This Turmeric Puffed Rice Trail Mix is Baby V’s favorite snack right now! He has to have his puffed rice every single day after breakfast. From the very beginning, my husband and I have tried to keep V on as natural of a diet as possible. When he began eating finger foods, I had so much trouble finding him natural snacks besides the fruits and veggies which he already eats enough of during the day. I’d look at cereals and there’s always so much added sugar and I’d look at oat bars and they would have ingredients I couldn’t pronounce.
Then, believe it or not, my nanny would bring puffed rice as a snack for herself and she would ask me if she can give Baby V some. So being my crazy mom self, my first thought was – are there preservatives in there, are they super processed – how is puffed rice even created? Regardless, after much research, everything about puffed rice is natural (thankfully!). This is how V came to love puffed rice. So rather than eating my nanny’s snack, I decided to be a responsible mom and make my son’s snack myself.
The recipe I make for V is very basic and great for an 18 month old, but there can be so many variations that you can try. You can add roasted nuts and plenty of different spices. I’ve modified this recipe to fit adult taste buds, AND now my husband and I love it too!
Puffed rice is low in calories and fat. It is light and airy (so not the best for Vatas) but it helps to pacify Kaphas and Pittas. Most snacks of this nature are not a good source of nutrition as they’re processed. They have been stripped of nutrients and vitamins during their production, but if you’re having a crispy snack craving, this is probably one of your better options.
I buy my puffed rice from the Indian Grocery Store. There are usually two organic options and I take my pick. Arrowhead Mills also makes puffed rice and brown puffed rice. I’ve noticed that these aren’t as airy and are a bit more dense than the Indian Store ones. Since these are for Baby V, and he doesn’t have his molars yet, I prefer the lighter, easily dissolvable ones.
In this recipe, I’ve used ghee, read about the benefits of and how to make ghee here. I’ve also added turmeric and black salt, both of which have ample health benefits.
Please leave me a comment and let me know what you think! I’d also love to know what you feed your toddlers, I’m always looking for new ideas 🙂
Namaste.
| Prep Time | 5 minutes |
| Cook Time | 10 minutes |
| Servings |
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- 2 tbsp ghee
- 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
- 1/4 tsp asafoetida powder optional, especially beneficial for Vata-types
- 4-5 curry leaves optional
- 4 cups puffed rice organic
- 1/8 tsp black salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted pecans (or pistachios)
- 1/2 cup slivered almonds
- 1/2 cup golden unsweetened raisins (or dried unsweetened cranberries)
Ingredients
Optional additions
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- Heat ghee in a sauté pan on medium heat.
- If you’re adding in any of the optional additions, add them in now. I’ve added pecans, almonds, and raisins in my recipe. Sautee these for 1-2 minutes on low heat as you don’t want moisture to remain and make your puffed rice stale.
- Add turmeric and asofoetida. Within 15-30 seconds, add in curry leaves and black salt.
- Immediately after, add the puffed rice
- Stir for 4-5 minutes on medium heat until puffed rice is heated through and everything is mixed thoroughly.
- Let puffed rice cool completely before storing in an air tight container
*Vata – add an extra 1 tbsp of ghee, be sure to use asofoeitda, and only eat this occasionally
*Kapha – Skip the raisins