The Story:
Continuing on with both my Red Velvet mini-series and also my Puppy Chow binge….
Now since I am allergic to all things Red Velvet (red dye doesn’t like me) I didn’t actually taste these. But I caught my roommate sneaking handfuls while I was taking photos and what was left was taken to some boys down the street who happily finished them off. So if you’re all cupcaked out or just wanting to try something new for the upcoming holiday, give these red munchies a shot!
My roommate helping me measure out the cereal…
Mmmm….if only I wasn’t allergic
Lots more Puppy Chow to try if you want! The Peanut Butter Brownie is probably my favorite!

Red Velvet Puppy Chow
Ingredients
- 5 C. Rice Chex cereal
- 3/4 C. white chocolate melts or chips
- 1/4 C. chocolate melts or chips
- 2 oz cream cheese room temp
- 1 1/2 Tbsp. milk
- 1 C. Red Velvet Cake mix
- 1/2 C. powdered sugar
- Valentines colored M&M's or other candies
- Heart sprinkles for extra decoration and cute-ness
Instructions
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1. Measure out Rice Chex cereal and place into a large bowl.
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2. Place cake mix and powdered sugar into a large plastic bag or tupperware with a lid.
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3. Melt chocolates together in the microwave or on the stove top. Careful not to burn and stir until smooth.
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4. Stir in cream cheese and milk (the chocolate will get thicker, but it's okay)
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5. Pour chocolate over Rice Chex cereal and stir until coated.
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6. Dump cereal into the bag or tupperware with powdered sugar and cake mix. Shake, shake, shake until coated.
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7. Dump onto a cookie sheet and let cool.
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8. Mix with extra colorful candies and serve!
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NOTE: Because of the cream cheese, keep in the fridge if you won't be eating them that day. You can also omit the cream cheese all together if you wish...if you do that, you don't need the milk either!
Who needs Cupid’s arrow when you have Red Velvet Oreo Cupcakes?
looks delish. Making this for my son in college. thanks
Yup… This will popular and have many fans in college student circle…
Harga Besi WF
Sounds yummy!! I wish this was ‘pinnable’ on Pinterest.
You can pin it! Just go to your pinterest page and click the “add+” in the top right corner and put in the hyperlink of the site!
o.m.g. these look soooo good!!! i wish i had some right now!
Umm….is there not red dye in those M&M’s? Also, I don’t reccomend calling it “Puppy Chow” as some people may mistake this as safe for dogs (when chocolate is actually deadly for them).
Puppy Chow is a common substitute name for Muddy Buddies, an that name is copyrighted so I try not to use it.
Probably just dumb..lol
How have you NOT heard of this being called puppy chow? Lol! I doubt anyone is going to mistake this as being safe for dogs, unless THEY are stupid..
Kori, Love the comment, some people say the stupidest things. You read my mind.
Whoa…Jessie…SERIOUSLY!!???
fyi, my vet says that only dark chocolate is not safe for dogs, not milk chocolate
if you mistake this for dog food then you don’t deserve to own a dog.
+ 1.
My poor dog will be so jealous watching me eat this 😉
Chrissy, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but your vet was wrong. Dogs can get sick onANY CHOCOLATE…I had two get very ill on regular milk chocolate, so I know it can happen. You might want to ask your vet about that again. Oh, you also need to check for xylitol…it is a sweetener that is used in gum and in some peanut butter and it is. Dry quick acting…very deadly to dogs…hope this helps you!
“Puppy Chow” isn’t a name she came up with–it’s widely used to describe this snack mix. Also, she did say she didn’t eat her mix because of the red dye involved, so, I’m sure she’s aware.
only retards would feed this to there dogs, everyone knows its just a name for this snack
Seems to me you need to get educated if in this day and time you use a word like retard….
Let’s all play nice, please! No one is stupid here, this snack is only meant for people not dogs. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, let’s give each other a break 🙂
I think your pretty rude calling people a retard. Seriously People
Yeah, we always grew up calling it puppy chow. And besides, everyone these days knows that dogs can’t have chocolate. Pretty much any dog bigger than a Chihuahua could actually eat this entire batch and maybe not even throw up. It takes very large quantities to actually make a dog sick. http://www.petmd.com/dog/chocolate-toxicity#.UtAKX55dWSo
when I was first introduced to the original recipe back in the late 70s or very early 80s, it was called People Chow …… don’t know when it changed to ‘Puppy’, but I still call it ‘People’
^ Jessie….. either you are sarcastic or just dumb.
