Pumpkin Spice Puppy Chow

Puppy chow snack mix gets a festive twist with pumpkin spices and candy pumpkins.

You know how much I love puppy chow, right? The addicting sugary snack makes me weak at the knees. I can never say no when it’s in front of me!

Surely you knew that a pumpkin version was bound to happen.

Puppy chow – aka Muddy Buddies – is not dog food. You would be surprised how many folks contact me about that. “You feed that to your dog?” No, no! Puppy chow is a snack mix – for humans.

I have seen many recipes for pumpkin flavored puppy chow. Ali, Megan, Alyssa, and even Land O’ Lakes. The more of this pumpkin chow, the merrier! (I’m sure there are other recipes out there. Sorry if I am missing you!)

I made this spiced pumpkin snack earlier in the week and let me tell you… it is dangerous to keep around. Especially if you work from home and are knee deep in food props, laundry, and a million other things on your to-do list. Puppy chow is a quick little treat to grab; it’s simultaneously dangerous and amazing.

Making my pumpkin puppy chow could not be easier. It’s really just a few ingredients mixed together. No baking involved, no chilling involved. Less work, more eating.

With pumpkin puppy chow on my to-do list, I got a little excited when I spotted orange candy melts in the store last week. What are candy melts? They are a sugary little coating – wonderful for making cake pops and other dipped candies. Candy melts are not chocolate. Just sugars. And I knew they would make a lovely addition to my pumpkin spiced snack mix!

Here are a few of the ingredients I used to make my pumpkin spice puppy chow. I list substitutes below this photo if you cannot find these products.

Cinnamon Chex cereal.

The cinnamon flavored Chex cereal gives the puppy chow a stronger cinnamon-sugar flavor. It is the perfect base for this puppy chow. You may use Rice Chex, Crispex, or any plain rice cereal squares you can find.

Wilton orange candy melts.

Again, this isn’t chocolate. It’s a sugary, melting coating. It’s sold online, in baking shops, Walmart, and craft stores like Michael’s and AC Moore. It’s very inexpensive. You will need one 12-ounce bag. If you cannot find orange candy melts, use pure white chocolate instead like Baker’s or Ghirardelli – both sold in all major grocery stores.

Mallowcreme pumpkins.

I love adding to this pumpkin spice puppy chow. You could use candy corn, Hershey’s Pumpkin Spice Kisses, Pumpkin Spice M&Ms or Candy Corn M&Ms, or some festive orange sprinkles.

This cinnamon-spiced pumpkin snack mix is wonderful to hand out to your little trick or treaters, bring along to fall parties, get togethers, girl’s nights, etc. Or just do what I did this week – snuggle up with a huge bowl on the couch while watching Chopped.

It’s worth every step on the treadmill, I swear.

If you love pumpkin spiced goodies, you’re going to flip for this puppy chow.

Follow me on Instagram and tag #sallysbakingaddiction so I can see all the SBA recipes you make. ♥

Pumpkin Spice Puppy Chow

This sugary snack mix gets a festive twist with pumpkin spices and mallowcreme pumpkins. Be warned - this stuff is addicting! This recipe may easily be halved or doubled.

Ingredients:

• 13.5 oz box (about 7-8 cups) Cinnamon Chex cereal, or Rice Chex
• 12 ounces orange candy melts or pure white chocolate
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided

Directions:

1. Pour the cereal into a large bowl. Set aside.
2. In 20 second increments, melt the candy melts or white chocolate in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Stir after each increment until melted and completely smooth. Stir in 2 teaspoons of cinnamon, the nutmeg, cloves, and allspice until combined. Pour mixture over cereal and toss gently to coat each square. Be gentle, the squares break easily.
3. Pour the confectioners' sugar and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon into a large zipped-top bag. Add the coated cereal and shake until each piece is coated. Pour back into a large bowl and discard excess confectioners' sugar. Toss in the mallowcreme pumpkins. Use 1 - 2 cups, whatever amount you prefer.
4. Cover and store puppy chow for up to 2 weeks.

1. Instead of nutmeg, cloves, and allspice - you can use 1.5 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice.
2. Instead of mallowcreme pumpkins, try adding 1 cup of Pumpkin Spice M&Ms or Candy Corn M&Ms, 1 cup of Pumpkin Spice Hersheys Kisses, 1 cup of cinnamon chips, 1/2 cup of orange sprinkles, or even 1 cup of salty pumpkin seeds (which will cut the sweetness of the snack mix).

Here are a few festive treats to enjoy this season!

Have a great weekend! I am in Cleveland for a girls weekend until Monday. Talk to you in a few days!

Original article and pictures take http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2013/10/11/pumpkin-spice-puppy-chow/ site