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No October party is complete without a festive Halloween appetizer. Let this Halloween Chex Mix recipe be the anchor of the table! It's salty and sweet, has tons of candy mix-ins and makes a large batch for a crowd. Add a platter of mummy hotdogs, pumpkin hummus, and spider cookies, and your guests won't think twice about their brimming baskets of candy.

How do you make Halloween Chex mix from scratch?

There are lots of different ways to make a really good snack mix. Some recipes call to make a sweet, candy coating, while others toss the whole mix in white chocolate and coat it with sprinkles. We like the balance of lots of salty ingredients like corn and rice cereal, pretzels and peanuts, coated with a buttery mixture of brown sugar and maple syrup. Once baked, the mix celebrates the toasty flavors of fall. Toss it with your favorite Halloween candy like Reese's pieces and candy corn, then add some chocolate chips (because every good snack mix needs chocolate!)

Can I make this for other holidays?

Absolutely! Use this base recipe for any holiday. The candies are what make it feel festive, so play around with them to match your occasion. Use white chocolate chips and pastel-colored chocolate eggs for Easter. Or lean into a Christmas theme with red and green candies. Need an appetizer for a baby shower? Use either pink or blue candies, depending on the baby's gender (or a mix of both if it's a surprise!) For any occasion, other great mix-ins are miniature peanut butter cups or peanut M&Ms.

8 to 10-oz. bag peanut butter candies, such as Reese's pieces (about 1 1/2 cups)