I know it may sound silly, but I love puppy chow (also known as muddy buddies to some). And just like 7-Layer Bars, I had never made it before! Crazy, right? Puppy chow is such a holiday thing to me and I always knew someone else would be bringing it to whatever function I’d be attending so I’ve never bothered to make it. However, I have always thought that puppy chow needed revamping. It’s totally yummy but am I the only one that would look for the little nuggets of two or more Chex squares stuck together with an excess of the chocolate and peanut butter mixture?? Know what I’m talking about? Yes, I’d pick through the puppy chow mix to find those little scrumptious morsels–I’m not ashamed! I’ve just always thought it needs MORE chocolate and peanut butter goodness. So I decided to do something about it!
I started off doubling the chocolate and peanut butter mixture but then I thought it needed something more. And that something was alcohol! Can’t go wrong adding booze to a dessert, right?! But then my evil mind went even further and thought it needed something even more…like bacon….and peanuts. Yes, bourbon, bacon and peanuts…in puppy chow. Things got crazy up in my kitchen people. Crazy in a VERY GOOD way. What resulted was the yummiest puppy chow I’ve ever had. No more digging for the little morsels of Chex Squares stuck together–there were plenty of those! Now if you don’t want to add all the additional ingredients and stick closer to the classic, that’s totally ok…but the bourbon, bacon and peanuts add such another dimension of yumminess to it. I highly recommend! Fabulous sweet/salty snack for a Superbowl party!
Enjoy!
- 1 c. Smooth Peanut Butter (I prefer Peter Pan)
- ½ c. Unsalted Butter (I'm sure salted would work fine too)
- 2 c. Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
- 1 T. Pure Vanilla Extract
- ⅓ c. Bourbon
- 1 lb. Bacon, cooked and chopped (I tore the fatty pieces off of mine)
- 2 c. Dry-Roasted Peanuts
- 9 c. Chex Rice Cereal
- 3 c. Powdered Sugar
- In a large bowl, combine the cereal, bacon and peanuts.
- In a microwave safe bowl, melt the peanut butter, butter and chocolate chips at 30-second intervals in the microwave, stirring between each until completely melted and smooth. Stir in the vanilla and bourbon.
- Pour the chocolate/peanut butter mixture over the cereal mixture and toss gently until all the cereal is evenly coated.
- Place the powdered sugar in a large bag. (You could use a large Ziploc type bag but it will probably not be big enough. I used a large paper bag and I recommend doing that.) Add the chocolate/peanut butter and cereal mixture to the bag. Shake the bag vigorously to evenly coat each piece of the puppy chow with powdered sugar.
- Once the mixture is fully coated, store in an airtight container.
Great idea to revamp “Puppy Chow”! Definitely will add bacon to my next batch!