When you have chocolate, you need to add more chocolate — the logic is quite a simple life equation. To make a triple chocolate treat into an easy snackable form should come with a warning because you won’t step away from the bowl! Enter Death By Chocolate Puppy Chow. The classic cereal snack treat goes as a wardrobe of different flavors, but this version might top the Puppy Chows of the past. A chocolate almond butter coating encases chocolate Chex cereal which partners with chocolate-covered almonds and brownies for an intense chocolate dessert.

Puppy Chow is one of those quintessential American treats that has quite an interesting history. While there are plenty of seasonal flavors, there’s something about this cereal treat that screams the holidays. The no-fuss, no-bake aspect of this snack makes it the perfect last-second treat for visitors to munch on before everyone dives into the cheese balls, mashed potatoes, bubbling pans of lasagna, and roasted meats. This is the sweet to counter a whole lot of salt but does so in the best possible, chocolatey way.

The recipe — if you can call it a recipe it’s so simple — starts off with the traditional cast of characters — Chex cereal, butter, nut butter (I chose almond butter), chocolate chips, and powdered sugar. I was able to find this chocolate Chex at my local supermarket, but the original version will work fine as well.

Start by melting your butter, almond butter, and chocolate chips together in a heat-safe bowl. Once melted, I tossed in a pinch of fine salt and a few dashes of vanilla extract — both of these ingredients enhance the natural richness of the chocolate.

Next, you pour the melted mixture over the Chew cereal.

Use a rubber spatula to combine the cereal, as the rubber spatula will coat the cereal without breaking it.

Now comes the fun (messy) part of the recipe – the powdered sugar!

You can mix in the powdered sugar one of two ways: gradually fold it into the cereal in the mixing bowl, or you can pour the cereal in batches into a zip-top bag and add the powdered sugar gradually. For me, pouring batches of cereal in and out of the zip-top bag proved to be more messy, so I opted for the traditional bowl and stirring method.

Once mixed, pour the Puppy Chow onto a foil-lined or parchment-lined sheet, spreading the mix into an even layer, and then let it rest in the refrigerator for sixty to ninety minutes. This will harden the chocolate coating and make it less messy to eat.

After the brief stint in the refrigerator, you can mix the cereal with the chocolate-covered almonds and the brownie pieces. I tried this with store-bought and homemade brownie pieces, and both versions turned out great! It’s all up to how much time you have to make the brownies (even a brownie mix would be super easy).

Many may be thinking, what’s the point of adding chocolate-covered almonds and brownies to the cereal mix, but trust me, you’ll want to. The crunchy texture of the almonds with a shiny chocolate coating and the chewy, fudgy brownies create a great contrast against the crunchy sweetness of the cereal itself.

Both the brownies and almonds add that extra chocolate oomph to the recipe, that really satisfies the soul. It takes something chocolatey and makes it even more chocolatey in the best possible way. It raises the bar and makes it a next-level dessert.