I mentioned on Friday that I was up late waiting for my spiced nuts to be finished. Man, they were worth the wait! I used a crockpot liner to make easy clean up and these sweet pecans and cashews came together with very little effort. I think I’ve been eating these nuts for every meal since I made them, and they were a huge hit at the party. I recommend them for your next get together (make them the same day and your house will smell wonderful) or they make the perfect eatable hostess or holiday gift.
Bad news is that someone I never got a picture of these nuts and now they are all gone!
However, I did remember to take a few pre party pictures of this next recipe. Everyone loves a snack mix, and this Hot Chocolate Mix is really creative and fun!
This recipe makes a HUGE amount of deliciousness, so I had to bust out my biggest soup pot to mix everything together!
I will point out that I tend to like a little more chocolate coating on my cereal snacks, so I would highly recommend using MORE chocolate to fully coat every single chex and golden graham.
Both of these recipes are worth liking/saving/pinning as they will make perfect Superbowl Snacks!
And the best way to burn them off…
Try this interval workout that I did yesterday around the indoor track. To get the best results, have your push be faster than your easy long run pace and your recovery be faster than your warm up pace.
3-5 minute warm up
5 minute push/5 minute recovery
4 minute push/4 minute recovery
3 minute push/3 minute recovery
2 minute push/2 minute recovery
1 minute push/ 1 minute recovery
3-5 minute cool down
Plus the best part of getting up extra early for a sweat session…
The stunning pictures at sunrise!
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What is your favorite easy snack to make?
Slow Cooker Cinnamon Pecans
From The Recipe Critic
Ingredients
1¼ C. Sugar
1¼ C. Brown Sugar
2 Tbsp. Cinnamon
⅛ tsp. Salt
1 Egg White
2 tsp. vanilla
3 Cups Pecans (and I used some cashews)
¼ C. Water
Directions
Mix together in a large bowl the sugars, cinnamon, and salt.
In another bowl with a whisk, mix together the egg white and vanilla until it is frothy. Add the pecans and coat thoroughly. This will help the mixture stick to the pecans during the cooking process.
Prepare your slow cooker by spraying it with cooking spray or use a liner. Add the cinnamon mixture and the pecans and turn it to low. Stir until the nuts are well coated.
Cook for about 3-4 hours. Stirring every 30 minutes. In the very last hour, add ¼ cup water and stir well. This will ensure a crunchy coating and help the mixture to harden.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spread the pecans onto the sheet to cool. The pecans should be pretty sticky so be sure to separate them the best that you can and let them cool!
NOTE: I think there is more than enough cinnamon sugar mixture for 4 cups of nuts.
Hot Chocolate Snack Mix
From Butter with a Side of Bread
Ingredients
8 cups Rice Chex cereal
16 ounce bag miniature marshmallows
2 cups mini graham crackers (I just used Golden Grahams cereal, but you could probably break up graham crackers into small pieces instead)
5 Tbsp instant hot chocolate mix, divided
1 tsp hot water
1/2 cup butter
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 tsp cinnamon
3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup baking cocoa
Directions
Combine Rice Chex, marshmallows and graham crackers/cereal in a large bowl and mix together.
In a different microwave-safe bowl, stir 1 Tbsp of the hot chocolate mix with the water until the mix is dissolved. Stir in the chocolate chips, butter and cinnamon. Microwave for 1 minute and stir. Microwave for another 30 seconds until mixture is melted and smooth. Pour the mixture over the cereal and stir until well coated.
In a different bowl, combine the powdered sugar, the remaining 4 Tbsp of hot cocoa mix and the baking cocoa. Once this has been well mixed, pour it over the chocolate-coated cereal and stir until the cereal is well coated.
Store in an airtight container. If making ahead, store in the freezer.
NOTE: I would increase the chips to 3-4 cups…trust me on this one!
