Description
A festive and irresistible Sweet and Salty Chex Mix combining buttery caramel coating with crunchy corn cereal, salted nuts, and optional Christmas M&Ms for a perfect holiday snack or gift.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter (2 sticks)
- 1 1/2 cups light corn syrup
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups salted cashews and/or peanuts (to taste)
- 8 cups corn Chex cereal
- Christmas M&Ms (optional)
Instructions
- Melt Butter: In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium-high heat until fully liquefied.
- Add Syrup and Sugar: Stir in the light corn syrup and sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil. Once bubbles form evenly across the surface, start a 3-minute timer while stirring occasionally to achieve a caramel consistency.
- Add Vanilla: Remove the saucepan from heat and stir in the vanilla extract thoroughly.
- Mix Nuts: Add the salted cashews and/or peanuts to the caramel mixture, stirring to coat the nuts completely.
- Prepare Bowls: Spray a large mixing bowl and a large baking sheet generously with nonstick spray.
- Combine With Cereal: Pour the corn Chex cereal into the greased bowl, then pour the caramel mixture over the cereal. Stir carefully to combine and coat all pieces evenly. Allow the mixture to cool slightly before adding Christmas M&Ms to prevent melting or breaking of the candy shells.
- Spread on Baking Sheet: Using a wooden spoon, spread the coated mixture evenly across the greased baking sheet.
- Cool Mixture: Let the mix cool completely. It will firm up somewhat but remain pleasantly sticky.
- Store or Gift: Store the mix in large ziplock bags or for gifting, place portions into wide-mouth mason jars and tie a ribbon around the top for a festive presentation.
Notes
- Allow the mix to cool slightly before adding M&Ms to avoid candy shell breakage.
- The mix remains sticky after cooling, which is part of its charm.
- Use salted nuts to maintain the sweet-and-salty flavor balance.
- Nonstick spray on bowl and baking sheet prevents sticking during mixing and cooling.
- This recipe yields about 8 servings.
- Store in airtight containers to maintain freshness.
