Yes, you heard right. That lovable childhood treat can be healthy!
I used to love puppy chow-the way the peanut butter and chocolate flavor bursted in your mouth as your fingers got sticky from the powdery-white sugar. Yum.
Unfortunately, “real” puppy chow is made with chocolate chips, peanut butter, butter, and powdered sugar. This racks up to be 16 grams of sugar per serving (according to Chex.com Recipes). But who ever sticks to that measly 1/2-cup serving anyway? It’s too good to not have seconds (or thirds….or fourths)!
Enter…My Puppy Chow:
Under-a-Minute Healthy Puppy Chow
~This puppy chow takes less than a minute to make, and is the perfect snack for those days when you are in a rush. The recipe is vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, and of course, sugar-free!
Ingredients
Serves 1
- 1 cup rice chex (or other cereal of choice)
- 1-2 Tablespoons peanut butter
- 1-2 Tablespoons cocoa powder
- optional add-ins: peanuts, cacao nibs, dried fruit, be creative!
Mix the peanut butter and cocoa powder together in a bowl. Add a little bit of water if it gets to sticky. Then, add the chex cereal and add-ins (if using), and stir together until well-incorporated.
Enjoy while watching a movie! Like Julie & Julia (one of my favorites!)
Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:
What is your favorite movie?
Also, what is your favorite movie snack? I always bring my own popcorn to the movies, because i am a Huge fan of my popcorn! (not to brag or anything) I make mine on the stove-top π
Yum! I used to love Puppy Chow, too. Thanks for this alternative!
My favorite all-time movie: The Parent Trap
My favorite movie snack (at the theater): Junior Mints (Oh dear…so much for sugar-free. Good thing I don’t go to the movies that often.)
My favorite movie snack (at home): Ice cream (I make an agave sweetened, dairy-free ice cream that is delicious.)
Haha! My mom’s FAVORITE is junior mints, too! She goes CRAZY for them π
I would love to know your dairy-free ice cream recipe! My brother has been recently tested to have a dairy sensitivity, and I stay away from dairy anyway.
I have lots of favorite movies, but if I’m going to watch something over again, I prefer to watch previous season episodes of “NCIS!”
I have a “somewhat” healthy snack, and perhaps you can improve upon it to make it even more healthy! I’ll call it “cinnamon strips” — here’s the recipe:
Ingredients:
1 dozen soft, flour tortillas (low-fat or fat-free are even healthier)
1 Tbs cinnamon
3/4 sugar (don’t know how to get around this)
1 cup real butter, melted (here’s where you might be more inventive!)
Blend all but the tortillas together in a bowl
Cut tortillas into 1″ strips. Dip strips into the melted butter mixture. Remove excess butter by pressing strips between 2 fingers. Place strips on cookie sheet, close together but not overlapping. Bake 10 minutes @ 375, or until strips are a little crispy on the backside.
So, is there a way to make this really tasty treat even healthier, but not lose its great taste?
Hi Marcia! Yeah, that is a lot of sugar! What I would do is try to get a whole wheat tortilla-costco sells a low-carb, whole grain tortilla from the tortilla factory company. I think that it is called “Smart and Delicious” tortillas-in a yellow package. Also, if you would like to cut down on the oil, try spraying it with olive oil instead of dipping it in butter. For the sugar, try stevia (I actually saw it at Dahl’s!)
Good luck!
oops – left out “cup” on the amount of sugar — 3/4 CUP of sugar!
I love movie theatre popcorn. There is something so delicious about it. All popcorn is tasty, but the theatre knows what they’re doing. I love that salty margarine. Normally I prefer butter, but in popcorn I prefer margarine because the butter goes clumpy.
<3 Milieu
Yeah the reason it tastes so good is because they drench it in partially hydrogenated coconut oil! (And of course, tons of salt) Try cooking some popcorn in expeller pressed coconut oil instead, and use a good quality salt. It smells and tastes just like the movie’s! And if you don’t believe me, ask my picky little brother!
what brand of popcorn do you use? What’s your method? What kinds of toppings work the best ?
I actually just buy my popcorn in the bulk section of my grocery store (its cheaper that way). Then, I pop it using the stovetop method: Pour the kernels into a medium-sized saucepan, and add a little bit of oil (enough so that each kernel is evenly coated). I usually use olive or coconut oil. Then, heat it Covered on medium heat. Shake the pan occasionally until it starts popping. Have a big bowl ready to pour the popped corn in, because once it starts popping, it will keep going! Keep it popping until you hear it stop. I put himalayan salt on my popcorn (I just like it plain and salty!) It is best to put the toppings on right after you pour it into the bowl because it sticks easier when the corn is hot. I also like to sprinkle some nutritional yeast on sometimes-it has a cheesy-nutty flavor that I like.
Good luck! Tell me how it goes π
sometimes the simplier things are the best. i would never have thought of coconut oil——genius !!!!
i will try it soon and thanks for everything.
more quesitons: do you use a cup of kernels, maybe a tablespoon of coconut oil? I’m new at this and not sure of the proportions. thanks again.
