Cinnamon Sugar Chex Mix (Sweet And Salty Chex Mix!)
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Sweet cinnamon sugar Chex mix is sweet, salty, and crunchy all in one bite. Perfect as a snack party mix, this delicious sweet Chex mix recipe also makes a great gift for the holiday season.
Table of Contents
Why We Love Cinnamon Sugar Chex Mix
- Sweet, Salty And Crunchy – This easy snack mix is sweet, salty and crunchy all at the same time which makes it addictively delicious and perfect to satisfy your sweet tooth.
- Great For Gifts– Make this as a holiday gift for friends, family or as part of a goody bag. You can just add it to a cellophane bag or metal tin; it’s my favorite snack to give as gifts.
- Can Be Made Ahead – You can make this great snack mix ahead of time easily so it’s ready to crunch when you are. It’s the perfect mix for family gatherings or even a tailgating party for game day.
Ingredients For Cinnamon Sugar Chex Mix
Find the full printable recipe with specific measurements and directions below in the recipe card.
Chex Party Mix Ingredients
- Rice Chex cereal
- Corn Chex cereal
- Wheat Chex cereal
- pretzels – I used half square and half mini pretzels, you can also use pretzel sticks.
- pecan halves
Butter Mixture
- salted butter
- brown sugar divided
- granulated sugar
- cinnamon
Optional Crunch Topping
- brown sugar
- white granulated sugar
- ground cinnamon
How To Make Cinnamon Sugar Chex Mix
Mixing The Party Mix
- Pre-heat the oven to 275°F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet or large roasting pan with parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the rice Chex, corn Chex, wheat Chex, pretzels and pecans. Mix until combined.
- Place a medium saucepan over medium heat with the butter and melt. Combine butter with one cup of brown sugar, 1/2 cup granulated, sugar and 2 tablespoons cinnamon to make a caramel mixture. Whisk the mixture and cook until the sugars are well dissolved about 4-5 minutes.
- Pour the sugar mixture over the cereal mixture in the bowl. Mix well with a silicone spatula until evenly coated.
- Pour the coated Chex mix onto the prepared baking sheet in a single layer. Bake recipe for 45 minutes, stirring the mixture around every 15 minutes. Allow the party mix to cool for about 15 minutes on the tray.
Optional Crunch Topping
- In a medium bowl add the 1/4 cup brown sugar, 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar, 2 teaspoons of cinnamon. Mix together the optional topping and set aside.
- Pour the party mix back into the large bowl. Add the optional topping mixture and toss to combine. Serve warm, or serve later cool and enjoy!
How Long Does This Party Mix Last?
Once the mix cools and is room temperature you can store this sweet and salty chex mix recipe in an airtight container for up to two weeks. This fun snack can also be frozen for up to two months for best results.
Variation Ideas For Sweet And Salty Chex Mix
Chex mix is pretty flexible with the crunchy ingredients you put in the mix itself.
- Swap The Nuts- We’ve used pecans, but cashews, peanuts or walnuts can all be great choices in this mix. You can also leave out nuts if there is an allergy. If no one is allergic I leave in the nuts as they are the best part for me.
- Change The Chex Ratios– Prefer more wheat chex than corn chex cereal? As long as you have about eight cups of chex cereal, your party mix will be delicious. We used a variety of chex cereal as it just adds different crunch and flavors. You can adjust the ratio to your preference or what you have.
- Swap The Cereal – ou can also experiment with other plain cereals in the mix as a swap, like plain or honey nut Cheerios or Cripex cereal. Or try other crunchy elements like Bugles.
- Add Chocolate– You could add semi-sweet, white or dark chocolate chips to this mix after taking it out of the oven once it cools.
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Cinnamon Sugar Chex Mix
Chex Mix is crunchy, sweet and salty in all the best ways. This is the perfect snack mix for parties and gifts, is super easy to make, and is so good it's addictive!
Ingredients
Party Mix Ingredients
- 4 cups Rice Chex cereal
- 2 cups Corn Chex cereal
- 2 cups Wheat Chex cereal
- 1 cup pretzels I used half square and half mini pretzels
- 1/2 cup pecan halves
Butter Mixture
- 1 cup salted butter
- 1 cup brown sugar divided
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons cinnamon
Optional Crunch Topping
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Instructions
Mixing The Party Mix
- Preheat the oven to 275°F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet tray with parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the rice Chex, corn Chex, wheat Chex, pretzels and pecans. Mix until combined.
