Grinch Inspired Muddy Buddies Snack Mix
This post is sponsored by Chex Cereal.
When it comes to making spirits bright in our house, classic Christmas movies and festive treats always do the trick! If this rings true for you too, then read on… because this fun idea encompasses both. :)
My kids are at an age where The Grinch is high on their list of holiday favs, and I still love watching it with them too. With this in mind, I made a few story-inspired changes to the original Chex Muddy Buddies recipe and ended up with this colorful – and incredibly YUMMY – Grinch Inspired Muddy Buddies Mix. It’s still just as quick and easy to make, but features simple twists like white chocolate chips (instead of semi-sweet) and bright red heart shaped sprinkles.
Perfect for sharing (so don’t be a Grinch!)
With its festive palette of red and green, this Muddy Buddies recipe works great for all sorts of holiday celebrations – from movie nights to play dates to parties. It’s the perfect combination of crunchy and sweet, with a subtle hint of salty goodness. Just be forewarned that eating it may cause loved ones to smile three sizes bigger. ;)
The full recipe is at the bottom of this post, but here’s a peek at the process too:
Start by melting butter, peanut butter, and white chocolate chips together to make the cereal coating. Tint the melted coating green, then pour it onto the cereal and stir. Note: I found that mixing by hand was the fastest way to get all of the cereal covered!
Spread HALF of the mix out on wax paper to dry, and garnish with red sprinkles while the coating is still wet.
Pour the other HALF of the coated cereal into a zip-top bag and shake it with powdered sugar.
Spread the powdered-sugar-covered cereal out on wax paper, too.
Once dry, mix both types of cereal and the popcorn together. I used microwave popcorn to keep things easy. The popcorn adds a hint of saltiness and cuts the overall sweetness down a bit, making the final result even more snackable!
That’s it… time to enjoy! And remember: don’t be a Grinch, because this recipe is intended for SHARING! ;)
GRINCH INSPIRED MUDDY BUDDIES SNACK MIX
Makes 18 Servings
Ingredients:
- 9 cups Rice Chex™
- 1-1/2 cups white chocolate chips
- 6 Tbsp butter (or 3/4 of a stick)
- 1/2 cup peanut butter
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 8 cups popped popcorn
- green food coloring
- red heart sprinkles (like these)
Steps:
- In a large bowl, measure cereal and set aside.
- In a 1-quart microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter uncovered on High for 1 minute; stir. Microwave about 20 seconds longer, or just until mixture can be stirred smooth.
- Add green food coloring.*
- Pour mixture over cereal, stirring until evenly coated.
- Spread HALF of the coated cereal onto wax paper to cool. Garnish with red heart sprinkles.
- Pour the other half of the cereal into a large, resealable food-storage plastic bag. Add powdered sugar. Seal bag and shake until well coated. Spread on waxed paper to cool.
- Combine both cereals together and mix with popcorn.
- Store in airtight container in refrigerator.
*Tips:
- If the chocolate thickens up too quickly adding the food coloring, thin it out again by adding another Tbsp of butter and microwaving on high for 20 seconds.
- OR – Instead of using white chocolate chips, you can use green melting chocolate and skip the food coloring altogether.
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Chex. As always – all thoughts, opinions, and designs are my own. Thank you so much for supporting the companies that make it possible for me to keep the creative content coming your way!