Dried cranberries (aff link), white chocolate, crystallized ginger and orange flavors give this a winter holiday flavor blast. Addictive and easy to eat by the handful, you can call it puppy chow, muddy buddies, whatever you want – because no matter what, it’s delicious!
I have a small addiction to all things “cranberry bliss”: cranberry bliss bars, cranberry bliss fudge, cranberry bliss cupcakes, cranberry bliss pinwheels. It’s just at the holidays where I need to cram all the cranberry blissy goodness into two months time. I don’t have a problem.
I SAID I DON’T HAVE A PROBLEM, OKAY.
This is most definitely the easiest recipe I have on the site that emulates the flavor of Starbucks’ famous holiday treat. You only need 20 minutes before you can dive in and accidentally on purpose eat it all.
P.S.: I make so many cranberry recipes over the holidays, I find it worth it to buy dried cranberries (aff link) in bulk. Same goes for white chocolate, and my personal favorite is Ghirardelli white chocolate chips (aff link). Highly recommend.
Ingredients for cranberry bliss puppy chow
- 9 cups Chex, Corn, Rice, or both
- 12 ounces white candy melts
- ½ teaspoon orange extract
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 cup dried cranberries (aff link)
- 1 cup crystallized ginger pieces, chopped
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
- 1 teaspoon dried orange peel, optional
How to make cranberry bliss puppy chow
- Prep a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Melt white chocolate candy melts according to package directions (typically meaning to microwave at 50% power in 30 second increments, stirring after each until smooth).
- Add orange extract and ground cinnamon, stir to combine.
- Pour Chex into a large bowl and pour in your melted white chocolate mixture. Carefully stir and/or toss to combine and thoroughly coat.
- Add powdered sugar and stir/toss to combine and coat.
- Pour onto one of the prepared baking sheets and let set for at least 15 minutes.
- In a large bowl, combine prepared Chex mixture with cranberries, ginger, white chocolate chips and orange peel (if using). Stir and/or toss to combine.
- Store in an airtight container until ready to serve. Enjoy!
How this is different from traditional puppy chow
Unlike traditional puppy chow, there’s no peanut butter or chocolate present – just white chocolate to coat the Chex mix pieces, and then coated in powdered sugar.
However, the white chocolate gets the addition of orange extract and ground cinnamon to ensure it’s sticking to every piece.
You’re going to want the biggest bowl you can find, because it gets more and more challenging as you add ingredients. If you watch the video in this post, you’ll notice that I most definitely need a bigger boat. I mean, bowl.
Maybe I should add that to the wedding registry. Of which, according to my little countdown calendar thing on my phone we only have 91 days until the wedding. Sweetbabyjesus, it’s comin’ up quick.
But you know what? I’m not nervous about it at all. There’s no stress, no nerves, no worries. I’m just excited, because we’re treating this like a big party with a bunch of our favorite people.
Speaking of parties, bring this to the next one on your calendar and watch how quickly you become everyone’s best friend.
Fair warning: You’ll then be asked to bring this to every party you attend from here on out. It’s a delicious burden to bear.
After you’ve made this recipe, please consider coming back to share your experience with others by leaving a comment below with a star rating!
Cranberry Bliss Puppy Chow
Checklist For Success
Recommended Equipment
Ingredients
- 12 ounces white candy melts
- ½ teaspoon orange extract
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 9 cups Chex, Corn, Rice, or both
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1 cup crystallized ginger pieces, chopped
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
- 1 teaspoon dried orange peel, optional
Instructions
- Prep a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Melt white chocolate candy melts according to package directions (typically meaning to microwave at 50% power in 30 second increments, stirring after each until smooth).12 ounces white candy melts
- Add orange extract and ground cinnamon, stir to combine.½ teaspoon orange extract | ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pour Chex into a large bowl and pour in your melted white chocolate mixture. Carefully stir and/or toss to combine and thoroughly coat.9 cups Chex
- Add powdered sugar and stir/toss to combine and coat.1 cup powdered sugar
- Pour onto one of the prepared baking sheets and let set for at least 15 minutes.
- In a large bowl, combine prepared Chex mixture with cranberries, ginger, white chocolate chips and orange peel (if using). Stir and/or toss to combine.1 cup dried cranberries | 1 cup crystallized ginger pieces | 1 cup white chocolate chips | 1 teaspoon dried orange peel
- Store in an airtight container until ready to serve. Enjoy!
Jyothi (Jo)
Oh what a timing, I have my puppy chow recipe ready to be posted and I see yours now. Perfect for holiday season. Looks absolutely gorgeous!
Natalie
This sounds so festive and so fun. My kiddo loves to snack and I bet he will be thrilled when I make him this. I’m saving this recipe to try. Beautiful mix of flavors. I love it.
Jagruti Dhanecha
Oh wow..I am sure my kids will go crazy for this! all the holiday flavours are just so amazing in this recipe.
Carrie Ditton
What a wonderful blend for a holiday snack! I love everything you added into your puppy chow!
Julie
I’m so intrigued by the crystallized ginger in there! I’ve never had a cranberry bliss bar (I don’t drink coffee, so I never bother to go to Starbucks) — is ginger a prominent flavor in “cranberry bliss”? It sounds so good!
Sharon
A great snack for the holidays for sure! I love the crystallized ginger pieces that you added on top of the cranberries and white chocolate chips.
Amanda Mason
What a FUN recipe! My kids will be all over this! And that orange peel addition….YES! Love a good festive snack mix during the holidays!
Tina
I love all of the fall flavors in this, especially the white chocolate and cranberries. I am saving this for our company Christmas party, perfect way to feed a crowd. Congrats on the wedding!! So happy for you:)
Ruchi
Cranberry bliss anything already sound so festive and wintery. I know my kids will eat this poppy chow like no one else:)
Analida Braeger
Puppy chow! My daughter used to make this all the time when she was in elementary school. It was the perfect treat to bring to her classmates. While I secretly snuck away handfuls of the delicious stuff. The addition of cranberries is interesting, a tangy twist on a super sweet treat.
Elaine Benoit
I never really understood the appeal of puppy chow until I had I actually ate some! Talk about yum!! You cranberry bliss version looks so delicious with the cranberry, ginger and orange!!
Gloria
HAHA I was at Starbucks the other day and almost got a Cranberry Bliss bar. This sounds like a great plan for movie night. Perfect for watching all the holiday movies.