Description
Reindeer Chow is a festive and easy no-bake snack mix perfect for holiday gatherings. Combining crunchy Chex cereal, pretzels, and peanuts with a rich chocolate and peanut butter coating, then dusted in powdered sugar and mixed with colorful M&M’s and mini peanut butter cups, this treat is delightfully sweet, salty, and crunchy.
Ingredients
Scale
Dry Ingredients
- 8 cups Chex cereal (corn, rice, or a mix)
- 2 cups mini pretzels
- 1 cup roasted lightly salted peanuts
- 1½ cups powdered sugar (or more if needed)
- 1 (12-oz) bag red and green chocolate M&M’s
- 1 cup mini peanut butter cups
Wet Ingredients
- 1¼ cups semi-sweet or white chocolate chips (use your choice)
- ¾ cup creamy peanut butter
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Prep cereal: In a large bowl, combine the Chex cereal, mini pretzels, and roasted lightly salted peanuts. Mix gently to evenly distribute the dry ingredients.
- Make chocolate mix: In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips, peanut butter, and butter together. Heat in 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until the mixture is smooth and fully combined. Stir in the vanilla extract and salt for added flavor.
- Combine: Pour the melted chocolate and peanut butter mixture over the dry cereal, pretzels, and peanuts. Gently mix everything together to ensure all pieces are evenly coated without breaking the cereal.
- Cover in powdered sugar: Place the powdered sugar in a large resealable plastic bag. Transfer the coated snack mix into the bag, seal it, and shake vigorously until the mixture is fully coated with powdered sugar. Add more powdered sugar if needed to achieve complete coverage.
- Cool: Spread the powdered sugar-coated mixture out on a parchment-lined baking sheet in an even layer. Let it set and cool for about 20 minutes, allowing the coating to firm up slightly.
- Finish and store: Once cooled, stir in the red and green M&M’s and mini peanut butter cups gently to incorporate. Store the finished Reindeer Chow in an airtight container to maintain freshness, or serve immediately for a festive snack.
Notes
- Use a mix of corn and rice Chex cereals for the best texture contrast.
- Be careful when mixing to avoid breaking the cereal pieces.
- Adjust the amount of powdered sugar to your preferred level of sweetness and coating thickness.
- You can substitute mini peanut butter cups with crushed peanut butter candies if desired.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.
- This recipe contains nuts and is not suitable for nut allergies.
