Chocolate Trail Mix

By Yasmin Fahr

Chocolate Trail Mix
Armando Rafael for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Maggie Ruggiero.
Total Time
15 minutes, plus 1½ hours cooling
Rating
4(78)
Notes
Read community notes

Anyone who has experienced the accidental melting of chocolate trail mix during hot weather has also likely enjoyed the blissful moment when it solidifies again, leaving it in a different form: one composed of sweet, salty and crunchy clusters, with an eggshell-thin chocolate coating. This simple and adaptable recipe — which includes a tip for achieving the melted version — is one that you can enjoy during long hikes, after hard workouts or simply to snack on with beer or cocktails. While trail mix is often raw, this version lightly toasts the nuts and seeds, which imparts extra flavor. Finishing with flaky sea salt is a nice touch, too.

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Ingredients

Yield:About 4 cups
  • 1cup raw, unsalted almonds or pistachios
  • 1cup raw, unsalted cashews or pecans
  • ½cup raw, unsalted pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds
  • ½cup dried cherries, raisins, blueberries, goldenberries or chopped dried apricots, mango, pineapple or prunes
  • Salt
  • ½cup dark or semisweet chocolate pieces or chips, peanut butter cups or chips
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (10 servings)

258 calories; 20 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 10 grams monounsaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 15 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 8 grams sugars; 9 grams protein; 126 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat the oven to 275 degrees. Scatter the nuts and seeds on a large sheet pan in an even layer. Bake until they are lightly toasted and maybe browned in spots, about 12 minutes, turning the nuts and seeds over as best you can and rotating the sheet pan halfway through cooking.

  2. Step 2

    Remove from the oven, add the cherries and ¼ teaspoon salt and stir with a wooden spoon. Spread the mixture out again to let cool until you can easily handle the sheet pan with bare hands, 15 to 20 minutes. (If you add the chocolate to the sheet pan directly at this stage, it might melt a little. But if you prefer the chocolate to melt into your clusters, add half the chocolate directly to the sheet pan along with the dried fruit. After cooling, add remaining chocolate then transfer to a bowl, using a flat spatula to scrape any chocolate from the pan, and let cool until solid again, 30 to 90 minutes.)

  3. Step 3

    Transfer to a bowl, then stir in the chocolate (if you haven’t already added it). Enjoy immediately, or store for up to one month in an airtight container at a cool temperature.

Ratings

4 out of 5
78 user ratings
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Cooking Notes

Daniela

So easy and so good! Addicting. Variation: Prepped an equivalent sheet pan of plain granola, baked both at 350 F for approx 10 min, then combined the two together straight from the oven, and spread on parchment paper in an even layer to cool. Granola for doubled recipe trail mix: 3 cups rolled oats, big pinch salt, 2 oz oil whisked with 4 oz honey, mix, spread thinly and evenly on parchment paper covered sheet pan and bake till light tan in center and a little darker at the edges

Kater

Very very easy. As written, there's not enough to make for a group, but you can play it by ear to increase. I added a little more salt and added less chocolate. I added more than half the chocolate when the pan was still warm and stirred a lot to give the pieces a light coating. I prefer mine less sweet, so I won't add the rest.

John Gordon

Instead of two cups of two nuts, I used 1/2 cup of each of the nuts. I preferred the variety.

John Gordon

Instead of two cups of two nuts, I used 1/2 cup of each of the nuts. I preferred the variety.

Daniela

So easy and so good! Addicting. Variation: Prepped an equivalent sheet pan of plain granola, baked both at 350 F for approx 10 min, then combined the two together straight from the oven, and spread on parchment paper in an even layer to cool. Granola for doubled recipe trail mix: 3 cups rolled oats, big pinch salt, 2 oz oil whisked with 4 oz honey, mix, spread thinly and evenly on parchment paper covered sheet pan and bake till light tan in center and a little darker at the edges

Judy

I love this recipe! It’s super versatile. You can use pretty much any kind of nut or seed you have on hand. I made it with white chocolate chips and it was so good. I’m going to make it again with semi-sweet, and I’m going to throw in some peanuts and hazelnuts that I have in the pantry.

Kater

Very very easy. As written, there's not enough to make for a group, but you can play it by ear to increase. I added a little more salt and added less chocolate. I added more than half the chocolate when the pan was still warm and stirred a lot to give the pieces a light coating. I prefer mine less sweet, so I won't add the rest.

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