Sunday, March 31, 2013

Sesame and Chocolate Puppy Chow


The old and the new - this constitutes life.

Old beliefs and new philosophies.  Grandparents and newborns.  Old hobbies and new interests.  Old fossils and new species.  The old grounds us in its nostalgia and wisdom; the new taking us to places we haven't yet been to explore fresh sights and sounds and tastes.

And now my reading habits have come to embrace this yin and yang.

Because I'm a dork, spending time in a used bookstore is one of the best things ever.  Ever.  Row upon row, shelf upon shelf of book. All the books about all the things!  Such order!  And all the books just waiting, waiting to be picked up and taken home to be loved.

I have a special fondness for those old books.  The ones with some heft to their covers and that wonderful musty smell.  My personal bests so far include:
-Mary Cullen's Northwest Cookbook from 1946
-Adam Bede from sometime in the 1800s
-a 1943 Nancy Drew.

Recently, because I'm perpetually late to the game in just about everything, I've also come to love reading books on my phone.  No more clunky booklight during a bout of 2 am insomnia! Convenience! So portable! Maybe I can sneak a few pages of reading while the toddler wears his concentration face to engage in the exacting task of gluing Greater Kudus onto construction paper!

There is room in my heart for both forms of books.  And there is room in my heart for two Puppy Chows.  The old one - here - is a glorious Halloween celebration in a giant plastic container.  And contains notes of Nutella and some butterscotch.  This new one is a bit subtler - slightly less garish, slightly more pastel, and much more sesame.  Specifically, in the form of roasted sesame seeds and tahini.  And pretzel M&Ms for some of that salty/sweet deliciousness.

Adapted from bettycrocker.com

Ingredients
9 cups Rice Chex cereal
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup tahini
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons roasted sesame seeds
vanilla salt and/or fleur de sel
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 package pretzel m&ms

Instructions
In a large bowl, pour in the Chex cereal. In a medium glass bowl, place chocolate chips, tahini, and butter. Carefully microwave for 30 seconds, then stir. Carefully microwave again if needed.  You want the mixture to be melted together. Stir in vanilla. Pour the chocolate mixture over the cereal. Get the cereal as evenly coated as possible, then sprinkle with the salt and sesame seeds, and then the powdered sugar. Place the mixture on waxed paper to dry. Mix the M&Ms with the cereal mixture once it has dried. Place in an airtight container.


19 comments:

  1. Yay for puppy chow! I remember that Halloween version, they both look delicious. I'm torn between the hazelnut of that one versus the sesame of this one since I'm a sesame and hazelnut fanatic.

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  2. What a colorful take on puppy chow!

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  3. Oh, my. I like the new version even better! I'd hate to start munching b/c I'd never stop!!! YUM!

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  4. I wouldn't stop eating those until they were all gone!

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  5. A. I love old books.
    B. I recently got an e-reader and it's like the best thing ever
    C. Pretzel M&Ms are my favorite, and I love the addition of the sesame seed. I can pretend it's all healthy and stuff.

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  6. I'm so intrigued about chocolate and tahini combination?! Can't wrap my head around how it would taste, but it looks very pretty! :)

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  7. I just love books so much!!

    And oooo I love this sweet snack with a twist!

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  8. Such a creative twist of puppy chow! This sounds awesome!!!

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  9. love the sesame twist here :) kicking up puppy chow a notch!!

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  10. I think I will never give up my physical books, but I have come around to appreciating the new kind too. So, yes to old and new! Love the pretzel m&m's.

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  11. The smell of used/old books never fails to lift my mood(s)!
    And even though I've never had puppy chow, at least not the human version (thanks to an evil older sister), I think it would also cheer me up. :)

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  12. Old and new are parts of our lives. Old is what we were and new is what we are. These treats are so cute and perfect!

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  13. It's such a part of everyones' lives. These look great.

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  14. I've recently started reading books on my ipad...I can't say I'll ever give up regular books entirely but there is something nice about it being so light and portable. :) Sesame and chocolate together sound like a wonderful combination!!

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  15. I love reading books...especially old ones. This is such a lovely updated to a classic fall recipe. Thank you for sharing it with us!

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  16. Mmm I love puppy chow. The pastel colors are so fun!

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  17. I love old books too!
    It's like travelling in another world when you enter one of these bookstores.
    Jenn, your puppy chow is awfully tempting and delicious looking :)

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  18. What a fun twist on the puppy chow! And all those colors... I love it :)

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  19. Yum. Love the colors. Now I feel guilty for reading only on my ipad... old books are so amazing.

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