“Now that we can teach ’em, what will we feed ’em?” That was a line from a workshop I attended at a homeschool convention several years ago. The speaker was Joel Salatin, and he was not talking about snack mixes, but the line stuck with me nonetheless. Since we are all teaching them in some form or another these days, we’re definitely feeding them too. If your house is anything like mine, there seems to be a lot more feeding going on than teaching! I have teenagers, and they are always in the pantry. It doesn’t matter if they just had a meal, they are still looking for a snack!
I found an easy recipe from The Novice Chef that anyone can make. It serves as a great opportunity to practice basic skills such as measuring and melting butter. This recipe makes a large amount, and should last a few days, even with hungry teens! Another bonus is that your house will smell deliciously amazing as it cooks!
Crunchy, bursting with flavor, and sure to please hungry teens!
Ingredients
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
- 2 (1 oz) packets ranch dressing mix (the powder packets)
- 4 tablespoons Light Brown Sugar
- 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
- 5 cups Corn Chex™
- 3 cups mini pretzels
- 3 cups oyster crackers
- 3 cups cheese crackers
- 2 cups goldfish crackers
Directions
- Preheat oven to 225°F. Line a couple of your large sheet pans with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together butter, ranch dressing mix, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, and cayenne pepper.
- In an extra large bowl, (I used my stock pot) combine Chex, pretzels, oyster crackers, cheesy crackers, and goldfish. Pour butter mixture on top of Chex Mix mixture and toss to coat well.
- Spread in an even layer on prepared cookie sheet and bake for 1 hour, stirring it around every 20 minutes.
- Let cool and serve or store in an airtight container for up to a week.
You can find a printable version of this recipe here, as well as many others at dixiecrystals.com. While I was printing the recipe, I found a homeschooler’s gold mine – Kids in the Kitchen. If you are a science lover like myself, you will want to check out the Sweet Science Projects!
Have you found a recipe that your teens love and that they can make themselves? Let me know, I love new recipes!
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