Whether you call it puppy chow or muddy buddies, I think we can all agree it’s downright delicious! This Valentine’s Day Puppy Chow is sprinkled with cute red and pink chocolate candies and freeze dried strawberries to spread the love!

Every year for Valentine’s Day I make a big dinner for the whole family and try to make the day really special. I decorate the table with red roses, boxes of chocolates and make their favorite dishes. Cooking has always been I show love and it’s something me and the kids really look forward to every year. This year I wanted to come up with a new festive Valentine’s Day treat to send with them to school and thought about puppy chow but with a Valentine’s Day twist!

What is Puppy Chow?

If you’ve somehow made it through your life without a handful of decadent puppy chow, I’m very impressed. Puppy chow, also known as muddy buddies, is a delicious treat is made of Chex cereal coated in melted chocolate, peanut butter, and powdered sugar. This snack is super indulgent and great for special occasions (like Valentine’s Day) or as gifts for friends. Once you have a bite it’s hard to stop!

How to Make Valentine’s Day Puppy Chow

This recipe couldn’t be easier to pull together. And the best part? You don’t even have to bake anything! Here’s how to make delicious Valentine’s Day Puppy Chow:

Add the creamy peanut butter, chocolate chips and butter to a microwave safe bowl. Microwave in 30 seconds increments and stir in between until the chocolate in fully melted. Add the vanilla extract and stir once more.
Grab a large mixing bowl and pour in the rice Chex cereal. Add the chocolate peanut butter mixture and stir thoroughly, but gently, until each piece of cereal is coated.
Pour the coated cereal to a gallon sized Ziploc bag. Gradually add the powdered sugar to the Ziploc bag, seal and shake gently until the cereal is coated in powdered sugar. Spread puppy chow on parchment paper and allow to cool until chocolate is set.
Sprinkle chocolate coated candies and freeze dried strawberries over puppy chow and enjoy!

Tips for The Best Puppy Chow

When combining the cereal and chocolate peanut butter mixture, stir gently and try not to over mix. This helps you don’t break the cereal too much and leaves you with a few larger clumps for the occasional super bite!
Once you’ve combined your cereal and the chocolate/peanut butter mixture, allow it to cool slightly to room temperature before adding the powdered sugar. Otherwise, the chocolate will soak up the powdered sugar and you’ll have to add more sugar to get the pieces to separate.
With that said, don’t be afraid to add more powdered sugar if you end up with large clumps. The sugar is was helps break it up into delicious bite sized pieces.

Making puppy chow is the perfect activity to do with your kid’s for Valentine’s Day. It’s so much fun to let them help add the powdered sugar, shake the bag and see their faces light up. There’s no better way to spread the love this year than making a big batch of Valentine’s Day Puppy Chow to give to friends and family.

More Valentine’s Day Treats

Let me know what you think of this recipe in the comments! And tag me on social media if you make it. Happy Valentine’s Day!

Images by Ivan Solis