"Trash" Party Mix Recipe

Back in the 70s, or maybe even the 60s, when this recipe was written, “snack mix” as a mixture of various other snack foods was not widely available for sale. What is available commercially today is nowhere near as good as this.

It’s not complicated to make, and a certain amount of substitution may yield interesting results. Having experimented a little myself, I will say that the best choice of cheesy cracker is definitely Cheese Bits (formerly Tidbits, possibly still sold under that name in the United States). If those are unavailable, Cheese Nips or Goldfish will work. It is probably a bad idea to use any sweetened cereals; regular Cheerios are definitely a better choice than the Honey-Nut variety, for instance.

Makes enough for 20-30 people, roughly 6 quarts.

Equipment:
• (very) large mixing bowl
• small sauce pan or microwave safe measuring cup (for melting butter)
• flat-bottomed roasting pan or sheet pans (with walls)

Ingredients:
2 cup Cheerios or similar
2 cup Post Shreddies or similar
2 cup Crispix or rice or corn Chex
2 cup pretzel sticks
2 cup Cheese Bits or similar small cheese cracker
1 lb dry-roasted peanuts with coating
12 oz pecan pieces
12 oz walnut pieces
12 oz deluxe mixed nuts one can
3⁄4 lb butter melted
1⁄3 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp Tabasco sauce or similar

Procedure:
1. Preheat oven to 250°F.
2. Melt butter carefully so that it doesn’t boil.
3. In the very large mixing bowl, combine all the dry elements.
4. Add the sauces to the butter and mix well.
5. Pour butter-seasoning mixture over the dry ingredients.
6. Mix thoroughly.
7. Spread the mix in the bottom of a large roasting pan or a couple of sheet pans and place them in the oven for an
hour, stirring the mixture every 20 minutes.
8. If the mix isn’t toasty enough for your taste, allow it to cook a little longer.
9. Allow the mix to cool completely to room temperature before storing in air-tight containers.
10. Though it may seem moist even after it is done cooking, it will become crispy once it has cooled.

Music: http://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-...