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Make sour cream and onion snack mix! Made with Chex cereal, mini-pretzels, nuts, spices, and more.
I’m the snack queen
Since we’re still spending the majority of our time at home, I’ve upped my snack game. From chile de árbol hummus to sweet pea dip, I’ve got you covered.
This recipe for sour cream and onion snack mix is inspired by a few things: my love for old school Chex Mix and also for sour cream and onion potato chips.
Speaking of sour cream and onion snacks
Why aren’t there more vegan versions of sour cream and onion snacks out there? I was a huge fan of sour cream and onion Pringles and chips. There was a short-lived Earth Balance sour cream and onion kettle chip that was really great, but overall the presence of this tangy salty snack is lacking in the vegan world.
Enter the saving ingredient of sour cream seasoning: soy milk powder. As much as I love the nutty and cheesy flavor of nutritional yeast, soy milk powder brings a creamy flavor instead. That combined with a little bit of apple cider vinegar makes for a really delicious vegan sour cream flavor.
What ingredients do you need to make sour cream and onion snack mix?
Chex cereal: It doesn’t really matter whether they’re rice, corn, or wheat Chex. Just make sure you have 6 cups handy which is about a regular-sized box. I went a little extra with this for the good ol’ blog sake and used all three. If I’m not taking photos, I usually go for the “wheat multigrain squares” since that’s what Sprouts has on hand.
Nuts: To add some healthy fats and proteins, you’ve gotta add some nuts. For sour cream and onion snack mix, I added a half-cup each of raw cashews and almonds. You can really add any kind of nut though – pecans, walnuts, you name it!
Mini pretzels: No snack mix is complete without mini pretzels! Any brand will do but stay away from pre-flavored ones and just get the standard salty boys. For this mix, I used Snyder’s gluten-free mini pretzels.
Extra virgin olive oil and apple cider vinegar: snack mix bakes in the oven for a surprisingly long amount of time. To help spread the seasoning throughout the mix, you’ll need a third cup of extra virgin olive oil. I get that it looks like a lot, but you also get 9 cups of snack mix out of this one recipe so a little goes a long way! You’ll also need some apple cider vinegar which brings out the “sour” in “sour cream.”
Garlic powder, onion powder, and dried dill: The savory vibes in sour cream and onion snack mix comes from garlic powder, onion powder and dill weed. Onion and garlic really bring out the flavor punch while dill lightly compliments the mix in the background. Plus, you get those little green specks!
Nutritional yeast and soy milk powder: Nutritional yeast adds a nutty and cheesy flavor to the sour cream and onion snack mix. Meanwhile, the soy milk powder completes the sour cream flavor. I strongly recommend buying some so you always have it on hand. If you don’t have soy milk powder, you can try subbing almond or coconut milk powder but know that it may alter the flavor slightly.
Salt: What good is snack mix without a boatload of salt? I use standard sea salt in sour cream and onion snack mix and it turns out super tasty every time.
How do you make sour cream and onion snack mix?
What’s so great about sour cream and onion snack mix is that you can make it with the whole family. It’s one of those recipes where every single family member can pick an ingredient to go in the mix. Anything goes – from bagel chips to minced onions, and beyond.
To start, preheat your oven to 250 degrees. Next, whisk all of the spice ingredients together and set aside. In another bowl, whisk the oil and vinegar together.
Now, it’s time to get mixing! In a large bowl, add the Chex cereal along with the pretzels and chopped nuts. Use your hands to gently mix the ingredients. Then add half the olive oil and vinegar to the snack mix. Use your hands to mix the liquid into the snack mix and then add half the spice mix. Continue mixing and repeat the process again until you’re out of liquid and sour cream spice mix.
Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and divide the sour cream and onion snack mix in half, spreading the mix evenly across the two pans. Bake the sheets for about 1 hour, rotating racks every 15 minutes and flipping the snack mix half-way through. The mixture should be light and toasty with no wet cereal.
Remove the sour cream and onion snack mix from the oven. Taste and add more salt if it needs it. The mix keeps really well so just toss it in a pyrex container or a mason jar once it’s completely cooled… if it even lasts that long.
Substitution ideas and more
Sour cream and onion snack mix is just the beginning. Once you master the art of baking your snack mix, the possibilities are endless.
Go gluten-free: If you stick with corn and rice Chex cereal and use gluten-free mini-pretzels, you can easily make a gluten-free version of sour cream and onion snack mix.
Sub coconut or almond milk powder: Soy milk powder isn’t super easy to find. You can always try using almond milk or coconut milk powder, but the flavor will be altered slightly. In the event of no milk powder, you can always sub nutritional yeast, but it will drastically change the flavor and will be more of a cheese and onion spice mix instead.
Add more stuff: These ingredients are just the beginning. Feel free to add crushed bagel chips, pita chips, different nuts, vegan Cheeze Itz and more to the mix.
Go rogue: Like I said, once you have the basics down, you can really do anything with this snack mix. I love switching up the spices to make the mix spicy with cayenne and smoked paprika. I also have some dried buffalo seasoning I’ve been meaning to give a go on this mix.
Up your snack game.
I love snacks! If you’re looking for more of my snack recipes be sure to check out
- Chile de árbol hummus
- Sweet pea spread
- Sweet potato pieces
- Deviled Tofu
- Chili lime watermelon cucumber salad
- Clove candied walnuts
Recipe jam
In this segment, I suggest a song for you to listen to while you make sour cream and onion snack mix! You can even stream it right here in your browser. Today’s recipe jam is Little Sister by Saâda Bonaire
If you try this recipe, I want to hear about it! Feel free to post your creations to Instagram or Facebook and tag Hell Yes It’s Vegan or #hellyesitsvegan. I look forward to seeing what you make!
Sour Cream and Onion Snack Mix
Equipment
- measuring cup and spoons
- food processor
- 2 small bowls
- large bowl
- 2 baking sheets lined with parchment paper
Ingredients
- 6 cups Chex cereal, (I used a combination of equal parts rice, corn, and wheat but whatever you can find will work!)
- 2 cups mini pretzels, (I used Snyder's gluten-free)
- ½ cup raw almonds
- ½ cup raw cashews
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 ½ Tbsp soy milk powder
- 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 ½ Tbsp onion powder
- 1 Tbsp garlic powder
- 1 Tbsp dried dill weed
- 1 Tbsp sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 250 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Add nuts to food processor and pulse until chopped.
- In one small bowl, whisk together the oil and vinegar and set aside. In another bowl, whisk together the soy milk powder thru the sea salt until evenly combined.
- Add nuts, Chex, and pretzels to a large bowl and mix gently with your hands until evenly distributed. Add half the oil and vinegar and then mix with your hands until evenly spread, then add half of the sour cream and onion spice mix. Continue tossing until well mixed and repeat the process again until you're out of liquid and spices.
- Divide the snack mix across the two baking sheets and spread evenly throughout each pan. Bake for 1 hour switching racks every 15 minutes and flipping the snack mix 30 minutes through.
- Let the mix cool and store in air tight container for all snacking endeavors.