Gingerbread Cookie Puppy Chow

What do you get when you crumble up gingerbread cookies and coat Chex cereal in white chocolate and gingerbread crumbs? 

Good.  That's what you get.  Finger licking good.

I really like gingerbread.  It isn't my favorite holiday flavor, but it sure is good!  I saw Gingerbread Twix at Dillon's the other day and thought it sounded incredible.  I am a huge fan of cinnamon, so it makes sense why I like gingerbread.  I've heard of many bloggers who could drink molasses, they like it so much, but I don't think I'm one of those people.  But I won't say no to gingerbread, ESPECIALLY in Twix.  And puppy chow.

Holidays bring out all the flavors and shapes in candies.  Like the Twix.  I've also seen MnM's and Oreos.  These marketing people, I think they must know some food bloggers!

I wish they would make gingerbread Cheerios.  And frosting.  Oh, and peanut butter!

I hope they don't ever make gingerbread gum.  Or salsa.  And definitely not Skittles.

Yuck.

But now you can have gingerbread puppy chow! 

 

Gingerbread Cookie Puppy Chow

Recipe Source: The Sweet {Tooth} Life

Yield: 4-1/2 cups

1 cup white chocolate chips

1 tablespoon shortening

1/2 teaspoon ginger

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

4 cups Chex cereal (I used corn, but wheat or rice will work)

2/12 cups gingerbread cookie crumbs

 

Melt the white chocolate chips and shortening a large pan, stirring frequently.  Once melted and smooth, stir in ginger and cinnamon.  Add Chex cereal and toss until coated.  Pour half of the gingerbread cookie crumbs in a Ziploc bag and put half of the coated Chex in the bag.  Toss until Chex is coated with crumbs.  Repeat with remaining cereal and cookie crumbs.  Store in an airtight container.

 

Note:  I used homemade gingerbread cookies that I let bake a couple minutes longer so they would be crunchy.  Then I just crushed them.

 

Related Recipes:

Caramel Cake Batter Puppy Chow

 

 

Popcorn and Pretzel Butterscotch Puppy Chow

 

 

Caramel Funfetti Cake Batter Puppy Chow

As if puppy chow wasn't addictive enough.

 

This is the best puppy chow I've eaten. Seriously. Even better than the peanut butter butterscotch pretzel puppy chow.

The caramel coating is thick, yet the Chex remains crunchy. And you've got to love cake mix and sprinkles. The batch was gone like *that.*  Even Stephen asked for a big serving and he doesn't like puppy chow. Neither does Mom, but they both really liked this. You don't miss the chocolate and peanut butter at all. And that's saying a lot! 

I get giddy over sprinkles. They just, oh, don't they make me happy!  You know what also makes me giddy?  Really good stories. I watched North and South this weekend and just loved it. Oh my goodness, the plot was complicated in the best sense possible. There was nothing predictable about it and I was on pins and needles much of it. It was fairly intense. The main characters are under a lot of stress in different ways. Their feelings are realistic and you come to feel strongly, good or bad, for them. I often felt like strangling Margaret, one of the main characters, although she did what she believed best regardless of  anyone else's opinions.  But she masked her emotions so well, you were like, "just cry or laugh or something!" and she tended to be very shortsighted.  I think it was hard because you felt bad for both the ominous mill owner, Mr. Thornton and the tough worker Nicolas. What I liked most was you came to really respect the characters and the very real social and financial struggles that would've been going on in this period.  And there is the constant question of, you know these two people are going to get married, but how on earth is it going to happen?  They obviously do not like each other:) The end was quite the shocker, but it had to be, because it was tying up half a million loose ends!  North and South was clean, gripping, and I loved every bit of it.  (I feel like my summary is completely inadequate, though) 

The best part was Anna K. and I were massaging each other's backs during it and during tense scenes, my fingers were digging into her poor back!  The best part was even those who had watched it squealed along with the rest of us at scarier parts:)  And of course, laughed our heads off at Fanny. You MUST watch this movie. It is worth every bit of the four hours. Every single one. 

 

We ate puppy chow while watching North and South.  So make this puppy chow and watch the movie. You can thank me later. 

 

 

Caramel Funfetti Cake Batter Puppy Chow

Recipe Source: The Sweet {Tooth} Life

Yield: 8 cups

1 (11 oz.) bag caramels

3 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons water

8 cups Chex cereal

2 cups cake mix (I used butter cake mix)

Sprinkles (I used about 1 cup)

In a large pot, melt caramels, butter, and water over medium heat and stir until smooth, about 5 minutes.  Add Chex to pot and stir until Chex is coated.  Combine cake mix and sprinkles in a gallon sized bag and add half of caramel Chex mixture.  Toss to coat and then spread on a baking sheet to cool.  Repeat with remaining caramel Chex mixture and cake mix/sprinkles mixture.  Enjoy!

 

Want more puppy chow?
 

 

Popcorn n' Peanut Butter Pretzel Puppy Chow

 

 

 

 

More sprinkles?

 

Pineappple and Strawberry Sprinkles Cake with Greek Yogurt Frosting

 



 

Happy Labor Day Weekend!

 

No Bake Peanut Butter Cereal Crack Bars {Gluten Free}

Hey there!  How's everyone doing? Before I get to the recipe, I thought I'd share some highlights from my week.

Summer has been moving fast this year. Something is going on every day, yet I love the flexibility of summer that lets you just get together with people for the fun of it. Although I have enjoyed lots of activities this summer, I haven't had very much time with friends.  So getting to spend a couple hours one on one was a blast.

