If you love puppy chow but have multiple food allergies, we made some Double Chocolate Muddy Buddies that are allergy friendly and amazing! This recipe is for chocolate lovers and it’s peanut free, dairy free, and gluten free.
Muddy buddies (or puppy chow) is one of those classic American treats that have been around for years and is usually a crowd favorite (unless someone really dislikes chocolate). We loved making this for game nights and gatherings with friends as kids and teenagers.
Since my kids have peanut allergies, I’ve had some fun experimenting with some different muddy buddy flavors, including a pumpkin spice flavor and a strawberry puppy chow recipe. I have enjoyed coming up with some unique flavors, and this time I wanted to make a version that is even more chocolatey than regular puppy chow for those of you who are true chocoholics!
I use Sunbutter in our muddy buddy recipes since it works so well instead of peanut butter, but this time I swapped the regular creamy Sunbutter for chocolate sunbutter to make this recipe double chocolate.
I also include a little triple chocolate variation as well if you can’t get enough chocolate!
Our double chocolate puppy chow is:
- Peanut free
- Dairy free
- Vegan
- Tree nut free and soy free (depending on the dairy free butter you use)
How to make allergy friendly double chocolate muddy buddies
The steps for making allergy friendly double chocolate muddy buddies is the same as regular puppy chow but with some swaps! Here are the steps to make this recipe (this is just an overview, the full recipe card is at the end of the post).
- Add your Rice or Corn chex cereal to a large bowl that has a tight fitting lid.
- In a separate small bowl, melt together the chocolate chips, chocolate Sunbutter, and dairy free butter in the microwave in 30 second increments until melted (it usually only takes me about 1 minute to get this completely melted).
- Stir until smooth and stir in the vanilla.
- Pour the chocolate mixture over the cereal and stir to coat all the cereal.
- Add the powdered sugar to the bowl, close the lid, and shake until everything is thoroughly coated.
- Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
We used the Enjoy Life ricemilk chocolate chips in this recipe, but you can use an allergy friendly semi-sweet or dark chocolate chip if you want more chocolate flavor!
Triple chocolate muddy buddy variation
If you are a “death by chocolate” type of person and love a deeper and darker chocolate flavor, you can make a triple chocolate version of this recipe by replacing 2 tablespoons of the powdered sugar with 1 to 2 Tablespoons of cocoa powder.
Mix the cocoa powder with the powdered sugar before tossing it over the chocolate coated cereal.
We made this variety and it’s yummy and super chocolatey if you’re looking for an even darker chocolate puppy chow! It was a little too dark for my son’s taste (he doesn’t love dark chocolate), but I didn’t mind the extra hit of chocolate in the powdered sugar!
There isn’t a lot of cocoa powder with just 1 to 2 Tablespoons, and the powdered sugar still keeps it sweet.
Chocolate Hazelnut “Nutella” muddy buddy version
I personally love hazelnuts, but we can’t do hazelnut recipes in our house since my daughter is allergic to them, so we haven’t tried this idea and won’t be able to. But I wanted to throw out this idea for a hazelnut variation for those of you who are Nutella fans!
If you can have tree nuts, you could swap the chocolate Sunbutter for a chocolate hazelnut spread in this recipe. The brand name Nutella has milk in it so it’s not dairy free, but there are a few brands of dairy free chocolate hazelnut spreads out there.
Here are a few of those brands, please note to check the cross contamination on the labels for other allergens! I have also not tried most of these myself so I don’t know how many of them taste.
- Justin’s Chocolate Hazelnut Butter (I have tried this one myself and it’s delicious)
- Rigoni di Asiago Nocciolata
- Paskesz Royal Belgian Hazelnut Cocoa Spread
- Artisana Organics Hazelnut Cacao Spread
- TBH Chocolate Hazelnut Spread
- De Lucca Vegan Hazelnut Spread
Dairy Free Double Chocolate Muddy Buddies
Ingredients
- 4 ½ cups Rice Chex cereal (or Corn Chex)
- ½ cup allergy friendly chocolate chips (we used Enjoy Life ricemilk chocolate chips)
- ¼ cup chocolate Sunbutter
- 2 Tablespoons dairy free butter (we used Country Crock plant butter sticks)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- ¾ cup powdered sugar*
Instructions
- Add your Chex cereal to a large bowl that has a tight fitting lid. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, add the chocolate chips, chocolate Sunbutter, and dairy free butter. Microwave in 30 second increments until the chocolate chips begin to melt (it usually takes me about 1 minute).
- Stir until smooth and stir in the vanilla extract.
- Pour over the Chex cereal and stir together until all the cereal is coated well.
- Add the powdered sugar to the bowl, secure the lid, and shake the container around until everything is coated with the powdered sugar.
- Store at room temperature in an airtight container or bag for up to 4 days.
Notes
Nutrition
Sarah Jane Parker is the founder, recipe creator, and photographer behind The Fit Cookie. She’s a food allergy mom and healthy living blogger based in Wyoming. Sarah is also an ACSM Certified Personal Trainer, ACE Certified Health Coach, Revolution Running certified running coach, and an ACE Certified Fitness Nutrition Specialist