These delicious Christmas muddy buddies combine hot chocolate mix, marshmallows, and Sno-Cap candies in a wintery treat that’s perfect for the holidays! Anyone who likes hot chocolate will love this yummy and festive treat!
It’s almost Christmas time and that means we’re full on into the holiday spirit over here at my house! We’ve already played Christmas bingo, started our DIY advent calendar, and of course started playing the best Christmas songs all day long!
And I can’t forget the Christmas treats. We haven’t done our Christmas cookie baking yet, but we’ve already feasted on some delicious Christmas goodies like these reindeer brownie balls, peanut butter snowballs, and homemade nutter butters!
One of my favorite holiday traditions is going on a holiday hayride with a cup of hot chocolate. There’s just something about the flavor of homemade hot chocolate that warms me up inside and out!
I thought it’d be fun to take that hot chocolate flavor and add it to one of my favorite snacks – muddy buddies – and these hot chocolate muddy buddies were born!
This yummy recipe is a variation on a family favorite but with the snowy twist of adding hot chocolate mix, marshmallow, mini marshmallows, and Sno-Cap candies! It’s just delicious.
So whether you call it Christmas puppy chow or Christmas muddy buddies, this chocolate snack mix is delicious all the same!
Start mixing so you can serve these at your next holiday party!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Fool-proof recipe – there’s really nothing to screw up with this recipe as long as you don’t burn the chocolate. It’s melting chocolate, mixing a couple of ingredients together, and tossing it all in a bag!
- Popular snack choice – I’ve yet to meet anyone who doesn’t like muddy buddies and this version is even better than the original!
- Great gift idea – these are really fun if you put them in jars with Christmas gift tags and gift to family and friends! They keep well, making them great for giving to others!
Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
- Hot chocolate mix – I love the Ghirardelli stuff but it’s hard to fine. Any hot chocolate or hot cocoa mix works just fine!
- Butter – I recommend unsalted butter but salted works fine as well.
- Chocolate chips – I like to use bittersweet chocolate chips in this since the rest of the mixture is fairly sweet but you could also use semi-sweet, it will just sweeten them up some.
- Marshmallow fluff – either marshmallow fluff or creme works just great in these muddy buddies.
- Mini marshmallows – you’ll definitely want to use mini marshmallows in these, not regular marshmallows, since they’re mix-ins at the end! If you only have regular marshmallows on hand, I recommend these s’mores cookies instead!
- Sno-Caps – I think these are a really fun addition since this is a hot chocolate themed snack, but you could also mix-in other things like sprinkles, Christmas M&Ms (like I used in this reindeer chow), or even peppermint candy.
How to make Christmas muddy buddies
This recipe is a super easy one and also a fun one for kids to help with, especially the shaking part!
Start by pouring the Rice Chex into either a large container with an airtight lid or a 2 gallon Ziploc bag. Don’t try to use a gallon size Ziploc bag unless you’re halving the recipe, it won’t fit. I only did half the recipe for my TikTok video here and if you watch it, you can see how full the regular gallon bag already is!
Make sure you measure your cereal out and put it in a bowl before you start melting the chocolate. You’ll want to put it on as soon as it’s melted.
Combine the chocolate chips, butter, and peanut butter in a microwave safe container and microwave on high for 30 second intervals, stirring between each interval, until the mixture is fully melted and nice and smooth.
You can also do this on the stove by combining the ingredients in a double boiler. Either way is totally fine and ends up with the same result – melted chocolate mixture!
Remove the chocolate from heat and stir in the marshmallow fluff until well combined.
Next, whisk together the powdered sugar and hot chocolate mix in a large bowl. Whisk until the dry ingredients are completely combined.
Once your coating is ready, add the melted chocolate peanut butter mixture to the Rice Chex in the bag and toss until well coated.
Then do the same with the hot chocolate powdered sugar mix. Add it to the bag, close the bag, and toss until well coated.
Place wire racks on two baking sheets to catch the excess coating then spread coated muddy buddies out on the laid out wire racks to cool for about 30 minutes.