Golf tournaments are over!  Now that I've been playing for a while, I really wish it would keep going. We finished the two day championship yesterday and although my score was exactly the same as last week, I felt like I had improved. Just wish my score could reflect my feelings;)  It was incredibly hot, but playing consistently made it really fun. 

Sewing lessons!  I've finished a couple baskets and we are almost done with skirts. I'll post pics of those soon. I've really enjoyed getting to sew and be creative in that way. 

Vacation Bible School was this past week and I truly enjoyed it. It was great meeting and leading with other kids my age from our church and also getting to be a crew leader. My group was all boys and one especially was a piece of work. There were times when he would blatantly disobey me and other times just throw his arms around me in a hug. I couldn't ever decide if I wanted to clobber him or hug him back:)  Call it being stretched and challenged. Although I got so many sympathetic looks and comments, this little boy was what I needed. It was a really great VBS. 

And I made these bars. 

I'm gonna cut to the chase and let you know, I think these are illegal.  They are that good.  I remember Mom coming home after lunch and looking in the pan, saying, "Wow, these must've been popular!"

Uh well, you see ... I was the only one who ate any:)  My siblings were interested in finishing up the zucchini bars, but I wanted these. 

Just FYI, peanut butter and no bakes are goners around me.  So much so, that there was enough gone from the pan that my mom thought my many siblings had had their share. (Don't worry, they did come to their senses and finish what was left of the pan for me.)

These are sweet, very peanut buttery and crunchy. The first day they are very crunchy, but the longer you let them sit, the softer the chex and crispies get, almost making them better. They are still crunchy, don't worry, but the peanut butter and corn syrup mixture has soaked into the chex. Seriously, I don't know why these are so ridiculously addictive, but they are. I haven't eaten half a pan of something in a loooooong time.
 

 

No Bake Peanut Butter Cereal Crack Bars {Gluten Free}

Recipe Source: The Sweet {Tooth} Life. Yield: 12-16 servings.  Adapted from Averie Cooks

1 heaping cup peanut butter
1/2 cup corn syrup (light colored, not lite)

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon vanilla 

1-1/2 cup Rice Krispys cereal 

2 cups chex (rice or corn)

1/4 cup chocolate chips

2 teaspoons shortening

Lightly grease a 9x9 pan. 

On the stove top, chine peanut butter, corn syrup, sugars, cinnamon and vanilla. Cook on low heat until combined and smooth, about a minute. Remove from heat and stir in chex and rice Krispy treats. Immediately press into prepared pan. 

Let cool for about 5 minutes. While it is cooling, melt chocolate chips and shortening. (I put them in a ziploc bag and microwaved it for about 15-30 seconds.  Then, I sealed the bag and squished the chocolate chips and shortening in it. Then I cut one of the points and piped the chocolate on.  Ifthe  chocolate is too runny, go ahead and let it cool and firm up before piping it on. But however you do it is fine!)  Spread or pipe  chocolate topping onto cooled bars.

Note:  Apparently, rice krispies are NOT gluten free.  After reading this article, you can eat them if you are not celiac.  I am not gluten free, so please, do what is best for your diet!

Cut and serve or store in an airtight container. 

Like I said, peanut butter no bakes are some of my most favorite things ever.

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bites

Pretzel Buckeyes



Fudgy Walnut Butter Sprinkles No Bakes

Crispy Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars

Popcorn n' Pretzel Butterscotch Puppy Chow

Cravings are manipulating.

For example, I wanted crunchy and salty instead of rich melty chocolate. Please, someone call the doctor ... I only want that after I've overdone the chocolate department! I didn't this time, pinky promise.

I have, however, overdone this snack mix/puppy chow department.

Puppy chow. Everyone has made puppy chow! So you thought ... Oh the joys of living with non-chocoholics! Some people healthify, I unchocolatify. And create new vocabulary on the side.

          

Anyhoo, I am loving me this snack mix. I made it on Sunday because I was (you guessed it) craving something other than chocolate.  (Maybe it had something to do with eating most of those mint chocolate cupcakes?  Don't answer that question.)

Created in honor if my brothers (who've tried and denied traditional puppy chow) this is an easy and incredible recipe that doesn't have chocolate. Despite that major cooking "sin" I fell in love with this recipe even more than my brothers did.

It seems peanut butter was made for butterscotch. Butterscotch is almost too sweet on its own and the peanut butter mellows the sugar overload AND adds deeper flavor with a subtle nuttiness. (Though peanuts are a legume - isn't that weird?)

The actual mix is Chex, popcorn, and pretzels. Now tell me how that isn't good? That's right, everything about this is plain perfect.  Crunchy, sweet, salty, and powdered sugar goodness.

An unchocolatified success.

Popcorn n' Pretzel Butterscotch Puppy Chow
Recipe Source: The Sweet {Tooth} Life
Yield: 9 cups

1 cup butterscotch chips
1/2 cup peanut butter
3 cups popped plain popcorn
3 cups pretzels
3 cups Chex (corn, rice, wheat, or combo)
1/2 cup to 1 cup powdered sugar

Place popcorn, pretzels, and Chex in large bowl.

Melt butterscotch chips and peanut butter. Pour over popcorn mixture. Toss in powdered sugar.

Store leftovers in airtight container.

Shared with Chef-In-Training and nap-time creations.