furikake-ranch pub mix
Welcome to those who were just scanning the web and serendipitously landed on my humble site 👋 whether you are in a rut and don’t know what to make; are in that loop of “sooo, what do you want to eat tonight?”; or have fallen into the infinite black hole of saved recipes from social media (the internet is truly ultimate purveyor of maximalist TL;DR content overwhelm 😵💫🫠🤭). I hope you enjoy — it brings me great joy to sprinkle any ease into your life — cheers to your good health, good love & good fortune!
And per my usual caveat, I do not claim to be a doctor or a chef. I do not dream of being a fancy food blogger. I’m just a gal who enjoys living and eating for optimum well-being. I like to creatively alter, and occasionally create, recipes to make them as balanced as possible, in both taste and health. I’ve come to learn soul-food and body-fueling food are both real and equally important, hence the critical importance and beauty of mind-body-soul eating! ✨ I typically like to begin with a key ingredient or two that I’m hoping to work with, search for a preexisting recipe as a guide, then play with measurements and make swaps to level up nutrient density. Consider this a destination for healthy recipe inspiration, where you’ll never have to scroll through any continuously re-populating ads. One of my primary goals is to add a little simplicity in places I’ve found murky.
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In hunting for a non-sweet Valentine’s Day treat to make my hubby, I landed on this savory Asian fusion gem of a snack mix from Bon Appétit! I just swapped a few of the not so good for you ingredients from their Furikake-Ranch Snack Mix and voilà, see below for the best, non-MSG-containing-pub-mix of all time:
INGREDIENTS
1/2 c (1 stick) unsalted grass-fed butter
1/3 c organic maple syrup
1/4 c sugar
1/4 c avocado or extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp organic soy sauce
1 1-oz. packet organic ranch seasoning
10 c rice or corn Chex cereal
3 c oyster crackers
2 c mini pretzels
2 c Pepperidge Farm Goldfish Crackers
1 cup salted roasted peanuts
1 1.5-1.7-oz. bottle nori komi furikake or spicy furikake
*A note on MSG: please be a label monger and make sure you’re only swooping a shaker free of MSG. Whole Foods should have you covered, but always read those labels!
EQUIPTMENT
Disposable gloves
Small saucepan
Extra large mixing bowl
Parchment paper
Two baking trays
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Preheat to 250°F.
2. Melt butter in small saucepan, then add maple syrup, sugar, oil, soy sauce, and ranch seasoning, stirring, until sugar is dissolved, then remove from heat.
2. Mix cereal, oyster crackers, pretzels, goldfish and peanuts in a large bowl with your hands.
3. Wearing disposable gloves, carefully pour butter mixture into bowl, mixing from bottom to top to gently incorporate.
4. Sprinkle half the furikake over over the mixture and toss until evenly coated. Then sprinkle remaining half and toss again — note that it’s OK to get the bottle sticky with your gloves, it will be thrown away in the end anyway 😉
5. Divide the mixture between 2 baking sheets lined with parchment paper and bake for about an hour, until snack mix is dry. Throughout the hour, gently toss the mix in oven every 15 – 20 mins AND swap the level of the pans halfway through to keep it all evenly roasted.*
7. Let snack mix cool before serving and ENJOY THE UMAMI! 😋
*A humid day may require 15–30 mins longer baking + the mix should stay good for a little over 2 weeks when stored at room temp in an airtight container.
As with everything I make, I love to know the ingredients will fuel not only a beautiful plate, but a beautiful feeling inside. I will again caveat, I’m not a nutritionist, but as holistic health coach, here’s some functional food for thought:
AVOCADO OIL
EVOO isn’t the only super oil out there! Rich in a multitude of antioxidants (including vitamins A, E, B12), improving skin and wound healing, avocado oil is also swimming in heart-healthy fat, oleic acid, which is thought to possibly reduce the risk of chronic conditions such a heart disease and dementia. Additionally sited to reduce total and LDL (bad) cholesterol, inflammatory cytokines and blood sugar, as well as symptoms of arthritis! And it doesn’t stop there, avocado oil is high in lutein, an antioxidant that can only be obtained from your diet and has major benefits for the eyes, known to possibly reduce the risk of cataracts and macular degeneration. Additionally, avocado oil enhances the absorption of nutrients, as some nutrients, need to be combined with fat in order for our bodies to absorb them, such as the fat-soluble vitamins A, E, D and K, as well as carotenoids such as beta-carotene, lycopene, lutein, and zeaxanthin. Finally — avocado oil can be used on anything, particularly when cooking on high heat, as it has a whopping 520 degree smoke point!
(HOMEMADE/WHOLE INGREDIENT) SNACKS
Similar to dessert, sometimes enjoying snacks can also be good for you health! My top 3 reasons for why I strongly believe this…
1. MENTAL HEALTH
2. WEIGHT MANAGEMENT
3. ENERGY
The more we restrict ourselves, the more we’re going to crave what we’re restricting ourselves from — which in turn, may not be good for our mental health or weight weight management. For instance, if we’re thinking of how much we want some chocolate (or our favorite salty snack!), but then deprive ourselves of this, there is a much greater probability we will binge on some at some point in the near future and/or even justify eating less healthful food throughout our day since we did were so “good” at avoiding the deemed gluttonous item when we wanted it. There are many unhealthy cycles we can develop, it’s most ideal to listen to our bodies and eat intuitively.
On top of this, dieting that involves sudden decreases to our intake of carbohydrates and sugar deprives our bodies of the necessary glucose needed for energy. This can lead to us feeling sluggishness, experience mental fog and distraction, as well as potentially feel depressed! The mind body connection is ever present.
There’s no reason to not enjoy your favorite snacks in moderation — life is meant to be enjoyed! When we take a bite out of our favorite snacks and our moods instantly level up, it’s due to the fact that foods with naturally high percentages of carbohydrates help the brain and body to produce chemicals (including serotonin) that contribute to overall emotional well being. The benefits of enjoying dessert simply outweighs the negative impact.
***important to note, as always, quality is essential — even with snack mixes…always shop organic when possible.
