Just over two years ago, I tried coffee for the first time. Because I knew that the endless options on the Starbucks menu boards would easily overwhelm me (and they still sometimes do!), I asked my guy to go with me since he worked as a barista in college.
Armed with my coffee pro and a hazelnut latte coupon, I drove to the nearest Starbucks on a quiet spring afternoon, parked the car, and hesitantly climbed out. I double-checked my order with my guy on the sidewalk before pulling open the coffee shop door, trying my best to prevent tripping over my words at the counter, and bravely spoke to the lady in the green apron behind the register.
When our drinks arrived, we walked outside to find a table, and I clutched the piping hot cup, silently willing it to cool down so I wouldn’t burn my tongue. After taking a few sips of his mocha, my guy turned to me and asked what was wrong. As I muttered my fear of tongue burns, he laughed, grabbed my cup, and took the first sip.
Proving the temperature wasn’t at the molten-hot-lava stage that I believed, he handed my drink back, as well as offering his to compare the flavors. Although mine didn’t quite taste like Nutella (wishful thinking on my part!), I immediately fell head-over-heels for his.
And thus began my love affair of all things mocha. Warm earthy coffee and decadently rich chocolate—what’s not to love?? I’ve turned it into fudge, granola, cookies (twice) and now this: Skinny Mocha Muddy Buddies!
Also known as “puppy chow,” muddy buddies are a deliciously sweet snack-slash-dessert of crunchy rice pocket cereal coated in melted chocolate (and often peanut butter) before getting a generous shower of powdered sugar. It’s highly addictive—I could easily devour an entire batch by myself!—but also highly caloric. Not so great, especially with summer and swimsuit season quickly approaching…
So I have a few tricks up my sleeve to lighten up the traditional treat. First, we’re eliminating the peanut butter (no need for that in a mocha!) and greatly reducing the amount of melted chocolate. Because ¼ cup doesn’t nearly cover all of the cereal, we’ll make a semi-pudding by heating it with milk and a little cornstarch instead.
But… The semi-pudding makes the cereal soggy, and nobody likes soggy muddy buddies. They’re meant to be crisp and crunchy when you bite into them—that’s half of what makes them so addictive! (The other half being the chocolate and powdered sugar, of course.)
So we’re going to bake our muddy buddies in the oven! We’re basically treating them like granola: first you cover your cereal (oats for granola, rice pockets for muddy buddies) in a sweetened mixture; then you bake it to turn the cereal crunchy. And it works like a charm!
For the crunchiest muddy buddies, let them cool halfway through baking, and then break apart any large clusters into individual pieces of cereal before putting the pan back in the oven to continue baking. The semi-pudding makes the cereal clump together, and the pieces in the middle of those clusters would stay soggy unless you pull them apart.
After one more round of baking, toss the mocha-y cereal into a large bag with powdered sugar, seal, and shake-shake-shake like you’re on the dance floor showing off your moves! When the cereal cools, you’ll have a sweet, chocolaty, crunchy reward for all of your baking and patience.
But just be warned… It’s hard to stop at just one handful!
| Skinny Mocha Muddy Buddies | | Print |
- 3 cups (81g) rice pocket cereal (such as Rice Chex)
- 1 tbsp (8g) cornstarch
- ½ cup (120mL) nonfat milk*
- 1 tsp instant coffee crystals
- ¼ cup (56g) dark chocolate chips, melted
- ¼ cup (30g) powdered sugar
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and lightly coat a 9”-square pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add the cereal to a large bowl, and set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and 1 tablespoon of milk until a slurry forms. Add the remaining milk and instant coffee to a small pot, and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until it begins to simmer. Reduce the heat to low, and slowly pour in the cornstarch slurry in a thin stream while stirring constantly. Continue to stir for 1 more minute until the mixture begins to thicken.
- Remove the pot from the heat, and add in the melted chocolate. Stir until the chocolate is mostly incorporated, then return to low heat and continue stirring for another 2 minutes until it reaches the consistency of thin pudding.
- Pour the chocolate mixture over the cereal, and gently toss with a spatula until the cereal is coated. Pour into the prepared pan, and bake at 350°F for a total of 40-45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes. After 30 minutes of baking, let the pan cool for 3 minutes before breaking apart any clumps. Continue baking for another 10-15 minutes, or until the cereal is crunchy.
- While the cereal mixture bakes, add the powdered sugar to a large zip-topped bag. After the cereal has finished baking and has cooled for 5 minutes, pour it into the bag with the powdered sugar. Seal the top, and shake until all of the cereal is coated. Discard any remaining powdered sugar.
You’ll have about 1-2 tablespoons of powdered sugar that’s left over, which is accounted for in the Nutrition Information.
For a vegan version, substitute your favorite non-dairy milk.
{gluten-free, vegan, low fat, low calorie}
More muddy buddy (aka puppy chow) recipes from other food bloggers…
♥ Reese’s Muddy Buddies by Mom On Timeout
♥ Peanut Butter Pretzel Muddy Buddies by Crazy for Crust
♥ Captain Crunch Peanut Butter Puppy Chow by The Housewife in Training Files
♥ Scotcheroo Muddy Buddies by Something Swanky
I have still yet to have a coffee from Starbucks; I always have a hot chocolate. I love the science behind these muddy buddies, such a clever trick! Your spatula is adorable by the way!
Thanks Eve! I found the spatula at Walmart. 🙂 And I adore Starbucks hot chocolate, especially the peppermint ones. I’m so glad that they offer them year-round now!
Girl you are a genius! Baking muddy buddies?! Definitely adding to my sweets list of must makes!
Thanks Meg! I hope you enjoy them if you try them! 🙂
I find it somewhat funny how intimidated some people get by ordering at Starbucks. Maybe there are certain locations that have set people up to fail, but I’ve never bitten anyone for ordering “wrong.” Medium, grande, middle size…it’s all the same. 🙂 Glad you got it all worked out s that in the end many moons later you could create THIS! Yum.
You’re one of the best baristas Brittany! I’m scared of forgetting an adjective or saying things in the wrong order. At least you’d understand what I meant! 🙂
Um YUM! I’ve yet to fall into the coffee-drinking realm, but I’m all about coffee-flavored desserts so I’m sure I’d like these (especially because I wouldn’t burn my tongue on them;)
Ugh, tongue burns from coffee and tea are the worst!! I’m sure that if I rub off my coffee love on you, your tea and matcha love will rub off on me too. 🙂
I love this! Used to be one of my favorite treats as a kid. My mom used to only make it once and a while. Love your lightened up version!
Thank you so much! My mom actually never made them for us. I only got them once or twice growing up when I had playdates at my carpool’s house!
you sure are one smart cookie! these sound delicious
Aww thank you so much Heather! ♥
I can’t believe you just recently tried coffee! I am a HUGE coffee fan- I love the flavor AND the caffeine 🙂 Muddy Buddies were one of my favorite snacks as a kid. Your skinny version is genius! Can’t wait to try this one!
Thanks Alex! My mom never wanted me to drink coffee because she was afraid I’d become dependent and get caffeine headaches like my dad… But a few sips is enough to fill my caffeine intake for a whole day! 😉
Curious if you used PB2 for a little peanut butter flavor with the chocolate pudding, if that would make it more like the original without adding too much more fat/calories?
I could see that working Kara! I hope you enjoy the muddy buddies!