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When a chocolate craving hits, it’s time to make a small batch Puppy Chow for One! The perfect sweet and salty snack mix for any time of the day. It’s naturally gluten-free!

We have a dangerous addiction in our house: Puppy Chow. Kinslee is our officially snack mix maker. I went years with only eating this at picnics and parties, never making it at home. And then Kinslee fell in love with it and realized how crazy easy it was to make.

And it all went downhill from there. We needed to downsize and make this small batch puppy chow recipe. And now on any random afternoon in our house, you’ll find Kins in the kitchen making her own personal sized puppy chow for one!

Why You Might Need Small Batch Puppy Chow:

after a heart-wrenching breakup
lazy afternoons or movie nights
life is giving you too much stress
you’re too lazy to actually bake
when you want to annoy your family by one making one serving
or simply just sweet cravings

Why is it called puppy chow?

This easy snack (sometimes called Muddy Buddies) is a popular midwest snack. It’s actually human food…not for puppies at all. But it resembles dog food (and actually has ties to Purina dog food)! This recipe was created by General Mills back in 2002. It’s now a classic comfort food.

What is a puppy chow snack made of?

You only need 4 ingredients:

Chocolate chips. Semi-sweet chocolate chips are best so that the mix doesn’t end up too sweet. Don’t use mini chocolate chips…they won’t melt smoothly.
Peanut butter. Creamy peanut butter is best, but you can use chunky if you’d like. You could also use almond butter if you have a peanut allergy. Skippy or Jif peanut butter works well. I’ve also used Aldi brand and Meijer brand.
Rice Chex. We prefer rice Chex, but you can use corn Chex in a pinch. Actually, we’ve used Rice Krispies, too! When the craving hits, you make do with what you have.
Powdered sugar. If you want to cut back on calories, try using Lakanto Monk Fruit powdered sugar.

How to Make Small Batch Puppy Chow

There are three steps for this small batch puppy chow treat:

Prepare. Place the chocolate chips and the peanut butter in a medium microwave safe bowl.

chocolate chips and peanut butter in a bowl

Melt. Melt in 30 second increments, mixing in between, until it is completely melted and smooth.

Mix. Pour the cereal into the chocolate mixture and stir until it is coated. Sprinkle the powdered sugar and mix until coated.

The mix will be slightly melty for awhile until the chocolate hardens up. If you want to speed up that process, place it in the fridge.

Recipe Variations

Use any type of chocolate you prefer: milk chocolate, dark chocolate or even white chocolate. Our favorite is that semi-sweet chocolate peanut butter mixture though.
Add candies: Mini Reese’s peanut butter cups, bite-size Snickers or even peanut butter M&Ms.
Add nuts for more flavor: Peanuts or pecans are my favorite.

Does puppy chow need to be refrigerated?

This small batch puppy chow snack mix is safe to store at room temperature. It has the best taste that way! You’ll want to be sure it is in an airtight container.

Try a fall snack mix next!

Variations on this recipe:

You’ll also love our no bake haystack cookies and hot chocolate mix.

Small Batch Puppy Chow

4.78 from 9 votes

When a chocolate craving hits, it's time to make a small batch Puppy Chow for One! The perfect sweet and salty snack mix for any time of the day.

Servings 1

Prep Time 10

Total Time 10

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Ingredients

1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
2 cups Rice Chex cereal
3/4 Cups Powdered sugar

Instructions

Place the chocolate chips and the peanut butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl. ¼ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, ¼ cup creamy peanut butter
Melt in 30 second intervals, mixing in between, until it is completely melted and smooth.
Add the cereal to the melted chocolate and mix until it is coated. Add the powdered sugar and mix until coated. 2 cups Rice Chex cereal, ¾ Cups Powdered sugar

Notes

You can also place coated cereal in a plastic bag with the confectioner’s sugar and shake to coat.
This recipe makes 2 cups. Store in an airtight container.