Cranberry Walnut Snack Mix
A crunchy, sweet-salty Cranberry Walnut Snack Mix loaded with walnuts, almonds, pretzels, cereal, dried cranberries, pumpkin seeds, and chocolate chips in a light maple-cinnamon coating. Perfect for snacking, gifting, or parties.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups walnut halves and pieces
- 1 cup raw or roasted almonds whole or slivered
- 1 1/2 cups small pretzel twists or pretzel sticks use gluten-free if needed
- 1 cup whole-grain rice or corn cereal squares such as Chex or similar neutral crunchy cereal
- 1 cup dried cranberries reduced-sugar if desired
- 1/3 cup roasted pumpkin seeds (pepitas) unsalted or lightly salted
- 1/3 cup dark or semi-sweet chocolate chips mini chips preferred
- 3 tablespoons butter melted; or coconut/neutral oil for dairy-free
- 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup or honey
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt or to taste
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg or allspice optional
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 300°F (150°C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper to prevent sticking and make cleanup easier.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the walnut halves and pieces, almonds, pretzels, and cereal. Toss to distribute. Add the dried cranberries and pumpkin seeds and toss again until evenly mixed.
- In a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the melted butter, maple syrup or honey, vanilla extract, ground cinnamon, sea salt, and optional nutmeg or allspice until smooth and glossy. Taste a tiny drop and adjust salt or cinnamon if desired.
- Drizzle the coating evenly over the dry mixture in the large bowl. Use a large spatula or wooden spoon to gently stir and fold until all the nuts, cereal, and pretzels look lightly and mostly evenly coated.
- Spread the coated mixture in an even layer on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 12–15 minutes, stirring once halfway through, until the nuts smell fragrant and the mix looks slightly drier. Begin checking around 12 minutes so the walnuts do not over-brown.
- Remove the baking sheet from the oven and let the snack mix cool on the pan for 10–15 minutes. When the mix is just barely warm (not hot), sprinkle the chocolate chips evenly over the top. Let cool completely, then break apart any large clusters if desired.
- Transfer the cooled snack mix to an airtight container, jars, or reusable snack bags. Serve immediately, or store at room temperature for up to 7–10 days, in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, or freeze for 2–3 months.
Notes
Yield: about 6 cups of snack mix (8–10 snack servings). For a slightly less sweet version, reduce maple syrup or honey to 2 tablespoons and use reduced-sugar dried cranberries. To make it gluten-free, choose gluten-free pretzels and cereal. For a nut-free version, replace walnuts and almonds with additional seeds, pretzels, and cereal. If the mix softens, re-crisp on a baking sheet at 275°F (135°C) for about 5 minutes, then cool completely. Add chocolate chips only after the mix has mostly cooled so they don’t melt.
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