Easy Autumn Snack Mix with Caramel Corn
I cannot stop eating this autumn snack mix! It has cereal, pretzels, pumpkin seeds, caramel corn, graham cookies, brown butter, and lots of pumpkin pie spice. Seriously, if you love anything pumpkin spice, you have to make this easy recipe. It's amazing for movie nights, fall holidays, Halloween parties, gifting, and everything in-between!
Ingredients
- 2 cups Golden Grahams cereal (80 grams)
- 2 cups corn or rice Chex cereal (60 grams)
- 2 cups pretzels (80 grams)
- 1 cup roasted, unsalted pepitas (120 grams)
- 2 cups honey or cinnamon Teddy Grahams (140 grams)
- 10 Tablespoons unsalted butter (142 grams)
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed (100 grams)
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom, optional
- 1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt, plus more to taste
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1-2 Tablespoons granulated sugar, optional (12-24 grams)
- 3 cups caramel popcorn (90 grams)
Equipment
- 1 sheet pan
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 250°F (120°C). Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Then, mix the Golden Grahams cereal, Chex cereal, pretzels, pepitas, and Teddy Grahams on the prepared sheet pan. Set aside.
- Next, melt the unsalted butter in a shallow, light-colored pan over medium-low heat. Cook, swirling the pan often, for 5-7 minutes. At first the butter will foam up and get bubbly, but eventually, you will start to see small brown bits on the bottom of the pan.
- Once the butter is browned, add the brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, cardamom, salt, and vanilla extract. Stir well and let the mixture bubble for about 1 minute.
- Immediately pour the brown butter mixture evenly over the snack mix. Use a rubber spatula or clean hands to mix everything together until all of the snack mix is well coated in the butter mixture. Break up any clumps if needed. Taste and add more salt or spices if desired.
- Spread the snack mix into an even layer on the sheet pan. Bake the snack mix for 45-50 minutes, tossing it well every 10 minutes, until it's completely dry to the touch.
- For cinnamon sugar vibes: About 5 minutes before the snack mix is done, toss it with 1-2 Tablespoons (12-24 grams) of granulated sugar. This will give you a cinnamon sugar texture, but be careful not to add too much sugar or it'll come out overly sweet. This step is totally optional, I just like a little extra texture and sweetness but it's still good without!
- Once the snack mix is dry, immediately toss it with the caramel popcorn. Let the snack mix cool completely. Then, store it in airtight containers for 1-2 weeks. Enjoy!
Notes
I forgot how good Golden Grahams cereal is, and it honestly makes this snack mix over the top good! But if you only want to use one type cereal, feel free to use 4 cups of either Golden Grahams or Chex. I like the mix of sweet and savory but either works!
If you want to skip browning the butter, you can use plain melted butter instead. Just use 1/2 cup (114 grams) of unsalted butter instead of the 10 Tablespoons (142 grams) of butter the recipe calls for.
Feel free to swap the spices with any warm spices you like. I'm a big fan of cardamom cause it gives the mix a deeper flavor but ginger, allspice, or cloves would be delicious too.
Serving: 0.5cup, Calories: 140kcal, Carbohydrates: 19g, Protein: 2g, Fat: 7g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Cholesterol: 13mg, Sodium: 155mg, Potassium: 106mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 8g, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 25mg, Iron: 2mg
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