Or she comes from the UK where ‘Puppy Chow’ is not a well known thing at all – not that i would have fed this to my dog once i’d looked at the recipe – but please remember not everyone who reads this is in the USA
How about we all stop feeding people food to our dogs…it’s all bad for them!
This thread has me in tears Im laughing so hard, freaking hilarious! Just wanted to say thanks! lmAo
Hey Lizzy! I am a loyal follower and look forward to your daily recipes in my inbox! I need your help, though. I made this puppy chow and it is delicious! But I was disappointed that it doesn’t have that tinge of red I see in your photo. Mine just looks light brown. I followed the recipe to the letter. Any suggestions?
hm… it may be the type of red velvet cake mix you made.
For the red color use red melting candy at craft stores.
I had the same issue… ithink next time I wouldn’t use reg. Choco chips at all… just white chocolate chips, and then I would use red food coloring for the additional color.
Careful! Food coloring will mess up melted chocolate & make it chunky, ewwww 😉
You have to use the gel food coloring and not the liquid!
Red Velvet cake mix needs to be wet to turn red (the dye is powder). The cream cheese/milk is very important and you won’t see the red until they mix.
I’m all for eating healthy and actually won’t buy “regular” foods with anything artificial in them or several other ingredients, but be serious . . . OF COURSE those M&Ms have red dye in them (unfortunately there is a lot of junk that is allowed in foods in the US that isn’t allowed elsewhere), but this a treat. Eat it reasonably, not often, and enjoy . . . if you eat healthy most of the time, a little junk now and then certainly won’t kill you. 😉
Can’t wait to try this!
These are adorable – I can’t wait to try them!
any suggestions if I can’t find red velvet cake mix? Haven’t seen it up here 🙁
Use a white cake mix, add about 1/4 C. cocoa powder and then add red dye and follow instructions!
You can use strawberry cake mix also, just adds a fruity flavor.
Shurine, Betty Crocker or Duncan Hines all make a red velvet cake mix. I’m a manager of a grocery store. Just ask your favorite grocer if their warehouse carries any of these brands & ask them to set it in.
Does it taste just as good without the cream cheese, anyone know? Id like to make and have sit out all day but also want it to be yummy 🙂
Yes it does! I’ve made it without the cream cheese as well, just leave out the milk too!
I was wondering how much this does this recipe make or how many servings do you think it’ll serve?
Well it’s 5 cups of cereal, so I would say it would feed around 10 people
This might be a dumb question but here we go, do you mix the cake mix before you put it in the bag with powdered sugar, our leave it in it’s powder form?
Use the cake mix just as powder! Straight from the box into the bag with powdered sugar 🙂 Not a stupid question! I would much rather have you ask than have really gooey muddy buddies
Those would be MUDDY buddies!
That name is copyrighted, so I chose not to use it… I could get into trouble with that name 🙁
I have a question. I made it, and it was good. But after one day (and I did store it in the fridge), it lost it’s “crunch”. Though still a tasteful snack. I am used to using the honey nut chex cereal for my usual puppy chow, so used the rice this time. Is it the cereal type, or is there any suggestion as to why it may have come out a less crunchy? (not sure if it was the cream cheese (appropriate amount) and milk). Thanks.
Honestly I do not know. I know the corn chex makes it a crunchier but it changes the texture in other ways too, but I prefer rice. I also made the muddy buddies and they were eaten that same day. You can leave out the cream cheese and milk all together, I did that for my seconds round and it worked just fine.
Could also be the moisture from the cream cheese and milk. Eliminating these also eliminates the need to refrigerate! ! Try it again without the dairy and see if that helps.
Made this for a party tonight. Someone is going to have to hide it from me or there won’t be any for tonight! This is amazing. Thanks 🙂
How much does this make?
It makes about 10 servings if each person gets 1/2 Cup
These turned out awesome!! Thx 4 the puppy chow recipes!!! What recepie would u recomend an eleven year old girl who’s made everything???
Start creating some recipes yourself! It’s tons of fun!
I am making this for my boyfriend for Valentine’s Day, but I made some to try out at home first. It is great and my whole family liked it! I did notice that the cereal wasn’t quite as crunchy, but I don’t think I would have had I not seen the previous comments. Thanks for this recipe 🙂
Just made the Red Velvet Puppy Chow to take to my daughter’s classroom teachers tomorrow for Valentine’s Day! Yummy and oh so cute!! Thanks!
I just LOVE that everyone is loving this recipe! Happy Valentine’s!
