This recipe is easy to make and one that you could make any time of the year. For me, chex mix reminds me of the holidays. We have a standing family tradition for the day after Thanksgiving. After we’ve returned home from our crazy, early Black Friday shopping, we mix up a big ‘ole batch of chex mix and begin decorating the house while it bakes in the oven. Some families associate the smell of cinnamon or even gingerbread with Christmas decorating. Not me. For me, it’s chex mix. Then once it’s done, we carry around bowlfuls of the goodness to munch on while we finish decorating. Later that night once the house is all aglow, we start the fire, turn on a Christmas movie, and play board games…while munching on chex mix. Yes, my family has lots of memories wrapped up in chex mix.
After my little men came along, their food allergy diagnosis made the chex mix tradition a bit more challenging as our chex mix always contained lots and lots of nuts. EEK! So over the years I’ve reworked the recipe so that we can continue the tradition. Today I’m excited to share our recipe with you.
A couple notes…
- In place of the nuts, I’ve found some top-10 allergen (yes top 10!) safe sunflower seeds that I’ve added instead. It adds a wonderful flavor and texture to the mix. I buy Gerbs Roasted Sunflower Seed Kernels.
- We use Glutino Pretzel Sticks, however, these do contain soy and are made in a facility that uses nuts. We’ve eaten them safely for quite awhile, but I know that won’t work for everyone. If you want a pretzel to add that is allergy-friendly (peanut, tree nut, soy, dairy, egg and gluten/wheat free) go with the Ener-G Original Pretzel O’s. They would add a fun shape to the mix!
- My family used Lawry’s Seasoned Salt in the recipe for years. I still can’t get a good answer as to it’s safety for my little men so I create my own. Lawry’s Seasoned Salt Copycat Recipe can be found here.
- Lastly, if you don’t have a wheat/gluten allergy, then feel free to add the Wheat Chex Cereal™ to the mix.
This recipe can be top 8 allergen free, depending on the pretzels that you use.
- 4 Cups Rice Chex™
- 4 Cups Corn Chex™
- 1 Cup Pretzels
- 1 Cup Sunflower Seeds
- 6 TBS Dairy-Free, Soy-Free Butter
- ½ tsp. Sugar
- ½ tsp. Hot Sauce
- 1½ tsp. Seasoned Salt or copycat recipe found here
- ¾ tsp. Garlic Powder
- ½ tsp. Onion Powder
- ¼ cup Ketchup
- Preheat oven to 250° F.
- In an ungreased large roasting pan (I use disposable), mix cereals, pretzels and sunflower seeds.
- In a small bowl, melt the butter. Add the sugar, hot sauce, garlic powder, seasoned salt, onion powder and ketchup. Mix well.
- Pour over the cereal mixture and stir to combine. All of the mix should be slightly damp.
- Bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes. You will know it's done baking when the mix is no longer damp. Mine sometimes takes closer to 2 hours - especially if you've doubled or even tripled the batch.
- Let cool and store in an airtight container.
**Allergy Alert**
Be sure to read all of your labels. I have found many spices and other products (i.e. garlic powder) that include additional ingredients like soy.
Known Allergy Information (containing the major 8): Possibly Soy (depending on pretzels)
**Disclaimer: Please note that every child’s sensitivity to their given allergen(s) varies. Some of the items that I use do contain “natural flavoring” and “spices” which is hard to determine if it is 100% allergy free. You should always check with the manufacturer to confirm that your child can have their product(s). The products that I list are items that I’ve been using for awhile and have proven to be safe for my boys (their allergies are dairy, egg, peanut, tree nut, fish, shellfish and sesame).**