Sweet Holiday Chex Mix

November 20, 2018  ·  Published December 8, 2012

This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy.

Sweet Holiday Chex Mix is a staple recipe every Christmas season at my house! Sometimes I make it for gifts and sometimes I’ll make a batch for a party, then other times I just get the craving for it so I’ll whip up a batch on the weekend.

It’s perfectly crunchy and covered with an ooey gooey sweet coating. Just be careful because this stuff is addictive!

Sweet and sticky chex mix in a glass mixing bowl set over a marble surface. It includes corn and rice chex cereal, golden grahams, nuts, coconut and a butter sugar topping.

Chex Mix – the Sweet Version

If there’s one treat you must make this season this is it! Okay there are a lot of treats that definitely deserve to be made this holiday season but this one should be near the top of your list.

It’s incredibly easy and so fast (we are talking 15 minutes or less), it tastes like candy with a crunch, it’s nutty, it’s sticky, it’s crave-ably sweet and it’s the perfect gift for friends, neighbors, or coworkers.

Simply said this stuff is highly addictive so share the wealth or you will want to eat it all.

Sweet Chex Mix in front of a Christmas tree in a glass bowl.

Ingredients You’ll Need for This Recipe

  • Rice Chex cereal
  • Corn Chex cereal
  • Golden Grahams cereal
  • Mixed unsalted or lightly salted nuts
  • Shredded sweetened coconut
  • Granulated sugar
  • Light corn syrup
  • Salted butter
  • Vanilla (optional)

Ingredients needed for chex mix shown here.

How to Make Sweet Chex Mix

  • In a large mixing bowl, toss together Rice Chex, Corn Chex, Golden Grahams, mixed nuts and coconut, set aside.

Showing how to make sweet chex mix.

  • In a medium saucepan combine sugar light-corn syrup and butter.

Showing how to make sweet chex mix.

  • Bring mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally.
  • Allow mixture to boil for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Showing how to make sweet chex mix.

  • Remove from heat and carefully pour sugar mixture over cereal mixture and toss to evenly coat.
  • Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Showing how to make sweet chex mix.

Tips for this Recipe

  • Don’t just simmer the mixture for 2 minutes let it come to a boil then start counting down the two minutes.
  • Don’t skip the coconut even if you aren’t normally a fan. It’s not overpowering here, it blends in with the flavors nicely.
  • You can use one type of nut, but if you have multiple on hand go for a blend. Peanuts, sliced/slivered almonds, cashews, pecans or walnuts are all great choices.
  • You can use unsalted butter if that’s what you’ve got on hand. Then just add a heaping 1/4 tsp salt to the sugar mixture before cooking.

Sweet Holiday Chex Mix

More Easy Holiday Recipes You’ll Love

Overhead image of chex mix in a glass bowl.

16 Quick & Easy 30 Minute Recipes! (plus weekly recipe updates)

5 from 12 votes

Sweet Holiday Chex Mix

This sweet Chex mix is a staple recipe at my house every Christmas season! It's perfect for gifts and parties, but be warned it's highly addictive! It's loaded with crunchy cereal, dotted with mixed nuts, and swirled with coconut. Then it's covered with an ooey gooey sweet and sticky coating. The best part - it couldn't be faster or easier to make.
Servings: 18
Prep10 minutes
Cook5 minutes
Ready in: 15 minutes

Ingredients

Instructions

  • In a large mixing bowl, toss together Rice Chex, Corn Chex, Golden Grahams, mixed nuts and coconut, set aside. 
  • In a medium saucepan combine sugar light-corn syrup and butter. Bring mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. 
  • Allow mixture to boil for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
  • Remove from heat, stir in vanilla and carefully pour sugar mixture over cereal mixture and toss to evenly coat. 
  • Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Notes

*If you don't want the mix as gooey and sticky you can add an extra 1 cup of each cereal (totaling 3 extra cups), for a lighter coating.
**I like to use a blend of unsalted nuts such as 1/2 cup sliced almonds, 1/2 cup peanuts and 1/2 cup cashews.

Leave a Comment

Rate this recipe




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

44 Comments

  • Lorie S

    How long does this keep? I want to make some up as gifts and need to know how far in advance I can make it.

  • Ivy Laney

    Thank you for sharing. This is a delicious treat! My whole family love it.❤

  • Christina Carlisle

    This recipe is wonderful! But for the life of me, I can’t figure out how to package this to gift it? Any ideas on how to package this for a gift?
    Thanks!

    • Jaclyn

      Jaclyn Bell

      I usually add to treat bags (invert the top so it doesn’t get sticky) or holiday treat containers or something like ziploc storage containers with lids.

    • Lahela

      After mixing together, I had cupcake liners ready with no-stick spray at the bottom of each. I used a cupcake scooper to fill each liner and let them set a bit before putting them inside treat containers/packages. It worked out well.

  • Lynn

    I made this yesterday. Even added extra cereal as I thought it was too sticky. I ended up with a huge sticky bowl of stuck together cereal, nuts & coconut. So disappointed as I feel Ike I wasted so many products to get nothing. What did I do wrong? The flavor was good just a sticky mess.

    • Jaclyn

      Jaclyn Bell

      Sorry you missed that, it’s stated right in the recipe description this is ooey gooey and sticky. It’s just the type of treat it is :). You can try cooking the mixture longer if you want it to set more but it will stick together and you’d need to break and spread to cool.

    • Amy

      Cook to 234° on a candy thermometer. Then pour over the goodies. Break apart with a wooden spoon occasionally as it cools. It’ll always be a bit sticky, but not bad. We make a very similar recipe every year, it’s awesome!!

    • Ashley

      I cooked this in the oven at 275 F for about an hour to an hour and a half stirring every 15 min light normal Chex mix and it helped set the coating so it was more like a glaze and less sticky mess. It was a total hit at Christmas!

      • DeAnn

        Ashley, did you boil the mixture for the 2-3 minutes first, pour it on the cereal and then add it into the oven?

  • Rosalinda V

    this look’s and sounds absolutely delicious .
    now, i just need to put it all together .
    But thank you for sharing

  • Melinda

    I love this recipe. I did bake them for an hour on 250 degrees stirring every 15 minutes. It is wonderful now.

  • Anonymous

    Due to allergies, I’m trying to make it vegan. Can I use coconut sugar and coconut oil instead of butter??

    • Jaclyn

      Jaclyn Bell

      I wish I could say for sure but without testing I’m not sure how these substitutions would work out unfortunately.

  • Lane Klein

    I am an 88 year old Widower. For years my wife and I fixed a Trix Mix treat that we found on the box of Trix Mis either by General Foods or Kellogg’s. The recipe included all the cereals, nuts and mini pretzels. It also included 1 & 1/2 cup brown sugar, 2/3 cup butter, 1/2 cup honey, and 3 tsp vanilla. Over medium heat, bring to boil for 5 minutes those ingredients. Pour over the cereal and bake in oven for an hour, stiring ever 15 min. It came out crispy, and not sticky stuck together. I can’t get it to come out crispy. I need the original recipe. Help!