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Chex Mix

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Bag of commercially prepared Chex Mix
Commercial Chex Mix

Chex Mix is a type of snack mix that includes Chex breakfast cereal (sold by General Mills) as a major component. There are commercially sold pre-made varieties of Chex Mix, as well as many recipes (often printed on Chex cereal boxes) for homemade Chex Mix. Though contents vary, the mixes generally include an assortment of Chex cereals, chips, hard breadsticks, pretzels, nuts or crackers.

History

Chex cereal was introduced in 1937 by Ralston Purina.[1] By 1952,[2] recipes for "Chex party mix" appeared on boxes of Chex cereal. However, it was not until 1985 that pre-packaged products were introduced commercially by Ralston Purina and the trademarks registered to it.[3] Chex party mix became popular as a holiday treat when purportedly in 1955, the wife of a Ralston executive in St. Louis served the snack at a holiday function.[4] However, Chex party mix was not a unique idea: it was one of many popular "TV mixes" – snacks which could be consumed without interrupting television watching – which appeared in the 1950s with the introduction of television. For example, a 1950 Betty Crocker cookbook includes a recipe for a snack mix made with Kix cereal.[5]

In August 1996, General Mills acquired the Chex product line from Ralston Purina along with other brands.[citation needed]

Commercial contents and varieties

All commercial Chex mixes contain some form of Chex cereal. Other ingredients generally include rye chips, breadsticks, pretzels, nuts and crackers. In total, General Mills produces 13 varieties of Chex mixes, not including limited editions.[6] These flavours can be broadly divided into three categories: salty, Chocolate, and Sweet 'n Salty. Sometimes, limited edition varieties of Chex Mix are released. Past examples of these include Winter Chex Mix Cocoa and Summer Chex Mix Ranch. In 2009, two new flavors, Spicy Szechuan and Teriyaki, were introduced and made available exclusively at convenience stores.

Salty

  • Traditional
  • Cheddar
  • Bold Party Blend
  • Sour Cream & Onion
  • Peanut Lover's
  • Hot 'n Spicy
  • Jalapeño Cheddar
  • Chipotle Cheddar
  • Italian Herb & Parmesan

"New"Cherry & crunchy nuts

  • Extreme Sweet and Spicy Sriracha
  • Extreme Habanero and Lime

Sweet 'n Salty

  • Caramel Crunch
  • Honey Nut
  • Trail Mix

Sweet

  • Unicorns
  • Turtle Shell
  • Dark Chocolate
  • Peanut Butter Chocolate
  • Brownie Supreme
  • Snicker doodle
  • Cookies & Cream (Limited Edition)

Homemade Chex Mix

Homemade Chex Mix has become a pastime. It is traditional to assemble one's own mix from one or more kinds of Chex and then include pretzels, nuts, chips, and/or other cereals to taste and then bake the mix with butter and other spices (often Worcestershire sauce). Recipes are often found on Chex boxes, and it is not uncommon for homemakers to adapt or create their own variants for a "house mix".

See also

References

  1. ^ (2008). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved December 22, 2008, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online
  2. ^ Machlin, S. (2011). American Food by the Decades. ABC-CLIO. p. 129. ISBN 978-0-313-37699-3.
  3. ^ United States Patent and Trademark Office
  4. ^ The Food Timeline-history notes: ambrosia to corn bread
  5. ^ Lovegren, Sylvia. (2005). Fashionable food: Seven decades of food fads. University of Chicago Press: Chicago, pp. 214
  6. ^ Chex Mix® - Products - Celebrate Your Right to Snack!
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