- Place a medium saucepan over medium heat with the butter and melt. Combine melted butter with one cup of brown sugar, 1/2 cup granulated, sugar and 2 tablespoons cinnamon. Whisk the mixture and cook until the sugars are well dissolved about 4-5 minutes.
- Pour the sugar mixture over the cereal mixture in the bowl. Mix well with a silicone spatula until evenly coated.
- Pour the coated Chex mix onto the prepared baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for 45 minutes, stirring the mixture around every 15 minutes. Allow the party mix to cool for about 15 minutes on the tray.
Optional Crunch Topping
- In a medium bowl add the 1/4 cup brown sugar, 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar, 2 teaspoons of cinnamon. Mix together the optional topping and set aside.
- Pour the party mix back into the large bowl. Add the optional topping mixture and toss to combine. Serve warm, or serve later cool and enjoy!
Notes
Nutritional information is approximate and includes the optional crunch topping.
Butter Mixture Tip
A few readers have mentioned that when they make the butter mixture, sometimes the sugar mixture doesn’t fully melt and dissolve while boiling and stayed grainy. This is likely because the butter you have has a little less water, butter can vary in the amount of water in it.
Try adding just a teaspoon or two of water at a time if the sugar doesn’t seem to be cooking down to make essentially a thin caramel sauce after a few minutes. Using a whisk the entire time the sugar is dissolving to mix the mixture can also help.
Nutrition
Calories: 338kcal | Carbohydrates: 52g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.5g | Cholesterol: 31mg | Sodium: 342mg | Potassium: 106mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 26g | Vitamin A: 692IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 90mg | Iron: 7mg
Did You Make This?
I would love to see it! Share your thoughts with me in the comments below!
This was great but burns easily. Cut baking time and WATCH!
Just made. Looks great. Adding the topping and chocolate chips. Kids and grandkids will love it, along with the original chex mix recipe for Thanksgiving. Thanks for the recipe.
I made this and everyone loved it. I added Cinnamon Teddy Grahams to it for a baby shower and I think it was a good addition!
So cute, love the addition of teddy grahams!
I think I may have done something wrong. I’ve added all the ingredients and followed the instructions for the sugar mixture, but my sugar mixture never really melted enough to have the sugar fully dissolved. It stayed grainy while boiling, then got thick. I did the proper amount of butter. Could you specify a little more on cooking the sugar mixture? Does it need to be hot and bubbly like if you were making Caramel or does it just need the butter to melt and it all combine?
Hi Mandy- I haven’t had this issue you are describing, but I did a little research to help. You are right about the caramel, we are making a really thin caramel cinnamon sauce for the Chex mix. It should not be as thick and bubbly as when making caramel candies though because we want the mixture to stay think and still coat the chex mix evenly instead of turning into a full caramel candy.
I think what may have happened is the brown sugar, sugar and butter mixture needed a little more water to dissolve. Both brown sugar and butter have water in them already (white sugar doesn’t really.) If the brown sugar happened to be a little on the dry side or the butter you used has a little less water in it, then the sugar may not have dissolved enough before the water finished evaporating. If you are making the recipe again, I would try adding a teaspoon or two of water if the sugar doesn’t seem to be breaking down after a few minutes of heating. Also whisking the entire time can help to make the mixture smoother. Hope that helps! -Kristy
Thank you! I’m still munching on it cause it’s still tasty, but I do plan to make another batch tonight. I will try the mixture again and see about adding a little water to get it to melt. Thanks!
Thanks for these notes about the water. I had the same problem as Mandy. I was thinking maybe the amount of brown sugar was wrong because the ingredients list says it’s a cup of brown sugar divided, but the recipe text doesn’t mention it being divided. I wish I had read the comments first! Oh well.
I made this for a family party, and they couldn’t get enough. I used Crispix cereal, mini pretzels, pretzel balls, butter twist pretzels and a little bit more pecans.
Love your additions Maureen, sound delicious!