Hey friends – big sports season right now (or so I hear … I barely know which ball goes with which sport). We also have a sweet little holiday called Valentine’s Day coming up. And guess what? Today’s recipes can serve either purpose! Yes, it turns out snack mix can be enjoyed while watching grown men knock each other upside the head OR given to your sweetie as a lovely, homemade treat for Valentine’s Day.
There are three versions below, as well as some testing notes and photos. In my unscientific survey, the Fiesta Snack Mix tied with the Easy Caramel Chex Mix on our ratings scale, and the Bold Buffalo Oyster Crackers came in second place. At my house, well – we ate them all!
Happy game day and happy Valentine’s Day to everyone!
Fiesta Snack Mix
Ingredients
- 4 cups toasted oat cereal rings
- 4 cup bite-size corn square cereal
- 3 cups pretzel sticks
- 4 cups cheese flavored crackers
- 1 cup mixed nuts
- 2 Tbsp. Fiesta Party Dip Mix®
- ¾ cup melted butter
- 1 Tbsp. Merlot Sauce
- 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
Directions
Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl; set aside. Mix remaining ingredients and whisk until evenly blended. Pour over the cereal mixture; gently stir until the cereal is evenly coated with the seasoned butter. Spread the cereal mixture onto baking sheet and bake at 300° for 20 minutes; stir after 10 minutes. Cool. Makes about 24 servings.
Fiesta Snack Mix
Testing Notes:
- You can really toss any cereal, snack cracker or pretzel in here that you like – just keep the total number of cups the same. But in my opinion, one should always include toasty oat rings, such as Cheerios®!
- In my batch, I also used Corn Chex® and Cheez-it® brand crackers.
- You can vary the amount of Fiesta Party Dip Mix to suit your taste.
- This is a spicy mix that is a family favorite
Easy Caramel Chex Mix
Submitted by Heather Brunk (IA)
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup Creamy Caramel Sauce
- 1 Tbsp. butter
- 6 cups Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal
- 1/3 cup peanuts
- 1/3 cup pretzels
- 1/3 cup toffee bits
Directions
In a microwave-safe bowl, combine Creamy Caramel Sauce and butter; heat for 30 seconds. Place next 3 ingredients in a large bowl. Drizzle with Creamy Caramel Sauce mixture; toss. Microwave for 4 minutes, stopping after each minute to stir. Spread mixture on waxed paper; sprinkle with toffee bits. Cool completely. Store in sealed container. Makes about 7 cups.
Easy Caramel Chex Mix
Testing Notes:
- This was a huge hit at our house, especially the second batch we made after we discovered the new Peanut Butter Cheerios® … oh my stars!
- We used two cups of Cinnamon Toast Crunch® cereal, two cups of Corn Chex® Cereal and two cups of the Peanut Butter Cheerios®.
- I was worried that the Creamy Caramel Sauce would stay sticky and be kind of messy, but that was not the case at all.
- There is something incredibly decadent about adding butter to our Creamy Caramel Sauce!
- I didn’t have a large enough microwave-safe bowl to do the whole batch at one time, so I did half at a time and cut the microwave time between stirs in half as well. It worked well.
- This mix is fantastic. I could eat a very unreasonable quantity of this!
Bold Buffalo Oyster Crackers
Ingredients
- 1 packet Bold Buffalo Blue Cheese Dip Mix
- ¼ cup Roasted Garlic Infused Oil
- 2 Tbsp. hot sauce
- 1–2 tsp. Italian Garlic Bread Seasoning
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese
- 5 cups oyster crackers
Directions
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl. Add oyster crackers; toss to coat. Spread evenly on a baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes in the preheated oven, stirring gently after 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool before serving.
Bold Buffalo Oyster Crackers
Testing Notes:
- This made a much smaller batch than the other two recipes – probably at least half as much.
- In spite of the strong ingredients, this was a very mild-tasting mix. Next time I would use the larger amount of Italian Garlic Bread Seasoning, and I might toss in a little more Parmesan cheese or blend it with some blue cheese crumbles.
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