Our Holiday Puppy Chow
Every December, my family pulls out the same dented mixing bowl and makes a batch of puppy chow. We have made this sweet snack for years, usually while holiday music plays and someone searches for the missing measuring cups. My favorite part is shaking the cereal in a bag of powdered sugar: by the end, the pieces look as if they have been caught in a snowstorm.
Despite its name, puppy chow is a treat for people, not dogs. Chocolate is unsafe for dogs, so keep the finished snack and its ingredients away from pets.
What you’ll need
Makes: about 9 cups
Time: about 25 minutes, plus cooling time
Ingredients
- 9 cups plain rice or corn square cereal
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
Equipment
- A large mixing bowl and a microwave-safe bowl
- Measuring cups and a measuring spoon
- A spoon or flexible spatula
- Two large resealable food-storage bags
- A baking sheet lined with parchment paper
- Oven mitts or a dry towel
- resealable:
- Able to be closed securely again after opening.
- intervals:
- Separate periods of time between actions.
- scorching:
- Burning a surface with too much heat.
- extract:
- A concentrated flavoring taken from a natural source.
- coating:
- A layer covering the outside of something.
- airtight:
- Sealed so that air cannot easily enter or escape.
- portions:
- Individual amounts of food.
- texture:
- The way a food feels, especially when eaten.
One passage, many ways to practice
Reading-skill questions, word work and writing prompts — all built from this text.
Main Idea
Identify the central idea and explain how important details develop it.
Context Clues
Use clues in the passage to work out what words mean. A separate printable Vocabulary worksheet is also available.
Summarize
Select, organize, and restate the most important information without adding opinion.
Purpose
Analyze what the author aims to do and how choices serve audience and purpose.
Structure
Analyze how sections and organizational choices build the text's ideas or effects.
Vocabulary
Practice words from the passage with a printable worksheet.
Writing Prompts
Use the passage as a springboard for short written responses, from personal reflection to evidence-based arguments.
Fix the Sentence
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Preview questions from this passageShowHide
- 1Why does the recipe warn readers about pets before listing the ingredients?
- 2How does the opening paragraph make the recipe feel personal?
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About this how-to / procedural passage for 8th Grade
“Our Holiday Puppy Chow” is a how-to / procedural reading passage about Holiday Recipes, written for 8th Grade. It takes about 4 minutes to read (581 words) and comes with an interactive quiz and a printable worksheet with comprehension questions and an answer key.