How to Make Homemade Trail Mix

I was talking with my husband a while ago and he mentioned wishing that he could find a trail mix that he likes

He said that there is always at least one thing added that he doesn’t like

And it feels like that addition makes up half the bag!

I thought about it for a moment and realized that making trail mix would be super easy

There is no baking or anything

Unless you make everything from scratch

But I am not drying fruit or making dried pretzels right now

Maybe someday!

So we talked and decided on what he wanted in the trail mix

And as expected, it was super easy!

What are good things to put in trail mix?

There are so many options for making your own trail mix

Some common additions are:

• Cashews
• Peanuts
• Almonds
• Walnuts
• Dried fruit
• Freeze dried fruit
• Pretzels
• Reeses pieces
• M&ms
• Rye chips
• Raisins 
• Popcorn
• Pistachios 
• Sunflower seeds
• Pecans
• Hazelnuts
• Pumpkin seeds
• Macadamia nuts

You can add anything that is dried and doesn’t require refrigeration

Some things, like chia seeds, are too small to add

So male sure the additions are big enough to easily grab!

Is it healthier to make your own trail mix?

With a recipe as flexible as trail mix, there is no right answer to whether or not it’s healthier than store bought

But you do have the freedom to make it healthier

You can add as much or as little of every ingredient as you want

If you make half the trail mix m&ms, then your trail mix is probably not healthier than store bought trail mix

If you choose the additions carefully and with health in mind, then it probably will be healthier than store bought trail mix

What is the difference between trail mix and mixed nuts?

The difference between trail mix and mixed nuts is the ingredients 

In mixed nuts, every ingredient is a nut

In trail mix, you have mixed nuts, but you also have other things like m&ms or pretzels

You have a lot more freedom when adding things to trail mix since you can add more than just nuts

Ingredients:

½ cup of peanuts

½ cup of cashews

½ cup no shell pistachios

1 cup of pretzels

½ cup of dried mango

½ cup Reese’s pieces

 Any dried fruit or nut that you enjoy

Instructions:

Gather everything you want in your trail mix, a container to store the trail mix, and a bowl

Add everything in layers to your container until it is full

I go through the above recipe 2 times to fill our container

Pour the trial mix out of the container and into the bowl

Mix well

Pour the trail mix back into the container 

seal the container for later or enjoy now!