Muddy Buddies are one of those snacks that everyone has a memory of. The classic Chex, peanut butter, chocolate, powdered sugar combination that shows up at every holiday party and disappears within the first ten minutes. I love the original but I wanted to do something that felt a little more special for December and the cookie butter and brown butter version I landed on is so good it has completely taken over as my favorite holiday snack mix. This Cookie Butter Reindeer Chow is the upgrade your holiday snack table has been waiting for.
The brown butter is the detail that takes this from good to genuinely incredible. Instead of just melting the butter you cook it a little longer until it foams, the milk solids turn amber, and it starts smelling nutty and caramelized and almost toffee-like. It happens fast so you have to watch it closely but the flavor it adds to the whole mixture is something straight melted butter just cannot replicate. Pour it directly over the cookie butter and white chocolate chips and it melts everything together into the most silky, caramelized, Biscoff flavored coating that clings to every single piece of Chex perfectly.
The powdered sugar shake in a ziplock bag is the most satisfying step in any muddy buddy recipe and this one is no exception. Everything gets transferred into the bag, sealed, and shaken until every piece is coated in that powdered sugar snow that makes reindeer chow look as good as it tastes. Then you fold in the festive mix-ins. Mini marshmallows for that hot cocoa vibe, holiday M&Ms for color and crunch, and whatever extras sound good to you. Mini pretzels, stroopwafel bites, candied pecans — all fair game and all incredible.
This cookie butter reindeer chow is the holiday snack mix for cookie boxes, neighbor gifts, classroom treats, party snack bowls, or just having something festive and irresistible in a big bowl on the counter all December long. It comes together in about fifteen minutes and makes an enormous batch that stores well in an airtight container for a full week. Make it once and it becomes a permanent part of your holiday tradition.
Cookie Butter Reindeer Chow
Ingredients
- 6 cups Rice or Cinnamon Chex
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
- ½ cup cookie butter Trader Joe’s or Biscoff
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp cinnamon
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- ½ cup mini marshmallows optional but cute + hot cocoa vibes
Optional add-ins:
- ½ cup holiday M&Ms or red/green chocolate candies
- mini pretzels
- stroopwafel bites
- candied pecans
Instructions
- In a saucepan over medium high heat, melt the butter and stir occasionally until it starts to foam. Stir consistently until you see the color change to amber and then as soon as it starts smelling toasty and is a light caramely brown color, remove from heat. (this happens FAST so watch it!)
- In a glass or microwave safe bowl combine cookie butter with white chocolate chips.
- Pour brown butter over the chocolate chips and cookie butter and add vanilla and cinnamon.
- Stir with a spatula and heat in the microwave in 30 second increments if mixture is not already smooth.
- Pour Chex into a large mixing bowl.
- Drizzle melted cookie butter mixture over the Chex and stir until all the Chex are coated evenly.
- Add powdered sugar to a large ziplock bag.
- Transfer Chex into the bag, seal and shake, coating all Chex in the sugar.
- Transfer to a bowl and drizzle with more melted cookie butter and top with mini marshmallows.
- ENJOY!!
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