Name: Firecracker Party Mix
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Yield: Serves 10 (Makes about 10 cups)
Ingredients: 5 cups Rice Chex cereal; 2 cups sesame sticks; 1 cup wasabi peas; 1 cup chow mein noodles; 1 cup honey-roasted peanuts; 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted; 2 tablespoons soy sauce; 1 teaspoon ground ginger; 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder; 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Why This Recipe Works

Crunchy, salty, and irresistible, homemade party snack mix is guaranteed to disappear quickly at any gathering. But after making a back-of-the-box party mix recipe, we felt there was room for improvement. For our improved Firecracker Party Mix recipe, tasters preferred the nutty sweetness of melted butter to margarine and olive oil, both of which left a greasy finish. The flavor of Worcestershire sauce was too domineering in our recipe. Soy sauce was more successful. Garlic powder, cayenne pepper, and ground ginger held their flavor through baking (unlike more subtle spices such as paprika and onion powder, whose flavor faded).

Before You Begin

Wasabi peas can be found in the snack aisle or near the Japanese ingredients in most grocery stores.

Instructions

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 250 degrees. Combine cereal, sesame sticks, wasabi peas, chow mein noodles, and peanuts in large bowl. Whisk butter and soy sauce in small bowl, then drizzle over cereal mixture. Sprinkle evenly with ginger, garlic powder, and cayenne and toss until well combined.

Spread mixture over rimmed baking sheet and bake, stirring every 15 minutes, until golden and crisp, about 45 minutes. Cool to room temperature. Serve. (Mix can be stored in airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.)