I am planning on making these tonight and taking them to school tomorrow for class. After I make them, I am planning to keep them in the fridge over-night and then take them to school in the morning. The chow will not be able to be refrigerated at all tomorrow during the day, is that going to have any effect on the color, texture, and taste? Im nervous about the cream cheese and milk if its going to be left out for a while. Any suggestions?
You can leave out the milk and cream cheese entirely if you want, I did that my second time making it and they were fine. But don’t worry if they can’t be refrigerated. They won’t go bad in that short of time
For those who worry about the “puppy chow” name (also a trademark, I think, but for a very different product, of course!), I have also heard the mixes called “people chow.” This one looks not just yummy, but oh-so-cute!
Penguin poo is another name for the same yummy snack! It has the added benefit of people looking like you’re nuts when you say you are eating penguin poo!!
I will say, though, that there was no red velvet cake mix at the store so we tried strawberry! It was fantastic.
Also, when we’re trying to avoid cake mixes, we sometimes just use powdered sugar and some pink or red sugar sprinkles for the coating and it seems to work out great as well.
Thanks for the recipe!
Mmmm… strawberry sounds great!!
I made this tonight and it turned out great! My boyfriend is going to love it.
Since it has a little bit of cream cheese in it does it need to be refrigerated?
Up to 24 hours you should be totally fine
I just made this with my 2 year old daughter’s help. So delicious and very festive for Valentine’s Day!
I made packets of these for a Valentine’s bake sale at work and they went over very well. I found a red velvet cupcake mix at Target that included a powdered cream cheese frosting package- I used some of the cream cheese powder in the dry mix and folded some into the melted ingredients and it turned out very well. I felt like using powdered cream cheese instead of real cream cheese eliminated the need to refrigerate the puppy chow.
I always thought the red color came from a reaction from the cocoa and vinegar mixing. I’ve never added red color to my red velvet cakes, and they turn out fine
So would the recipe be changed dramatically if I omit the cream cheese and milk? Will it still taste the same?
depending on your brand of cake mix, some people have said the mix won’t really turn red without the moisture. So put SOME moisture in it.
Honey,
I read u can’t take red velvet because of the red food colouring.. Have u tried a natural red food colouring? Those made of cochineal? Or maybe leave out the food colouring all together? As a red velvet fan, it hurts me to know someone who love red velvet is allergic..
what brand of “white chocolate melts or chips and of the chocolate melts or chips” is good?? I have no idea where to even look at the grocery store for this. I am just terrible at choosing what chocolate is good for what. I only buy chocolate at Christmas time when it’s at the front and I see it.
I’m just not the baker but live in Fl and going home to Ohio to see our son get married, my youngest just loves red velvet cake when I make it and the chex mix cookies and cream, I would love to make these and good to take home to him.
Chocolate help please!! Thank you
And you site looks wonderful, happy I stumbled upon it
Wilton makes a good brand of melts. I just use the ones I find in bargain bins. They are chocolate pieces that look like little “disks,” that’s usually how melts looks.
Red Velvet Puppy Chow…Fabulous idea!
–Carmen April, Creator/Blogger of Dinner With Nerds (www.DinnerWithNerds)
Just a suggestion for those who cannot tolerate red dye. Use a white cake mix and subsitute the milk for beet juice from canned beets, then use only the white mms.
If you have trouble saying “puppy chow” – just call it “people chow”. Drop the nasty remarks & enjoy the yummy. Be grateful & happy
Have you ever tried all natural plant based dyes? Whole foods sells them.
I haven’t! Maybe I’ll give those a shot this season, thanks!
You do realize that real Red Velvet cake does not have red food coloring in it? The chemical reaction between the chocolate (not Dutch chocolate but real cocoa) and the vinegar and buttermilk (acids) causes the red coloring. If you add red food coloring to get your red color than you are not making real red velvet cake.
I do know that actually! But for the last few years the way it’s been made is with red dye as well as vinegar and cocoa so, the taste of it has changed as well.
I’ve never heard of anyone else being allergic to red due! M dad, brother and I all have really bad relationships with red food. :p These look delicious, I wish I could have them!
OMG…I cannot believe some have never heard of Puppy Chow recipes because they have been around for at least 20 yrs.. But the real unbelievable thing here is, that someone thinks THIS puppy chow can be mistaken for DOG FOOD. Jeeeezus. Help them!
Also, REAL made-by-scratch Red Devil Cake recipes DO call for red food coloring along with the cocoa. Most recipes for a 9 x 13 pan or 2 layer cake made with 2 rounds of 8 or 9 inches, calls for 1 oz., or one bottle red food coloring.
Try it with lemon cake mix instead, and use white chocolate chips, so yummy!
