This crunchy and sweet dark chocolate peppermint puppy chow mix is perfect for the Christmas. It only takes a few minutes to make and has the perfect mix of candy canes and chocolate.
Chocolate and peppermint are a classic holiday flavor combination. This chocolate peppermint Chex mix is a fun way to get that yummy flavor in a no bake and super fun snack mix.
Make some as part of your holiday treat making, you won’t be sorry. This recipe is a super quick and easy way to add a little more chocolate mint goodness to the menu.
The resulting candy cane muddy buddies perfect for munching on and will remind you a bit of Thin Mints. It is hard to stop eating it once you get started, so be warned!
Despite The Name, For Humans Only!
First of all, let me start off by saying you should not feed this to reindeer or puppies. I have gotten very concerned comments on past puppy chow posts about how dangerous it is to feed chocolate to your animals.
That is just the name we grew up calling this snack mix. It basically refers to chocolate covered cereal that is usually dusted in powdered sugar.
Supposedly the name comes from the fact that a bowl of puppy chow looks similar to a bowl of kibble. It may not be the most attractive food, but is sure is good.
What is the difference between Muddy Buddies and puppy chow?
Nothing. The terms Muddy Buddies, puppy chow and chocolate Chex mix all refer to cereal coated in chocolate and then dusted in powdered sugar. The name you call it might depend on the region you grew up in or where you first encountered this tasty snack.
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Have Fun Changing Up the Flavors
In our family, puppy chow is a perfect holiday treat. While we love the original chocolate and peanut butter version, we also love to change it up.
The brownie batter puppy chow I shared early in this blog’s life was one of the first recipes that really got noticed on Pinterest. It is still popular to this day.
This version might rank among my new favorites though. I love the added crunch the bits of candy cane give and it just feels like Christmas.
Of course if you don’t like dark chocolate, you can opt for something else. Semi-sweet chips or milk chocolate would be wonderful as well.
Using white chocolate would e delicious too. But there is something about the dark chocolate and candy cane mix that really called to me.
You are welcome to unwrap and crush candy canes if you’d like. You could also pulse them in your food processor a bit to make it easier.
However, if you check out the Christmas candy section of your grocery store there is likely a bag of candy cane bits there. That saves you the hassle and mess of unwrapping and breaking them up yourself!
This batch of reindeer chow went to work with me. Now I need to whip up some more for home. I know that batch won’t last long either.
Candy Cane Dark Chocolate Puppy Chow
Ingredients
- 7 cups rice Chex cereal
- 10 oz. dark chocolate chips
- 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 cup crushed candy canes divided
- 2 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- Put the 2 cups powdered sugar and ¼ cup crushed candy canes in a gallon zippered plastic bag and set aside.
- In a large microwave safe bowl, microwave the 10 oz. dark chocolate chips and 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil in 30 seconds at a time. Stir between each trip to the microwave and continue cooking a bit at a time until it is smooth. Be careful not to burn the chocolate.
- Stir in ¾ cup crushed candy canes and 7 cups rice Chex cereal until coated. Put chocolate coated cereal in the bag with powdered sugar. Zip tightly and shake to coat.
- Store in an airtight container until ready to serve.
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I haven't made puppy chow in years, and I have to say that I love the idea of adding dark chocolate to the mix! You always know how to tempt my sweet tooth! Hope you had a Merry Christmas!
It's a fun one, isn't it? Merry Christmas!
You are so creative wiht the puppy chow! I love how you have changed it up so it was great of you to include the different varieties!. Love the original, too!
Thank you! I still need to make my husband a batch of the original. Maybe today!
Thank you! I still need to make hubby a batch of the original!
Hello, new favorite Christmas snack! This sounds amazing, Carlee! You just can't go wrong with chocolate and mint.
I agree!
I love a new puppy chow recipe and this is perfect for the Holiday, Love that you used dark Chocolate! Have a wonderful, festive day!
It was so good with the sweet peppermint candy canes. Thank you!