Classic Chex Party Mix Recipe
Also Called Mix Trix and Nuts & Bolts

My Grandma was the first person I knew to make Chex Party Mix. She loved to try new recipes, and she was constantly checking the back of food boxes and cans for new ideas. When the Chex cereal company came out with Party Mix, Grandma was right on it.

When Grandma ended up on kidney dialysis, she was not allowed to have snacks like Party Mix – mostly due to the salt I think. She would hunt all over the kitchen trying to find it. She had me crawling up in the lower and upper cabinets trying to find the Party Mix, before some of the relatives told me that they rationed it. I really hated that she couldn’t just enjoy one of her favorite snacks, and I hope they have lots of Chex Party Mix in heaven.

When I make Chex Party Mix every year at the holidays, I always think of Grandma. I just use her very basic recipe though sometimes play around and include other items like Goldfish crackers, Cheerios or mixed nuts. Generally I come right back to this classic mixture. Some of the extra items do not fare as well and do not cook evenly with the other ingredients.

Chex now sells premade Party Mix, but it is nowhere near as good as the homemade mixture. There are also microwave directions for Party Mix too, but there’s something about the slower baking time that gives the nuts and bolts a better and heartier flavor.   

Chex Party Mix Recipe

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. garlic salt
2 cups Wheat Chex square cereal
2 cups Rice Chex square cereal
1 cup peanuts
1 cup small pretzel rods

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Melt butter in a shallow pan. Stir in Worcestershire sauce, salt, and garlic salt (not garlic powder). Add Wheat Chex, Rice Chex, nuts (peanuts, pecans or cashews), and pretzel rods. Mix until all pieces are coated with the butter mixture.

Place on a shallow baking pan with sides. Bake for 30 minutes to an hour, stirring every 10 minutes or so.

Cool...enjoy!

Interesting note – I was reading online about the history of Chex Party Mix. The recipe traces back to 1954 (Mix Trix), but the mixture was not trademarked until 1990. The original recipe is similar to my Grandma’s version, but it included Kix and Cheerio cereals as well as the Chex cereals.