The Store-Bought Ingredient That Gives Boxed Brownies A Sweet And Salty Boost

From stirring in extra handfuls of chocolate chips to scooping dollops of canned pumpkin into your batter, there are plenty of ways to improve store-bought brownie mix. A variety of add-ins can elevate brownies, but one ingredient brings the taste of outdoor adventure to your home baking attempts. Reaching for your favorite packaged trail mix may not be an instinctual move as you're whipping up brownies from a box, but the swift culinary hack offers a mixture of textures and tastes that can take even the most basic brownie mix to new heights. 

If you've purchased or made your own trail mix recipe with ingredients you love, stirring a few spoonfuls directly into brownie batter will add bits of crunchiness and chewiness to the dessert. It'll also boost flavor. Alternatively, if you've picked up a tray of pre-made brownies from the store, topping the batch with a sprinkle of trail mix can also add an aesthetic element as well as provide a crunchy crown that will balance and emphasize the sweet and savory notes of your treats.

As you select which trail mix to use for this creative hack, consider the overall flavors of the brownie and the trail mix. Classic trail mixes made with M&Ms and nuts like peanuts play well with rich, chocolate brownie recipes. Versions packed with dried fruits like raisins or coconut shavings can instead invite a taste of the tropics to any store-bought brownie mix, whereas more decadent trail mixes featuring dark chocolate-covered almonds and dried cherries can elevate boozy brownies made just for adults. Pairing a sweeter brownie mix with a more salty-leaning snack mix can also be the kind of treat ideal to carry on your next adventure.

For those baking their own brownies, adorning batter with trail mix before sliding the tray into the oven means that the pieces of pretzels and nuts will bake directly into the brownies, creating a toasted, textured crust. As with any brownie recipe, you'll want to be sure you don't overbake or burn the trail mix-laden treats. 

You may want to break down larger pieces of pretzels and bagel chips, or chop up chocolate nibs into smaller chunks to use in your brownie recipes, too. This ensures a more even distribution of the trail mix in the batter and reduces the chances of larger, heavier pieces sinking to the bottom of the pan and burning as the brownies bake.