Candy Cane Crunch Puppy Chow

The holidays are coming to an end.  Perhaps, if you’re lucky, you’re still enjoying some time off (or, if you’re like my husband and me, you worked right through the holidays and are extremely envious of all these people sleeping in).  Either way, it’s time to start thinking about taking down any decorations and packing things up (fortunately, we don’t have much to do – it’s pretty easy to put the menorah back down in the basement!).  This peppermint crunch puppy chow might help you use up some of those candy canes sitting around the house – maybe you received them tied to gifts, or used them as part of your decorations.  Sure, you could just eat them, or stir them into your hot chocolate… but you could also make this really easy, simple puppy chow to serve for your New Year’s Eve festivities! I’ve since learned that sweet chex mix can be called Muddy Buddies, but growing up, my childhood best friend always made a bowl for parties and called it “puppy chow”, so that’s what I call it.  The original version – melted chocolate and peanut butter – is a true childhood classic, but why not step things up a bit with this perfect wintery version?  Melted white chocolate, a little bit of peppermint extract, and some crushed candy canes, and you have a slightly more mature take on an old treat.  Check out my tips here for melting chocolate (white chocolate is especially finicky when it comes to seizing), although in this instance I’m going to use a little heavy cream instead of coconut oil or cocoa butter (but you could do those as well!).  Not only is this quick and easy, but you can also make it ahead of time.  It will last just fine for a week in an air-tight container; after that, it starts to get a little soggy, but I brought two-week old leftovers into work and my coworkers were more than happy to finish the bag, so it will still be a hit even after it gets a little stale. candy cane crunch puppy chow Candy Cane Crunch Puppy Chow Ingredients:

  • 5 cups Rice Chex
  • 10 ounces white chocolate
  • 3 tablespoons heavy cream
  • 1 tablespoons peppermint extract
  • 1 cup crushed candy canes
  • 1 cup powdered sugar

Directions:

  1. Add the chex to a large bowl and set aside.
  2. Crush candy canes, either using the traditional smashing with a rolling pin technique, or in your heavy-duty food processor.
  3. Melt the white chocolate and heavy cream together, either in a heavy bottomed saucepan over medium heat while stirring constantly, or in the microwave for 30 second intervals, stirring afterward, until fully melted.  Stir in the peppermint extract.
  4. Pour the melted chocolate over the chex mix and gently fold to combine, ensuring that the cereal is completely covered.  Add in the crushed candy canes.
  5. Transfer the chex/chocolate mixture to a gallon sized zip-top plastic bag, and add the powdered sugar.  Shake, shake, shake until the cereal is completely covered with sugar.  Enjoy!