This is Recipe Roundup, episode 98. The upcoming days hold both the big game and Valentine’s Day! There are so many delicious things one can cook for both of those occasions – the internet is full of great suggestions. Even from the Recipe Roundup Archives, there are several appropriate dishes for either event on AlleghenyMountainRadio.org. 

But let’s make it REALLY simple this time around. We are just barely beginning to see the signs of spring. The winter has been cold and dark, and sometimes we just need something that tastes good without being too complicated. This week’s recipe is for Valentine’s Trail mix and it is highly customizable. This would be a nice thing to bring to a get together or on a brisk hike to get some sunshine. 

Let’s start with the nuts. Everyone has their preference for nuts in a mix, so go with whatever you want. My recommendations are cashews and macadamia nuts. These are a little sweeter, fattier, and softer than other options and have a luxurious mouthfeel. Compared to peanuts or almonds, their flavor is a lot more delicate and won’t overpower the other ingredients. It’s up to you if you’d like flavored or otherwise. And my recommendation if you are feeling adventurous is pistachios – bonus points for the chili lime ones for some spice! 

Crackers – since chocolate will be the star of this mix, I recommend going with some shape of mini pretzel for the cracker element. The salt and tang of a pretzel will be a nice balance to the sweetness of the other ingredients. 

Dried Fruit – my focus is on red here! Craisins and dried cherries are perfect for valentines day – they pack a tart punch and really round out the visual appearance with their bright red color. If you enjoy goji berries, they are a nice superfood addition to the mix. Though they can be hard to find sometimes – freeze-dried strawberries offer a lot of berry flavor without all of the added sugars of their dried counterparts. 

Finally for the chocolate – honestly, go hog wild. You can have chocolate chunks, chocolate chips! Dark, milk, white – all of them maybe? I will say that the sweetness of the rest of the mix might be a good indication of where to go. If my mix only had freeze dried berries, almonds, and pretzels, I might even go with pink and red m&ms or white chocolate to sweeten it up. If my mix was already very sweet, a dark chocolate would balance. 

You can always add extras like marshmallows, yogurt covered pretzels, chocolate covered fruit – really anything else that makes you think of little hearts and cuddly sweaters. 

So take a load off and keep it simple!

If you’d like to share a recipe with the show, you can send it to sage@amrmail.org.