M&M Granola Trail Mix

Around this time of year, several Fall and Holiday type of recipes emerge from our recipe boxes.  They hang around for the rest of the year, and on into January of the new year.  Often, the two recipes I'm highlighting today, end up in small portions for gift baskets or in a Christmas tin for small gifts for friends.  They are perfect for fending off the vultures hovering in the kitchen disturbing the work snacking on while Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner is being prepared.  ;)  They are also great Super Bowl snacks to have out during the big game!

A couple years ago, about this time, I introduced to you my family's twist on Chex Mix (photo on right).  Today we are going to look at an M&M Granola Trail Mix (photo on the left).  A sweet friend gave me a tin of this trail mix a couple years ago at Christmas and it quickly became a favorite.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter

4 tablespoons honey

3 cups granola*

2 cups M&Ms*

1 cup nuts (of your choice; mixed or peanuts or almonds, etc)

1 cup pretzel twists

Directions:

Melt honey and butter over low heat, gently stirring, until blended.  Remove from heat, and add granola, nuts, and pretzels.  Stir until coated with honey and butter mixture.  Spread on cookie sheet and bake at 300 degrees for 10 minutes.  Spread on wax paper and allow to cool.  Mix in M&Ms.  

*Notes:

The original mix I received as a gift is exactly as the above recipe.  However, when I make it, in place of traditional granola, I often use Kashi Honey Almond Flax Cereal.  Also, I find that 2 cups of M&Ms are just a little too much; I often cut back to only 1 cup.  Lastly, I increase the butter/honey mixture by a little bit -- it coats the dry ingredients much better, and I don't feel so badly about it as long as I'm using raw local honey and real butter.  I could definitely see adding sesame seeds as well as dried cranberries.  I personally do not care for raisins  though I know many would prefer them over the cranberries.  Any of these additions should be added with the granola, nuts, and pretzels.