Tiki party mix

For B's birthday, I decided I'd throw together a little impromptu tiki party on our roof deck.  Although it wasn't really that impromptu -- I had put A LOT of thought into almost every detail.  Pineapples, palm trees, and flamingos adorned most everything, and the color theme was mainly pink, yellow, and green to reflect those things. Matching sprinkles.  Pineapple and shark ceramic glasses (but no actual tiki glasses...go figure!).  Ok, so maybe more casual than impromptu. Poor word choice, Julie!

I let my creative juices flow in terms of decor (floating flamingo drink holders, leis, and mini beach balls) and desserts/baking (pina colada marshmallows, pineapple and palm tree chocolate lollipops), and let my trusty friend Trader Joe do most of the catering (I went with tropical/Polynesian themed foods -- coconut shrimp, scallion pancakes, mini meatballs, chicken lemongrass spring rolls, edamame, shrimp toasts -- but ended up serving only about half of those things). B, my resident bartender extraordinaire, mixed up his signature pineapple and mezcal cocktail, among others!  One more place I let my creativity shine through?  This tropical themed snack mix!

I have to say, sometimes I impress myself!  I went with traditional tropical and Polynesian flavors - coconut, mango, pineapple, macadamia, and banana (I was thinking about adding in some sesame sticks for a salty component, but decided to leave them out). Talk about addictive!  I'm so glad I made a huge batch!!

Tiki Snack Mix
A JulieBakes Original!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup roasted coconut chips
1/2 cup banana chips
1 cup dried baby sweet pineapple (unsweetened), cut into 1/4s (larger rings cut into 1/6s)
1/4 cup lightly sweetened coconut strips, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
1/2 cup dried unsweetened mango, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 cup roasted macadamia nuts (I used unsalted, but salted would be good, too.).

Directions:

Cut dried fruit into the sizes mentioned above.
Add them all to a gallon sized zip lock bag.
Shake up until well mixed.

Add to the serving bowl of your choice (I used a plastic coconut drink holder to keep with the theme).
Extra snack mix (if there should even be any), can be stored in the ziplock bag.