This Gluten-Free Vegan Valentine's Day Puppy Chow is an easy recipe to make in under 30 minutes with only 6 ingredients. It's made with 100% vegan powdered sugar and they are naturally colored making them the perfect plant-based holiday-themed no-bake dessert!
Gluten-Free Vegan Valentine's Day Puppy Chow
Here's why this recipe works - my top 3 reasons:
- No artificial food coloring - naturally colored
- Made with 100% vegan powdered sugar
- Ready in under 30 minutes
No Artificial Food Coloring - Naturally Colored
There's no need to worry about artificially food coloring to achieve the pretty reddish-pink color of these Valentine's Day puppy chow treats.
Have you ever looked at the ingredient label on store-bought red food coloring?
It's rather scary!
Here's the ingredient list for a popular store-bought red food coloring:
S.A.D. (Standard American Diet) McCormick Red Food Color Ingredients:
Water, Propylene Glycol, FD&C Reds 40 and 3, and 0.1% Propylparaben (Preservative).
Instead, I naturally colored this holiday snack with organic red beetroot powder with the following ingredients: 100% organic beetroot powder.
Made With 100% Vegan Powdered Sugar
I was shocked the first time I found out that all powdered sugar is not vegan.
In fact, most powdered sugar contains animal bone char to whiten it, unless it is certified USDA organic.
The only brand I use and used in this recipe is Wholesome Sweeteners which is organic, labeled "naturally vegan", and does not use animal bone char to whiten it.
Ready In Under 30 Minutes
There are a few steps needed to make sure the cereal stays coated with powdered sugar, but it can all be done in less than 30 minutes.
You'll have about 20 minutes of inactive time where the chocolate-coated cereal needs to chill in the refrigerator.
But after that, there are only about 10 minutes of hands-on preparation and it's a fun recipe to make with your little ones!
How To Make Valentine's Day Puppy Chow: Step-by-Step Instructions:
Here is how to make this recipe and I'll show you with step-by-step instructions below.
Prepare a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and set aside.
Before beginning, add the cereal to a large mixing bowl then set aside.
Step 1: Prepare the Chocolate Mixture
Firstly, add all ingredients for the chocolate mixture to a small saucepan and melt on the lowest heat.
Stir it continuously to make sure it doesn't burn then set aside.
Step 2: Prepare the White + Red Coating
Secondly, you'll need two small bowls for the powdered sugar coating.
- White Coating - add the powdered sugar to a small bowl and set aside.
- Red Coating - add the powdered sugar + (1) tablespoon of organic beetroot powder to a small bowl, stir together well and then set aside.
Step 3: Mix the Cereal and Chocolate Together
Thirdly, pour the chocolate mixture over the cereal in the large bowl and stir until all the cereal pieces are covered in chocolate.
Depending on the type of cereal you use, you may need to add a little more cereal because there should not be an excess of melted chocolate.
Add just enough extra cereal to the bowl so there is no extra chocolate.
Step 4: Chill the Chocolate Covered Cereal
Fourthly, this extra step will help the powdered sugar stick to the cereal better.
Transfer the chocolate-coated cereal to the prepared cookie sheet and place in the refrigerator to chill for about 5-10 minutes.
Step 5: Add the First Layer of Powdered Sugar
Fifthly, divide the chocolate-coated cereal in half and place it in two medium-size mixing bowls.
Sprinkle half of the white powdered sugar into the first bowl and sprinkle half of the red powdered sugar into the second bowl.
Gently toss the cereal in each bowl to evenly distribute the powdered sugar.
Transfer the two mixing bowls to the refrigerator to chill for about 5-10 minutes.
Step 6: Add the Second Layer of Powdered Sugar
Sixthly, remove the mixing bowls from the refrigerator and sprinkle the remaining half of the powdered sugar into each bowl.
For example, pour the remaining white powdered sugar into the bowl with the white powdered cereal and the red powdered sugar into the bowl with the red powdered cereal.
Gently toss the cereal in each bowl to evenly distribute the powdered sugar.
Step 7: How To Store the Puppy Chow
Lastly, store the puppy chow in an air-tight BPA-free container either at room temperature or in the refrigerator.
Gluten-Free Vegan Valentine "Puppy Chow" Muddy Buddies
{ Plant-Based | Vegan | Gluten-Free | Dairy-Free | Soy-Free | No-Bake | No Refined Sugar | Naturally Colored }
Ingredients
- 5 cups Van's "Cinnamon Heaven" Gluten-Free Cereal
For the chocolate mixture:
- ½ cup organic peanut butter
- ½ cup Enjoy Life semi-sweet mini chocolate chips
- 1 teaspoon organic refined coconut oil
For the white coating:
For the red coating:
- ¼ cup organic vegan powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon organic beet juice powder
Instructions
- Prepare a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Set aside.
Prepare the cereal:
- Add the cereal to a large mixing bowl and set aside.
Prepare the chocolate mixture:
- Add all the ingredients for the chocolate mixture to a small saucepan and melt it on the lowest heat setting. Stir until everything is melted and smooth, taking care to not let it burn.
- Remove the chocolate mixture from the stove and pour it over the cereal pieces that are in the large mixing bowl.
- Gently stir everything together until all the cereal pieces are covered with the chocolate mixture and the chocolate is evenly distributed. Depending on the size of the cereal pieces you use, you may need to add a little more cereal. You don't want the cereal pieces to be overly coated with the chocolate mixture, so add an extra ¼ cup of cereal at a time until they are lightly coated, but only as needed.
Prepare the white + red coating:
- Add the powdered sugar for the white coating to a small bowl then set aside.
- Add the powdered sugar + beetroot powder for the red coating to a small bowl and stir until well combined then set aside.
Assembly:
- Transfer the chocolate-coated cereal pieces to the prepared cookie sheet and spread them out evenly so they aren't touching each other.
- Place the cookie sheet in the refrigerator for about 5-10 minutes to allow the chocolate mixture to cool.
- Remove the cookie sheet from the refrigerator after the chocolate mixture has cooled completely.
- Divide the cereal in half and transfer it to (2) medium-size mixing bowls.
- Sprinkle ½ the white powdered sugar over the cereal pieces in the first bowl and then sprinkle ½ the red powdered sugar over the cereal pieces in the second bowl, then gently toss to evenly distribute the powdered sugar in each bowl. This will help to keep them from sticking together in the next step.
- Place the two mixing bowls in the refrigerator for another 5-10 minutes.
- Remove the two mixing bowls from the refrigerator and sprinkle the remaining ½ of the powdered sugar onto the cereal pieces (white powdered sugar for the white pieces and red powdered sugar for the red pieces) then gently toss the cereal pieces until the powdered sugar is evenly distributed in each bowl.
- Store in an air-tight BPA-free container.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition Information
Copyright Notice
The instructions, notes, and photographs for this recipe by Karielyn Tillman of The Healthy Family and Home™ website are copyrighted material. This copyrighted work is protected and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives 4.0 International License and the Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DMCA) and cannot be legally used without my written permission.
Find more Valentine's Day dessert recipes in this roundup.
Want More Healthy Plant-Based No-Bake Dessert Recipes?
Check out these:
- No-Bake Wild Blueberry Cheesecake
- Black Forest Bars
- Cranberry Lemon Ball Truffles
- or my CLEAN DESSERTS Cookbook with 72 plant-based vegan + gluten-free no-bake dessert recipes made with clean, real food ingredients just like this one that you will love!
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