This is a fun, flavorful party mix that adds an unexpected element to a wine-and-cheese-style snack spread. It also happens to be both vegan and gluten free, making it a nice complement to the traditional offerings.
I’m a huge fan of curry powder, both for its taste and health benefits. Because curry powder is a mix of spices, it varies a little from brand to brand. If you’re unsure, try a few to find one that you really like. Curry powder has a variety of antioxidants that are beneficial for cardiovascular health, blood sugar regulation and cancer prevention. If you’d like to read more, see a couple of articles here and here.
This party mix is very quick and easy to make, and most of the making time is hands off.
I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
~~~~~
Puffed Rice Party Mix with Curry Powder and Lemon Zest
Adapted from the Puffed Rice Party Mix in Super Natural Simple by Heidi Swanson (pg 63).
Notes: The original recipe calls for raw peanuts, which you roast in the oven with everything else. But because raw peanuts can be relatively hard to find, I’ve been using roasted, which I add after the rest of the mix has been in the oven for some time, and I wrote the recipe that way here. If you happen to have raw peanuts, go ahead and use them and add them to the initial mixture before putting it into the oven. Also, this is delicious with a bit of cayenne and can actually handle quite a bit of heat, but I made it optional because spice level preferences vary so much. For an audience that includes children, I use a fairly small pinch. For an all-adult crowd, I might use up to ¼ teaspoon.
2 cups puffed brown rice cereal (I love One Degree Sprouted Brown Rice Crisps)
½ cup raw pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
½ cup unsweetened large flake coconut
½ cup raw whole cashews
½ cup roasted, unsalted peanuts
Scant ¼ cup olive oil
Spice Mix:
Rounded ¼ teaspoon fine grain sea salt
Rounded ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
3/4 teaspoon curry powder
Pinch of cayenne pepper (optional; depending on how spicy you’d like this)
Zest of 1 lemon
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place the cereal, pepitas, coconut flakes and cashews into a 9 x 13 baking dish. Drizzle over the olive oil and mix well. I usually do this with my hands to make sure that everything is coated with the oil. Place the mixture into the oven and bake for about 20 minutes, stirring once or twice in between, until the coconut flakes, cashews and pepitas are nicely browned and toasty. If I remember, I toss in the roasted peanuts for the last 3-5 minutes of baking. If not, no harm, you can add them when the mix comes out of the oven.
While the mix is in the oven, stir together the sea salt, smoked paprika, curry powder and cayenne (if using).
After you pull the cereal mixture out of the oven, add the peanuts if you haven’t done so already, then sprinkle the spice mix over the whole thing and toss well. The last step is to finish it off with the lemon zest.
Taste, adjust any of the seasonings if you like, and enjoy!
