Healthy Homemade Trail Mix with Nuts and Seeds

Trail mix has been a favorite snack in our household for a long time, but it can be surprisingly tricky to find just the right mix. I’m usually looking for one without peanuts, without dye-coated chocolate candies, and with little to no dried fruit. I also prefer a good balance of nuts and seeds and try to avoid mixes made with oils I wouldn’t typically use at home. And then there’s freshness, nothing is worse than opening a bag of trail mix only to find the nuts have gone a little rancid. It’s a tall order.

So I started making my own. My mix uses walnuts, almonds, pistachios, cashews, pepitas, and sunflower seeds, lightly roasted with walnut oil and sea salt for a fresh, balanced snack. It’s the perfect balance of nuts and seeds, salted but not too salty, with the freedom to add dried fruit or chocolate when we want.

I usually make the trail mix without dried fruit or chocolate and keep those separate. When I’m ready for a snack, I scoop out about ¼ cup of the nut and seed mix and add about 1 tablespoon each of dried tart cherries and Hu chocolate gems. That’s my favorite combo.

Trail mix is also one of our staple travel snacks. I often make a fresh batch before a plane trip – it’s the perfect thing to pull out when the packaged pretzel packs start making their way down the aisle. It’s also great for hiking, a mid-afternoon snack, sprinkled over a bowl of Greek yogurt, or simply eaten by the handful.

Since I try to get walnuts, pepitas, and sunflower seeds into my diet regularly, this mix makes it easy. I recently read the book Younger You by Dr. Kara Fitzgerald and attended one of her webinars as part of the continuing education I complete to maintain my board certification as a functional nutritionist. She shared fascinating research on foods that support DNA methylation, a process that helps regulate how our genes function and supports cellular health.

One of the ideas that stuck with me from her book and webinar, as well as my nutrition training, is that the genes you are born with aren’t necessarily the ones you’re stuck with. This concept is called epigenetics. While our DNA sequence stays the same, things like lifestyle and environment influence how those genes are expressed. Nutrition plays a particularly important role here – certain foods contain nutrients and plant compounds that help turn helpful genes on and quiet others that may contribute to inflammation or disease.

Over the years, this concept has influenced how and what I eat more than any fad diet or trend ever could. It keeps me grounded in the foods I choose to buy and try to include in my diet on a very regular basis. Many of the foods she highlights are simple whole foods like nuts and seeds, which makes ingredients like walnuts, pepitas, and sunflower seeds easy additions to everyday meals and snacks.

I hope you try this recipe and love it as much as we do.

Cheers,

Christina

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Healthy Homemade Trail Mix with Nuts and Seeds

A simple, delicious homemade trail mix made with roasted nuts tossed in walnut oil and sea salt, finished with pepitas and sunflower seeds. You can customize it with dried fruit or chocolate but it's delicious without. It's definitely better than anything you'll find on the grocery store shelf!

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Course: Snack

Keyword: nuts, seeds, trail mix

Servings: 16 servings

Author: Christina Shoup

Ingredients

• 1 cup raw walnuts
• 1 cup raw almonds
• ½ cup raw pistachios
• ½ cup raw cashews
• 2 tbsp walnut oil
• ½ tsp sea salt

Add after first roast:

• ½ cup pepitas pumpkin seeds
• ½ cup sunflower seeds

Optional add-ins (stir in after cooling):

• ½ cup dried tart cherries or cranberries
• ½ cup chocolate chips or chocolate discs I like Hu chocolate baking gems

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
• In a large bowl, combine walnuts, almonds, pistachios, and cashews. Drizzle with walnut oil and sprinkle with sea salt, tossing well to coat evenly.
• Spread the nuts in a single layer on the prepared sheet pan.
• Roast for 10 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and add the pepitas and sunflower seeds, stirring to combine.
• Return the pan to the oven and roast for 5-10 minutes more, until fragrant and lightly golden.
• Let the trail mix cool completely.
• Once cooled, stir in any optional add-ins such as dried fruit or chocolate.

Notes

• Allow the mixture to cool fully before adding chocolate so it doesn’t melt.
• Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1–2 weeks.
• Great for snacks, lunchboxes, or travel.