Christmas Chocolate Puppy Chow aka Muddy Buddies

Christmas puppy chow is an easy treat to make with chocolate chips, peanut butter, powdered sugar, and Rice Chex cereal.

The recipe can be made with semi-sweet chocolate, milk chocolate, or white chocolate chips for a decadent and sweet treat at all of your Christmas parties.

Puppy Chow Chex

The Chex dessert, also known as muddy buddies or reindeer chow, is super easy to make and perfect for snacking and parties.

I added red and green M&M’s to the puppy chow recipe for Christmas, but you can add any colors you’d like.

You can also add some pretzels along with other candies for other holidays like this Halloween muddy buddies recipe.

I love this quick snack because the recipe calls for a few simple ingredients. It makes a great party favor or a delicious movie night snack.

P.S. This is NOT dog food, it is only for humans.

What Ingredients Do You Need To Make Christmas Puppy Chow For The Holiday Season?

Full printable recipe with measurements and instructions listed at the bottom of the post.

• Rice Chex cereal
• Chocolate Chips
• Butter
• Creamy peanut butter
• Vanilla extract
• Powdered sugar

How To Make Traditional Puppy Chow

1. Add the Chex cereal to a large bowl and set it aside.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, add the chocolate chips, butter, and peanut butter.
3. Melt chocolate chips, peanut butter, and butter in increments of 15 seconds, stirring in between.
4. Add the vanilla extract and mix.
5. Pour the chocolate mixture over the Chex cereal and toss with a spatula until all of the cereal is covered with the mixture.
6. Add half of the powdered sugar to a large bag and scoop half of the Chex cereal into the bag.
7. Shake the bag until the cereal is covered with powdered sugar.
8. Spread the cereal out on a cookie sheet until the chocolate sets up.
9. Repeat with the remainder of the powdered sugar and cereal.
10. Add candies or pretzels to the mix and eat! The recipe creates the perfect combination of treats.

Step-By-Step Instructions For Classic Puppy Chow

Pour the Rice Chex cereal pieces into a large mixing bowl and set aside.

In a medium-sized bowl, add the chocolate chips, butter, and peanut butter to a bowl.

Next, add the butter and peanut butter to the microwave-safe bowl and microwave in increments of 15-seconds until melted, stirring in between.

It took about 45-seconds to melt the ingredients, but your microwave might be more or less powerful than mine, so start with 15-second increments.

Stirring in between each microwave session will help melt the ingredients, as well.

Add the vanilla extract to the mixture and mix it in.

Pour the melted chocolate over the corn Chex and mix until all of the cereal is covered.

Pour half of the powdered sugar into a large plastic bag.

Next, add half of the cereal to the bag and gently shake it until all of the cereal is covered with powdered sugar.

To mix the cereal I use a gallon size bag. I only put in half of the powdered sugar and cereal because it makes it easier to shake and cover the cereal.

I used a Ziplock bag for the recipe, but you can use any plastic bag, as long as you keep one end closed.

Spread the coated cereal out on a cookie sheet to let the chocolate cool and firm up.

This step isn’t required, but I find it helps keep the cereal from sticking together and the chocolate has a chance to set up a little.

I let it sit there for about 15 minutes on the cookie sheet.

Toss in the M&M’s and serve!

The recipe is the perfect combination of salty and sweet and makes great party favors at your next Christmas party.

How Do I Store The Homemade Puppy Chow?

You can store the treat in an airtight container or a sealed bag. You can keep the chow on the counter at room temperature or in the refrigerator.

Additional Candy Options:

• Mini marshmallows
• Dark chocolate chips
• White chocolate chips
• Peppermints
• Pretzels
• Candy canes
• Holiday sprinkles

Other delicious holiday treats:

• Texas cowboy cookies combine a lot of delicious ingredients into one scrumptious cookie.
• Brownie mix cookies are super easy to make and include rich and decadent ingredients.
• Christmas wreath cookies are fun for the kids to make (I loved making these as a kid) and are a festive treat for the holidays.
• We make this old fashioned fudge recipe with peanut butter every year. It’s a great gift for teachers, friends, neighbors, and all those fun folks that work in the office at your kid’s and grandkid’s school.
• Christmas crack is soooo amazingly good. The dessert is made out of melted brown sugar and butter, buttery crackers, melted chocolate, and pecans for a rich and addictive dessert. Christmas crack is also great for holiday parties.
• Snickerdoodle puppy chow from Your Cup of Cake – if you love Snickerdoodles, you will love this recipe.
• Chocolate peppermint puppy chow from Iowa Girl Eats is another perfect snack for your party.

Christmas puppy chow recipe card

Check out the Christmas chocolate puppy chow aka muddy buddies recipe card below, grab those ingredients, and start creating!

This is a fun snack and I think you’ll really love it, especially this time of year.

Then, share your comments below and share a picture of your easy dessert on the Pinterest Pin!  If you made any changes or added something different, be sure to share it with us so we can try it, too!

Find more delicious recipes at Julia’s Simply Southern, and South Your Mouth.