So for those who grew up with me… You probably remember my ridiculously extensive packed lunches. A meal fit for any elementary school kid… The classic PB & J (of course), a juice box, cut up fruit and veggies, a fruit roll-up and a sandwich bag full to the zip-up with chex mix. With enough food to feed a small army, I always had leftovers… Which my friends would then tackle. But the chex mix usually didn’t make it to lunch time.
When I got to school, I would sneak the 2 cups of chex mix that was stuffed into this tiny sandwich bag to my desk. As the day went on, I would slowly devourer the bag of chex mix. Crunch by crunch, like no one knew that I was eating during class. And my love for chex mix still lives on at 24. For a fall snack, I made a chex mix delicious enough for any kid or big kids packed lunch! :)
Recipe: fall chex mix
Ingredients:
• 1 bag of corn or wheat chex cereal, a mix of both would be good too!
• 1 bag of dried cranberries
• 1 cup (8 oz) sweet and spicy pecans (I buy these at Giant Eagle, near the produce section. Plain pecans can be used but these are to die for)
• 1/2 cup unsalted sunflower seeds
• 1 stick unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce
• 1 1/2 teaspoons seasoned salt
• 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika (optional, I add for color)
Directions:
1. Melt butter, add worcestershire sauce and spices to butter, stir.
2. In a mixing bowl or on a large baking sheet, mix together chex cereal and sunflower seeds.
3. Pour butter mixture over chex, try to coat evenly.
4. Bake mix in oven at 250 degrees for 45-60 minutes stirring even 15 minutes. OR, microwave chex uncovered for 5-6 minutes.
5. Allow to cool then mix in remaining ingredients. Store in an airtight container for 2 weeks.
Enjoy! Oh and as I was typing this… I unconsciously ate most of my lunch. I guess some people never change ;)