I have a niece and nephew who are allergic to artificial food coloring and my mother is allergic to artificial flavors so I spend a lot of my grocery buying time reading labels 🙂 I found a red velvet cake mix at World Market which is uses natural color and flavor. Plus it was amazing.
Is there by chance a vegan version of this? I’m allergic to dairy.
The cream cheese is there to activate the “red” from the cake mix. It needs a liquid… so if you can find something else that won’t make the chocolate seize up that’s dairy free then it should work!
I’m sure you could use another cake mix and find a natural red coloring agent instead of the chemical dyes you are allergic to. And then omit the red candies.
I’m sure u could use a vegan cream cheese and then soy, almond or rice milk
When i was little my mom use to say “you wanna help me make muddy buddies” so i went outsibe and square blocks of mud and called them my buddies she laughed alot to i loved seeing her laugh.
Yay! I’m not the only one who makes food I’m allergic too. Friends and family think it’s strange that I use ingredients that I can’t eat — but I have loved ones who can. 🙂
Do you know where I can get those cute little heart sprinkles? I have looked at a few stores now and can’t find anything like them.
I get mine from a shop in Salt Lake City called Gygi’s, they have an online shop! Just google it!
I want to mail this to my boyfriend who lives in another state so I don’t want to add the milk and cream cheese. Has anyone used this recipe without the milk/cream cheese? Does it taste the same?
The problem with not adding the milk or cream cheese is that then the red dye in the mix won’t be activated so it won’t turn red…
I’m allergic to the red good coloring too. My grandmother always made me a homemade red velvet cake; then I’d break out in hives and have asthma.
Awesome! I saw this on Simply Made. Looks awesome!
http://simplymadewithlove.blogspot.com/2014/01/valentines-sweet-treats.html
This looks delish….how much does it make? Also where did you get your super cute heart sprinkles?!
It makes about 6 or so cups! I got the sprinkles from a store named Gygi’s in Salt Lake City but they do have an online shop! Just google it!
“Woof, don’t listen to Jessi, I loved these. I took some off the counter. Only thing that would make these better would be Beggin Strips, woof! Take long nap now.” – Sprinkles
Sorry if this question has already been asked, however do you mix the white and the chocolate melts together or do you keep them in seperate bowls? Also, do you use the chocolate just for flavor? I know that seems like a silly question, but I worry about the white turning too muddy if I use the chocolate, so I’m thinking about skipping it.
Thanks!!
You can melt them together! Honestly, you can use all white if you want, I used a little chocolate because red velvet cake has a little cocoa in it, so I was trying to get the right flavor going, but it won’t make much of a difference without it!
I can’t believe that some of you women are being so snotty with your comments. Jessie was concerned about it being called “puppy chow” and for good reason. I have never heard of this mix being called that and I thought the same thing, there are people stupid enough to give it to their dogs. The world is filled with stupid people and if you don’t believe that to be true, maybe you should watch the news or read the paper. This recipe if you look it up, also goes by “crack” and “trash” or “white trash” and I wouldn’t want to call it one of those names either. As for the chocolate issue, if you look up the PetMD website it says the darker and more bitter the chocolate the more dangerous it is for dogs. Next time you mean girls want to pick on someone just be more mature and don’t!
I made this and it was so tasty, but mine didn’t turn red either unfortunately. My fingers did turn red as I ate it lol, so I think I just messed up the texture of the chocolate mixture (maybe it was too thick). Will make again and possibly use only white chips. Thanks for the fun and quick recipe.
PS Angela – get off your high horse! you and that Jessie girl came onto this wonderful recipe board that someone spent time designing and start criticizing the name and the ingredients which is oh so rude! why would someone think a mixture of chocolate, cream cheese, and cake mix was meant for a dog. you are ridiculous.
Lizzy you are awesome and I love your puppy chow recipe. ya puppy chow – thats what its called.
I made these last night and it was crisp and delicious. I put it in an air tight container and put them in the frig overnight. They are no longer crisp and not so good anymore. Should they stay crisp?
Do you think you could sub out the cream cheese and milk with store-bought cream cheese icing to make it more shelf-stable? I’d like to send this in my holiday packages to my in-laws, who all live out of state and would require shipping to them.
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Delicious! My husband was eating by the handful out of the fridge!
This cake looks delicious… I’ll try it soon
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This snacks are for people not dogs
I unfortunately I made these for my daughters baby shower the night before, and I didn’t try them ahead of time. They were soft and tasteless. (No flavor). I wouldn’t waste my Chex cereal on this recipe again. I was embarrassed that I served them.