Easy & Fun Halloween Trail Mix Recipe 👻

This easy sweet-and-salty Halloween Trail Mix Recipe comes together in a snap with just a few fun ingredients. 🎃

• Two kinds of Chex cereal
• Bugles
• Popped Popcorn
• Bite-Size Cheddar Pretzels
• Dry Roasted Peanuts
• Mellowcreme Pumpkins
• Classic Candy Corn
• Reese’s Pieces
• Cereal Marshmallow Bits

The peanuts complement the Reese’s Pieces, the cheddar pretzels complement the popcorn and candy pumpkins, the classically scorned candy corn (bless their hearts) and Bugles married beautifully, and the Chex cereal pulled it all together. We did increase the amount of Bugles and pretzels in the final Halloween Trail MIx Recipe because they seemed to disappear first.

The secret weapon, though? The tiny dehydrated marshmallows, also called cereal marshmallow bits for fun texture and vanilla flavor. Luckily, you don’t have to pick them out of the Lucky Charms box anymore. 

Every bit was yummy and goblin’d up. 👻

Supplies to gather

Tools:

• Measuring Cup
• Large Mixing Bowl
• Salad Tongs
• Scoop or Ladle
• Paper Dixie Cups

Ingredients:

• Two kinds of Chex cereal
• Bugles
• Popped Popcorn
• Bite-Size Pretzels
• Dry Roasted Peanuts
• Mellowcreme Pumpkins
• Classic Candy Corn
• Reese’s Pieces
• Cereal Marshmallow Bits

About the cereal

We had some Corn Chex in the pantry and bought some Honey Nut, which adds a little sweetness without an overpowering flavor like the chocolate or the blueberry Chex flavors. They have a nice crispy texture and a mostly neutral palate that pulls this Halloween Trail Mix recipe together really well. 

If you want to save a few bucks, I’d say keep the plain Chex and leave out the Honey Nut variety.

About the nuts

While peanuts are the most economical nuts I’ve found in stores here in the USA, that may not be the case if you are elsewhere. I like how the peanuts brought out the peanut butter flavor of the Reese’s Pieces. Any dry-roasted and salted nut would be fine to cut the sweetness, but don’t leave nuts out entirely.

About the candy

I mean, it’s not much of a Halloween Trail Mix Recipe without the cute Brach’s Mellowcreme candy pumpkins and the classic candy corn, but you can choose one or the other. The Reese’s Pieces add great fall colors to the mix, too. Don’t substitute the tiny dehydrated marshmallows for actual miniature marshmallows. They won’t be the right texture (too puffy). Plus, creepy bonus: If you use all-white tiny dehydrated marshmallows, you can tell people those are teeth! Gross!! 

About the salty snacks

Renée accidentally chose the cheddar pretzels, discovering they were flavored only after the first bite. And the cheesy tangy flavor added so much to the whole flavor profile that we left it in the recipe.I wouldn’t use a barbecue, ranch, or mustard flavor, but the cheese mini pretzels worked out great. 

Nuggets are too hard and crunchy for this Halloween Trail Mix Recipe, too, so just go with a mini pretzel. She picked up Cheez-It Popcorn, but I couldn’t really taste any cheese flavoring to it. I’d say buy any popcorn you want here, or even pop your own. The Bugles are fun and have a texture similar to Chex cereal but salty instead of neutral-sweet.

You could leave out the Bugles snacks if you can’t find them in grocery stores.

Tips for making this Halloween Trail Mix Recipe

• Stir the combined trail mix from the bottom occasionally since the heavier ingredients like the peanuts will drift toward the bottom of the bowl.
• To discourage many hands from picking through the Halloween Trail Mix Recipe, set a ladle or scoop alongside the serving bowl with a stack of paper Dixie cups for self-serving.
• If you plan to offer this to trick-or-treaters, scoop the mix into small zipper bags immediately and close tightly. 
• To store for later, add the fresh trail mix to an airtight container or a large baggie and squeeze all the air out. As long as the container stays tightly closed, it should last up to a week on the counter. (This may prove difficult if passers-by find your delicious stash.)

The bottom line

So I know what you’re thinking—no one is going to touch the candy corn. Make this recipe, then come back here and admit that we were right about every sweet and salty ingredient in this easy Halloween Trail Mix Recipe. As the night wears on, the heavier items will sink to the bottom, so occasionally toss the bowl with tongs to redistribute the ingredients.

It’s fun and totally snackable, and it makes for a great bowl of lighthearted Halloween fun at a kids’ party or, honestly, even the darkest, gloomiest grown-up Halloween party.

Want even more Halloween foodie fun? How about this list:

• 30 Boo-tiful Halloween Appetizers
• 25 Halloween Cakes For Spooky Fun
• 20 Hauntingly Good Halloween Cookies
• 30 BEST Halloween Punch Recipes
• 19 More Halloween Snacks!