Brown-Butter Puppy Chow with Dark Chocolate & Flaky Salt

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

The church-basement classic, rebuilt for the snack jar: rice cereal tossed in a glossy dark chocolate–peanut butter coating deepened with nutty brown butter, then shaken with powdered sugar and a little malted milk powder so every piece sets up dry, sandy and craggy instead of sticky. Flaky salt on top keeps it from tipping into candy territory. Makes about 9 cups and keeps for a week and a half in a sealed jar.

Ingredients

• 9 cups rice cereal squares (such as Rice Chex)

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 9 ounces good dark chocolate (60–70%), chopped, or chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup creamy peanut butter (the plain, no-stir kind)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup malted milk powder (or nonfat dry milk powder)
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch

• 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt

Instructions

1. Measure the cereal into your largest bowl (you want at least 6 quarts of room) and set it near the stove. Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment. In a large paper grocery bag or a 1-gallon zip-top bag, combine the powdered sugar, malted milk powder and cornstarch; shake to blend and set aside.
2. Brown the butter: melt the 6 tablespoons in a light-colored saucepan over medium heat, then keep cooking, swirling often, for 3 to 5 minutes. It will foam, quiet down, and the milk solids on the bottom will turn amber and smell like toasted nuts. Pull it off the heat the moment it smells nutty — browned, not black.
3. Add the chopped chocolate and peanut butter to the hot butter off the heat. Let it sit undisturbed for 2 minutes, then stir with a silicone spatula until completely smooth and glossy. If a few stubborn chocolate pieces remain, return the pan to the lowest heat for 20 to 30 seconds at a time, stirring constantly. Stir in the vanilla and fine sea salt.
4. Pour about half the warm coating over the cereal. Fold with a large spatula, scooping from the bottom and turning it over rather than stirring in circles, so you don't crush the squares. Add the rest of the coating and keep folding for a full minute, until every square is dark and evenly slicked with no dry spots.
5. Working in two batches, scoop the coated cereal into the bag with the sugar mixture. Trap air in the bag, close the top, and shake and tumble it for 20 to 30 seconds until the pieces look pale, dry and sandy. Don't rush this — the shake is what turns the mix from sticky to snackable.
6. Spread each batch in a single layer on the parchment-lined sheets, breaking up any clumps with your fingers. Scatter the flaky salt over the top while the coating is still slightly tacky.
7. Chill the sheets in the refrigerator for 20 minutes (or leave at cool room temperature for 45 minutes) until the chocolate is fully set and a piece snaps rather than smears. Sift or shake off any excess powdered sugar through a colander if you like a tidier look, then transfer to jars.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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