Well, popcorn kernels pop up A LOT. I never really measure, but I would say it is about 1/4 or 1/3 cup kernels per every tablespoon of oil. Just make sure that the oil evenly coats the kernels, but doesn’t drown them. Also, make sure you shake it a few times and keep it on medium heat so that the kernels don’t burn. Good Luck! Let me know how it goes!
Funny, I also bring my own popcorn. I’ve also been known to bring my own homemade sugar free soda too (club soda & juice – like raspberry-pomegranate).
My favorite movie is definitely “Sweet Home Alabama.”
Oh I love putting fruit juice in sparkling water! I like to call it a “seltzer.” Sometimes, when I have guests, I put frozen berries at the bottom of the jar, too! The last time I went to the movies, I brought a “seltzer!”
“Sweet Home Alabama” is such an adorable movie! One of my best friends is IN LOVE with it. So cute π
Favorite movie is my best friends wedding .. well that is one favorite out of many!
Such a funny classic movie for me. Always makes me laugh π
I must be out-of-it, I thought, wow she’s getting into dog food. Never heard of puppy chow.
Favorite movie – so hard to choose, but Good Will Hunting (everything about it fit perfectly and Minnie Driver-eye-yi-yi) and Snatch (if you can get past the profanity, Brad Pitt is great).
I used to eat the popcorn, but then you had to get something to wash it down and it all ends up costing next month’s rent, so I gave up eating at the movies.
Does that make me boring?
You never heard of puppy chow???!!!! What a horribly-deprived childhood! Just Kidding, it’s probably better you didn’t have to deal with the sugar loaded snack π
But not eating at the movie theatre does NOT make you boring! I hate going to the theatre because it is just too darn expensive! $12 ticket+$6 popcorn+$2 drink=$20 of restrained sitting in a dark room+missing the good parts because you had to go to the bathroom! Sheesh, I’d rather rent a movie at redbox for a dollar π
i LOVE the movie Pride…about these swimmers..and yeah..soo good! i’m kinda stuck on the devil wears prada too! this looks great..i’ve never even had the “real”..sugary stuff before..but sounds great..well YOUR version does anyway! have a great weekend! π
I don’t know Alex, the puppy chow you made looks a bit dry and scary….is it? tell me it’s tasty, scrumptous and not for zombies on halloween ! π
Favorite movie…..Nacho Libre !!!! “My favorite color is light tan, my favorite animal…poopies…..” haa haa haa…..
Another good one, Animal House!
I love putting popcorn and M&M’s together (as does your mom!) during a movie, what would be a good substitute for the M&M’s??? Jeff and I love eating tamari almonds & craisons…..
No it is not dry at all! It is really moist (that is why I added a dab of water-to make it mix easier). It IS tasty and scrumptious, and not just for zombies on Halloween! (ALthough it tastes so good that I bet the zombies would like it, too!)
And Nacho Libre is a big favorite in our house, Juju jack and dad go crazy for it π But mom LOVES 100% dark chocolate now! (She still loves m&ms, but she can’t eat as much of the sweet stuff like she used to)
Yum!! I can’t wait to try this. I think I’ll make it with the original Kashi golean cereal, though, to give it a nice dose of fiber and protein π
ho ho boy boy boy
i luv em eating them chow pups!
this recipe is for the FUN of it!
i can’t wait to make it.
then eat it.
then snuggle up next to a big teddy bear and watch WEEKEND AT BERNIE’s while eating a tasty puppy chow treat delish..
yum yum wow wow!
love you
I’ve recently started a gluten, dairy, sugar, mold free diet to ease some allergies. Peanuts have some mold, so I’m supposed to stay away from it. Could I substitute almond butter do you think? I have an insatiable sweet tooth, so life has been pretty depressing lately. BUT, I’m so glad I happened upon this blog! So many things I want to try!
Cherise,
So glad you found my site! Puppy Chow is usually made with peanut butter, but that doesn’t mean it wouldn’t be tasty with a different nutbutter. I’m sure it would work fine, but simply taste a bit different.
Just wanted to let you know I bought some almond butter and gave this a try. It was so thick though that I couldn’t mix it up well. Even with water it was clumpy. It still tasted ok, but theres nothing like good ol’ peanut butter π
Cherise,
Oh shucks, oh well. Sorry it didn’t work out!
This is very misleading I was looking to actually make puppy chow for my puppy…lol
Nereida,
Aww, sorry! I do have a couple “doggy cakes” on my site, though! Check out my recipe section under the tab “Non-Edibles” There are two different dog cakes there, both peanut butter apple. One is grain-Free and the other simply gluten-free.
Charise – I made it with SunButter (sunflower seed butter) tonight and it was great! I use SunButter all the time now since I also am allergic to mold and avoid peanuts.
Amy
Can you sub out the peanut butter for something else? (Boyfriend is allergic)
Krista,
You can try subbing any other kind of nut or seed butter.
Could the puppy chow be coded with a powdered sugar substitute? If so, what do you recommend? I’m newly diabetic and i loved puppy chow and am so thankful for being able to find a diabetic friendly version that dos not take pork rinse.
I’ve never looked for a powdered sugar substitute before, but I’ve heard you can make it by blending sugar substitute of choice with cornstarch. Good luck!
I like adding coconut! I know it’s not really a powdered sugar substitute, but it adds a sweetness to it π but I love coconut on everything. Especially bananas!