Puppy chow—aka Muddy Buddies—is not dog food. No, no! Puppy chow is a snack mix… for humans. Making pumpkin puppy chow could not be easier. It’s really just a few ingredients mixed together. No baking involved, no chilling involved. Less work, more eating. With pumpkin puppy chow on my to-do list, I got a little excited when I spotted orange candy melts in the store last week. What are candy melts? They are a sugary little coating and wonderful for making cake pops and other dipped candies. Here are a few of the ingredients I used to make my pumpkin spice puppy chow. I list substitutes below this photo if you cannot find these products. Cinnamon Chex cereal: The cinnamon flavored Chex cereal gives the puppy chow a stronger cinnamon-sugar flavor. It is the perfect base for this puppy chow. You may use Rice Chex, Crispex, or any plain rice cereal squares you can find. Spices: You need a few individual spices for this mix including cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice. This is a great place to use homemade pumpkin pie spice if you have it. See recipe Note. Wilton orange candy melts: Again, this isn’t chocolate. It’s a sugary melting coating. It’s sold online, in baking shops, Walmart, and craft stores like Michael’s. You need one 12-ounce bag. If you can’t find orange candy melts, use pure white chocolate instead like Baker’s or Ghirardelli—both are sold in all major grocery stores. Mallowcreme pumpkins: I love adding to this pumpkin spice puppy chow. You could use candy corn, Hershey’s Pumpkin Spice Kisses, Pumpkin Spice M&Ms or Candy Corn M&Ms, or some orange sprinkles. Any of these additions turn this sweet fall snack into a festive Halloween treat. Would be so fun served alongside these decorated Halloween cookies or a batch of Reese’s peanut butter white chocolate bark! If you love pumpkin spiced goodies, you’re going to flip for this puppy chow. You’ll also enjoy these pumpkin snickerdoodles, mini cinnamon sugar pumpkin muffins, and regular pumpkin muffins!