This will make it so that when you grab a handful of these addictive Christmas muddy buddies that you don’t end up with melted chocolate all over your hand.
They’re still messy – they are named MUDDY buddies for a reason – but not as messy when you let them dry out!
Once the muddy buddies have set for about 30 minutes, toss in a bowl with the mini marshmallows, Sno-Caps, and any other mix-ins you’d like to add.
And that’s it! Your Christmas muddy buddies are ready to eat. Eat them straight from the bowl, portion them out into individual jars or bags, or store it for snacking later.
This also makes a great gift! Fill up little jars and add either this sweet holidays gift tag or this you’ve been treated gift tag for a fun gift for teachers, neighbors, and friends.
Just remember there’s peanut butter in this so skip any houses with peanut allergies! You can give them this cranberry orange bread instead.
Expert Tips
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in a cool place for up to three days. After that the mini marshmallows will start wilting and it just won’t taste as good.
Double or half the recipe easily by just doubling or halving the ingredients. Unlike some recipes, this one is easy to adjust to the portion that you want!
Place a piece of parchment paper under the wire racks on the baking sheet for easy cleanup. Once the Christmas muddy buddies are good to go, just take off the wire racks (clean those) and throw away the parchment paper underneath.
Recipe FAQs
Sno-Caps are available to order online here or I found them at the Dollar Tree and other local grocery stores!
Muddy buddies and puppy chow are the same basic thing, people just call them different things.
Classic muddy buddies are made with cereal coated in melted chocolate, peanut butter, and butter. Then the cereal mixture is tossed with a powdered sugar mixture for a sweet and salty snack.
More Easy Christmas Recipes
If you like these Christmas muddy buddies, you’ll love these delicious Christmas treats!
- Melted snowman cookies – these adorable cookies start with a sugar cookie base then are topped with melted marshmallow snowmen!
- Peanut butter snowballs – peanut butter gets topped with powdered sugar in these classic holiday treats!
- Reindeer brownie balls – the cutest red-nosed reindeer balls you ever did see!
- Christmas tree cookies – beautifully decorated Christmas cookies that look just like holiday trees!
- Christmas tree cake dip – Little Debbie Christmas tree cakes get an upgrade with this 3-ingredient dip!
Hot Chocolate Christmas Muddy Buddies
Ingredients
- 10 cups rice chex cereal
- 12 ounces bittersweet chocolate chips (or semi-sweet chocolate chips)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
- 7 ounces marshmallow fluff or cream
- 2 ounces hot cocoa mix (dry)
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 3.1 ounces Snow Caps candy
- 3 cups mini marshmallows
- other mix-ins as desired
Instructions
- Start by pouring the Rice Chex into either a large container with an airtight lid or a 2 gallon Ziploc bag.10 cups rice chex cereal
- Combine the chocolate chips, butter, and peanut butter in a microwave safe container and microwave on high for 30 second intervals, stirring between each interval, until the mixture is fully melted and nice and smooth.12 ounces bittersweet chocolate chips, 1/2 cup unsalted butter, 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
- Remove the chocolate from heat and stir in the marshmallow fluff until well combined.7 ounces marshmallow fluff or cream
- Next, whisk together the powdered sugar and hot chocolate mix in a large bowl.2 ounces hot cocoa mix, 4 cups powdered sugar
- Once your coating is ready, add the melted chocolate peanut butter mixture to the Rice Chex in the bag and toss until well coated.
- Do the same with the hot chocolate powdered sugar mix. Add it to the bag, close the bag, and toss until well coated.
- Place wire racks on two baking sheets to catch the excess coating then spread coated muddy buddies out on the laid out wire racks to cool for about 30 minutes.
- Once the muddy buddies have set for about 30 minutes, toss in a bowl with the mini marshmallows, Sno-Caps, and any other mix-ins you’d like to add.3.1 ounces Snow Caps candy, 3 cups mini marshmallows, other mix-ins as desired
Tips & Notes:
- Salted or unsalted butter may be used
- Bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate chips may be used
- Marshmallow fluff or creme may be used
- Add other mix-ins like M&Ms, sprinkles, and crushed peppermints as desired
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