My mom always made “bits and bites” in December to have on hand whenever people popped in to visit over the holidays. I love the toasty, warm flavour of these, and over the years I’ve started to make them in Toronto for my annual “January Party” with my own twist - adding in maple syrup and sriracha! Even though this year there won’t be parties or company stopping in, these make for a great snack with a movie on a winter's night and they keep super well. If you are doing gift drop-offs for friends, pick up some fun tins from a local shop, and you can gift a homemade treat!
This recipe makes A LOT, but you can easily half the recipe if desired. I recommend making the full version so you have snacks forever.
Maple Sriracha ‘Bits and Bites’
Yields .. a lot. Like 40 cups worth. 3.5 hours total prep/bake time.
Ingredients
Maple Sriracha Sauce
3 tbsp sriracha
3 tbsp maple syrup
¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp onion powder
1.5 cups salted butter, melted (if using unsalted butter, add 1 tbsp kosher salt)
Bits and Bites Components
1 550g box Shreddies = 11 cups
2 200g boxes Cheese Nips = 7 cups
1 400g bag Stick Pretzels = 8 cups
1 700g can Honey-Roasted Peanuts = 5.5 cups
½ 570g Family Size box of Cheerios = 10 cups
Method
Preheat oven to 250F
In a medium bowl, whisk together the sauce ingredients until smooth and well emulsified.
Mix together your “bits and bites” components into two large roasting pans. You can also use tin foil pans (I would use the roasting pan sized ones). You want to ensure there is room in both roasters to easily stir - this will help with your stirring and also allow the air in the oven to circulate better to dry out the mixture!
Pour your sauce over both pans, evenly dividing the sauce. Give the mixture a good toss so everything is evenly coated - you don’t want the sauce concentrated in one area!
Bake in the oven at 250F for approximately 3 hours, tossing every 45 mins. Make sure you stir all the way to the bottom otherwise the pieces on the bottom will burn.
You are looking for the bits and bites to be dried out - you don’t want any soggy pieces. If the mixture isn’t fully dried out after 3 hours, reduce the heat to 225F and continue to bake until everything is perfectly dried and toasty!
Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
Store in an airtight container on the counter. They will keep for 1-2 months!