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Monday, December 12, 2011

Crunchy Peanut Butter Mix

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If I send Ryan to the grocery store by himself, it is inevitable that he will come home with a few extra items. Sometimes it’s Schlafly beer, sometimes it’s the bourbon that was “a really good deal”, but more often than not, it’s cereal. The boy loves his cereal, loves it. He has some of the stranger habits I’ve seen when it comes to cereal eating. Do you know anyone who adds a tablespoon or two of peanut butter to their bowl of Reese’s Peanut Butter Puffs (along with the milk of course!)? If you didn’t, now you do. I buy multiple boxes of cereal each week, some for Ryan to take to work for his daily breakfast, and some for him to keep at home for an evening snack.

I recently sent Ryan to the grocery store with a list that already included two boxes of cereal on it, and surprisingly he came home with only the two requested boxes! I guess he realized he’d be privy to the leftovers once I used what I needed. My mission? This Betty Crocker snack mix that my mom found on Pinterest and requested I bring on Thanksgiving for some pre-meal snacking.

Golden grahams are one of my favorites (especially in these dessert bars!), but cocoa puffs I could take or leave…that is, until I tried this mix. The combination of the sweet cereals, the salty pretzels, and the crunchy peanuts, all covered in white chocolate bark and powdered sugar is positively dreamy. Oh, and don’t forget about the peanut butter M&Ms (or Reese’s Pieces) that you also toss in there! In 20 minutes you can have an addicting snack mix that gives puppy chow a serious run for its money!
Crunchy Peanut Butter Mix
from Betty Crocker


Ingredients:
-4 cups Golden Grahams cereal
-2 cups Cocoa Puffs cereal
-2 cups thin pretzel sticks
-1 cup Reese's pieces or peanut butter M&Ms
-1 cup dry-roasted peanuts
-10 oz. white chocolate baking bars or squares, chopped
-2 tbsp butter
-1/2 cup powdered sugar


Directions:
1. Mix cereals, pretzels, candy, and peanuts in a large bowl.
2. In a 1-quart microwaveable bowl, microwave white chocolate and butter uncovered on high for 1 minute, stirring once, until melted and chocolate can be stirred smooth (I used almond bark and it took about 2 minutes to melt completely). Pour chocolate over cereal mixture, stirring to evenly coat.
3. In a large resealable plastic bag, toss half of the cereal mixture with 1/4 of the powdered sugar, shaking until evenly coated. Spread on waxed paper to cool. Repeat with remaining cereal mixture and remaining 1/4 cup powdered sugar. (I just put it all in a paper bag and added 1/2 cup powdered sugar). Store mixture in an airtight container at room temperature.