a snack platter, teamed up with some other delicious sweet treats like 2 ingredient peanut butter cookies or 3 ingredient chocolate dipped pineapples, and more.

4 chocolate pecan turtles on a plate with a small spoon filled with salt on the upper right.

Ingredients needed for this 3 Ingredient Turtle Candy Recipe

Pecans: Pecans lend that nice crunch factor to the candy. These are an absolute must. Choose roasted and salted pecans for this treat. The roasting helps bring out the nutty flavor, and the salt helps to accentuate the sweetness in the rest of the ingredients. If you purchase raw pecans, toast them before you make the recipe.
Caramel: Use chewy caramels and melt them in the microwave or according to the package directions. Do not use caramel sauce as it won’t harden.
Chocolate: Use a good quality chocolate bar for the best taste and flavor. You can use dark chocolate to help offset some of the sweetness from the caramel. If you have a sweet tooth, feel free to use milk chocolate.
Salt: This is optional. Sprinkling a little salt over top the chocolate at the ends helps heighten the rest of the flavors.

The ingredients for these chocolate pecan turtles. Chocolate, melted caramel, and pecan halves.

How to Make the Best Chocolate Pecan Turtles

Arrange pecans on a lined baking sheet
Melt caramel and drizzle over the pecans, not covering them completely.
Top with melted chocolate.
Allow to harden. Enjoy.

A printable recipe card with exact amounts, directions, tips, and hints is at the bottom of this post.

Pecans laid out on the cutting board to look like a turtle head and feet.

The caramel being placed on the pecans to form the body of the turtle treat.

Tips & Variations for this Homemade Turtles Candy Recipe

To bring a bit of salty deliciousness into the candy, you can also sprinkle some flaky sea salt on the top while the chocolate is still warm.
Make sure you keep stirring the melted caramels and chocolate as you’re melting them, especially if you’re using the microwave. Stop at every 10-15 second intervals and stir to keep them from burning.
You can also swap the pecans for any other nuts of your choice, and bring a bit of variation into the recipe. Walnuts, macadamia nuts, and almonds are some good choices.
To make the turtle candy more crunchy and delicious, use lightly toasted nuts.
Feel free to use a mix of milk chocolate and white chocolate, or even all white chocolate if you want to, based on your taste preference.
To help the chocolate melt nicely and to give it that nice shell-like snap factor after it hardens, you can also add a bit of coconut oil into the mix.
To make the turtle candy look festive and give it that holiday theme, you can also top it with the holiday sprinkles of your choice.
Use silicone liners, parchment paper or wax paper to make the candy turtles. Doing this will make it easier for you to peel them off the sheet.

One homemade turtle candy with salt sprinkled on the top, on a plate.

How to Serve These Pecan Clusters

This crunchy and delicious turtle candy can be enjoyed as a sweet treat, a snack, or even a dessert bite.

I also love the idea of featuring them on a holiday-themed charcuterie board with other snacks like snowman poop, chocolate rudolph candy, and a nice pumpkin fluff to go with it!

They also make for a beautiful Christmas present when packed into clear candy bags and tied with pretty bows.

Storage Ideas & Suggestions

This 3 ingredient turtle candy can be batch-made in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. When you want to serve them, remove them from the fridge and allow them to come to room temperature. There may be some condensation that collects on them, but I don’t worry about that. If it bothers you, lightly blot them with a paper towel.

They also freeze very well. I recommend stacking them and separating them with pieces of parchment paper or waxed paper to keep them from sticking or freezing together.

Did you make this homemade turtles recipe? I’d love to hear what you thought about it by leaving a comment and a star rating below! If you wish to ask me questions about the recipe directly, please feel free to send me an email at [email protected]. Have a fantastic day!

Yield: 12 turtles

3 Ingredient Best Chocolate Pecan Turtles Recipe

This 3 Ingredient Best Chocolate Pecan Turtles Recipe is insanely easy to make and gives a fantastic buttery, nutty, and chocolatey flavor payoff. Everyone loves these adorable candy treats!

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 2 minutes

Additional Time 30 minutes

Total Time 47 minutes

Ingredients

60 Pecan halves (or about 1 1/4 cups)
6 ounces Caramels
4 ounces of chocolate (chocolate bar or chocolate chips, about 3/4 cup)
Flakes of salt for a hint of flavor

Instructions

Arrange the pecans on a parchment-lined board. Lay out 5 pecans each, which will form the base for the turtles (head and four feet).
Unwrap and melt the caramels in the microwave until smooth and pliable. Turn on the microwave for 20-30 second intervals. It may seem like it's taking forever, but it's important to take your time so you don't overheat and scorch the caramel. You will need about 1-1 1/2 minutes.
Using a spoon, spread the melted caramel over each nut cluster, taking care to make sure it partially covers all 5 pecans. You want the pecans to show as this forms part of the turtle, but you also want the caramel to bind all the nuts together.
Refrigerate for 20 minutes.
Remove the tray after cooling and melt the chocolate in the microwave to make it smooth. Carefully coat each pecan cluster with the melted chocolate.
Optionally, you can sprinkle some flaky salt at this point over the tops.
Place in the fridge again for 20 - 30 minutes to allow everything to harden and set up.

Notes

Here are a few ways to switch up the flavors for your chocolate turtles.
Different nuts (almonds, walnuts, or even hazelnuts. If you're using hazelnuts, use two nuts for each pecan half).
Try mixing a small amount of coffee or instant coffee grinds into the chocolate for an intense chocolate/coffee flavor. (I recommend only gifting these ones to adults!).
Try using different chocolate (milk chocolate, white chocolate, etc) or try drizzling white chocolate over the tops for a different look to the turtle candy.
The sprinkled salt over the tops is optional, but instead of salt, you could try using coconut shreds, colorful sprinkles, crushed peppermint candies for Christmas, or even some gold dust if you're feeling fancy 🙂
Double this recipe easily by doubling the ingredients for more turtle clusters.
Check the body of the post for storage guidelines.

Nutrition Information

Yield

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 156Total Fat 9gSaturated Fat 3gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 6gCholesterol 3mgSodium 91mgCarbohydrates 18gFiber 1gSugar 14gProtein 2g

All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands used, measuring methods and portion sizes per household.