Snacks with CHEX!

During high school marching band season, which usually runs in the fall (before COVID,) hungry high schoolers enjoy dinner after performing.  Performing at marching band competitions is grueling work; students must march in precision and play a musical instrument at the same time.

Parents would often provide the food for bus snacks or for dinner.

One snack that is always popular is the Chex Party Mix!  I am sharing a couple of recipes here.

Original Chex Party Mix

Food.com has a couple of very good Chex Party Mix recipes that I have used for marching band competitions.

Chex Party Mixes are great because you can make a large batch very easily in one of those large disposable aluminum foil roasting pan at the supermarket.

I have tweaked Food.com’s original recipe a bit:

• 6 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1.5 tsp seasoning salt (if you like furikake, you can substitute it here)
• ¾ tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp onion powder
• 15 oz Family Size Traditional Chex Mix
• 7.2 oz New York Style Roasted Garlic Bagel Crisp

1. Preheat oven to 250°F
2. Add Chex Mix and NY Crisps to the aluminum foil roasting pan.
3. Melt butter.
4. Stir in seasonings in the butter.
5. Pour liquid over Chex mixture.
6. Bake 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes.
7. Cool and store in an airtight container (ziploc bags are fine.)

Chex Party Mixes that include the Japanese seasoning furikake, are my favorite!

Steve’s Often Copied, Never Duplicated, Furikake Chex Mix: Halved

I love Steve’s particular recipe, because it is candied.  That sweet and salty flavor is hard to resist!

However, Steve’s original recipe is very chewy.  As such, I adapted it so that the liquid ingredients are halved, as follows:

• 15 oz Family Size Traditional Chex Mix
• 2 cups Goldfish Crackers or Reese’s Puff Cereal
• ½ cup butter
• 3 oz sugar
• 3 oz light corn syrup
• 1.5 tbsp soy sauce
• ¼ cup oil
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• ½ tsp Tabasco sauce
• Furikake flakes to taste
• Candy thermometer

1. Preheat the oven to 250°F
2. Mix the dry ingredients and place in a disposable roasting pan.
3. Melt butter over medium high heat
4. Add sugar and dissolve well.
5. Add corn syrup, soy sauce, oil, Worcestershire sauce, and Tabasco sauce.  Heat until it reaches the hardball stage of 250°, using your candy thermometer.
6. Pour over the dry mixture and mix well.
7. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
8. Use oven mitts and remove from the oven.  Add Furikake.
9. Mix every 15 minutes for about an hour.
10. Remove after an hour and continue mixing in the roasting pan for about 15 to 20 minutes until cooled (this step is crucial to prevent sticking!)

Please send me any questions in the comments section below!

Books About Party Snacks