Lynn Strong

Man, it’s… it’s been A Time, hasn’t it.

I’d gotten through a couple months with reposting already-written recipes, but I’ve actually nibbled through that backlog, so here’s a new one, and also a new novella: Kitty Game!

If you’re subscribed to my newsletter, you’ll get a link to Kitty Game! this month along with links to three other freebies from author-friends S. E. Robertson/C. A. Moss, Christy Matheson, and Kate Valent. Because a “feel better” freebie collection for the bookish soul seems like something we could all use.

Here’s one of the three recipes I associate with it: Puppy Chow for Humans, also called Muddy Buddies because I would bet someone confused it with actual Puppy Chow before some banquet sidebar sometime. Also, I’m pretty sure dogs and cats don’t do well with chocolate, so this version of Puppy Chow should not be fed to pets.

But since the most commonly found recipe as originally written doesn’t work for me because of the combination of corn Chex Mix cereal and corn starch in powdered sugar, I’m taking it on a food-sensitivity-adaptable spin.

Euli’s Adaptable Puppy Chow (For Humans!)

The basic notion, scaled down to half the original party size my family made, so you can also double or further halve this if you want:

• The base ingredients:
  • Half a box of cereal you’re not allergic to (you’re aiming for about 4-5 cups)
  • Low carb? Some of this won’t fit, but you could try a pound or two of almonds and/or cashews instead
  • Optional base-layer mix-ins: pistachios, dried strawberries, chopped dried dates or apricots, pretzel bites, crushed peppermint sticks… cinnamon red-hots if you’re feeling particularly spicy…
• The meltable topping:
  • About 1/4 to 1/3 cup peanut butter (or other nut or seed butter)
  • About 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips (or carob, or almond bark, or the meltable solid yogurt used to make yogurt covered pretzels)
  • About 2 Tbsp butter or ghee or coconut oil
  • 1/2 tsp liquid flavor-shifter of your choice (originally vanilla, but since this is me, I’m also a fan of rosewater or orange blossom water with chocolate)
• The stickiness-lowering dry outer layer:
  • 1 to 2 cups powdered sugar, if you can handle the sugar and cornstarch
    or
  • 1 to 2 cups dried coconut or toasted sesame seeds or crushed dry cookies or some other dry substance
    
  • Optional dry spice mix-ins for your dry layer:
    • 1 tsp-ish powdered cocoa to make the outer layer darker and chocolatier
    • 1 tsp-ish spice blend: Pick one to two among cinnamon, chai spice, pumpkin spice, poudre douce, atraf al-tib, whatever your favorites are!
    • (Scale note: Don’t put 5-8 tsp of spices and cocoa into 1 cup of duster, your taste buds likely won’t thank you for that much extra powdered spice, not if you haven’t cooked it with the butter to take the raw edge off first… although with that said, hmm I wonder if the melted butter might take more spices if cooked together in advance of the rest of the meltables? Notes for future experimentation! Let me know if you try a tadka with this?)
• The containment systems:
  • Double boiler or microwave safe Pyrex for melting the meltables
  • One or two gallon size plastic bags or something large, lidded, and safely shakeable for dusting the outer layer
  • Big flat surface or maybe cookie trays for spreading and cooling on

The process:

• Measure out your base materials (cereal and any chosen fruit/nut/pretzel mix-ins) into your shakeable bag or lidded container, with room for tossing.
• If you’re going to flavor or color your outer stickiness-reducing dusting substance, stir the cocoa and/or spices through the powdered sugar or alternative until you’ve gotten the color and flavor level that you desire. (Keep it aside and safely dry until you’ve dealt with the meltables and the first round of tossing.)
• Melt the chocolate-or-other chips, the peanut butter, and the butter or alternative fat together in your choice of a double boiler or a microwave in 30-second heat-and-stir bursts.
• Once the meltables have melted, stir in your vanilla (or rosewater!)
• Pour the melted meltables over your base materials in your shakeable, and toss or stir gently until the meltables have distributed throughout your base.
• Get out that container of your (possibly-spiced) stickiness-reducing dry substance (powdered sugar or alternative). Sprinkle it liberally over your sticky base materials and toss or stir gently until it gets reasonable to handle. Reserve some for last-minute repairs.
• Spread your now-dusted chow on your large flat surface or baking sheets in a flat layer so that they dry separately and won’t clump together as they cool. Look for un-dusted spots and sprinkle accordingly.
• Store in an airtight container until eaten, possibly in the refrigerator if it’s warm out.