Salty Sweet Rice Krispie Treats

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I know.
Rice Krispie Treats?
Everyone. knows. how to make them.
But do you?
The thing is, I’ve always enjoyed eating them and never thought twice about it, until I made them the right way.
So I guess this post could also be titled:

The reason you’ve been making Rice Krispie Treats wrong.

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Cause about a year ago I made a self-confession:
Homemade rice krispie treats were kind of bland.

You know, they were just fine.   The idea of them was actually more fun than actually eating them.  Because the homemade variety I had been making and eating were never as amazing as the ones I’d eaten at cute boutique-type cafes.

I had to be doing something wrong….or not right.
There’s totally a difference.

So I jumped on Pinterest searching for ideas.
And recipes like this, this, and this popped up.

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Which means….I can’t really take credit for this idea, but I’m not sure whose original idea it was since there are many similar recipes out there.  So I’m claiming it my civic duty to pass the good news along to you, so that rice krispie treats become a more meaningful part of your life.

Okay.
The secret to good rice krispie treats comes down to two things:
– Salt
– Pockets of mallows (more info in recipe)

SALT!
I’ve also been having an inner dialogue this year about salt, and how underused it is in sweet recipes—-aside from all the salted caramel stuff.
It’s so much fun to:
* sprinkle extra salt on top of cookie dough before you bake or
* sprinkle a smidgen on a bowl of ice cream or
* add an extra teaspoon to that french toast you’re making.

I know this is like 400 BC knowledge, but really, salt is such an enhancer.
And it does WONDERS to rice krispie treats!

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So here’s what you do…

SALTY SWEET RICE KRISPIE TREATS
Makes about 12-16
Typically when I make this for a group I double the recipe.  I make it once and fill half of a 9×13 pan, then I make it again in the same bowl and press it into the other half of the pan. Then I cut them in smaller cubes when I serve, since they’re tall and
chunky.  They end up being bigger than they seem.

Ingredients:
4 Tbl butter
10 cups of mini marshmallows, separated (get the larger 16 oz bag!)
6 cups crispy rice cereal
1/2 – 3/4 tsp salt (* see note below)
1/2 tsp vanilla

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• In a large bowl, microwave together 8 cups of the mini marshmallow and the 4 Tbl of butter for 2 minutes 30 seconds, or until melted. Be careful not to let it spill over in the bowl or you will have a huge mess.  2:30 minutes seems to be the perfect amount of time.
• Stir with a wooden spoon.
• Mix in the vanilla and the salt.
* The key to this recipe is the salt!  I use 3/4 tsp salt and love it.  If you’re not sure how much you like, start with 1/2 tsp salt and you can up your game on the next batch.
• Mix in the reserved 2 cups of marshmallows and the 6 cups of cereal.  Mix with the wooden spoon till incorporated.  This is what gives the recipe those marshmallow pockets!  The reserved mallows start to slowly melt as you mix it all up.

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• Press into a 9×9 pan.  Best way to do this is to spoon as much as you can into the pan, then get your hands a little wet with water and press the rest in place.
Less sticky!

Eat right away or chill in the fridge for a 1/2 hour….before the kids come running.
Enjoy!
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  1. 1) anna

    oooo! Will definitely do this the next time I make some. I’m also a terrible human and usually use an entire stick of butter in mine. hehehe.

    • 2) Dana

      hahah. Well if you double the recipe, then you’re using a stick 🙂

  2. 3) Kelly

    I always find that the regular recipe gets hard and difficult to eat after they sit for a bit, even when stored in an air proof container. I have switched to using marshmallow fluff to mix and adding in some mini marshmallows at the end. They’re light and stay chewy!

  3. 4) Laura

    I was horrible at making these for a long time. Then a girl friend told me I was beating the marshmallows to much ( my bars were always crunchy and hard). I now barely microwave them and do add extra mellows at the end to stir in. We like them with sprinkles on top. Makes an easy snack for those gluten free friends! Gonna add the salt to mine next

  4. 5) Katie

    So excited to try these! I also spray no stick (like Pam) on my hand to press them into the pan, Works like a charm!

  5. 6) Rachel

    We’ve been on a strange rice crispy treat kick at our house the past couple months. I guess because they’re so easy for the little kids to help with? Anyway, I’ve always microwaved the marshmallows and never thought twice about it. But my husband made the last batch – he used the stove and I swearvtgerevwasca difference. Softer, yes, but somehow not as blah. I am a converted stove melted. I’m going to slip some salt in the next batch and see what he says 🙂

  6. 7) Krissie

    Cute 9×9 pan. Where did u get it?

    • 8) Dana

      Target! But last year 🙁

  7. 9) Rachel

    These look delicious but I have a quick question. In the recipe it says to use 10 cups of mini marshmallows, then later in your process you use 8 cups. Did I missread the recipe or Am I missing something?

    • 10) Dana

      Yes, it’s 10 cups total. If you look in the picture, you’ll see that I have them separated—8 cups in one bowl, 2 cups in another bowl.

  8. 11) JoAnne T.

    I thought about this post all day yesterday. At first I thought, could I use popcorn? I only have jumbo marshmallows, could I use those? Then I thought about vacations when I was very young, we visited grandparents in the San Francisco Bay Area once a year and went to the SF zoo. I always looked forward to buying a package (a brick shape) of pink popcorn, it must have been like caramel corn. Gosh, Dana, thanks for jogging all those wonderful memories, from the 1950’s!

    One more thing to tell you, my daughter-in-law recently asked me to teach her to sew. I gave her a machine, showed her how and gave her plenty of fabric for practice. I also told her about your blog. Two days later she sent a photo of a little skirt she had made for her daughter. She learned that from you! She loves your blog too. Thanks so much, Dana!

  9. 12) Sasha

    Awesome! Definitely gonna try this. Made your Chocolate Peanut Butter Rice Krispies Roll for a holiday celebration before and it was a big hit. I have a feeling this is going to be just as popular! Thanks for sharing Dana!

    • 14) Janice

      I just add chocolate chips in with the mix before pouring into the dish. And Chios on top pressed into the Rice Krispies. Chocolate makes everything better! Think I will make some tonight! Oink oink! Corona 19 for sure! Lol!

  10. 15) Katie

    The real trick for the best rice crispy treats is to use the stove on extremely low heat! That’s how they stay soft and chewy and not hard. It takes more patience but much better than the microwave. Once I started doing this and added the extra mallows at the end they are always a huge hit!

    • 16) Laura E

      Dana
      Thank you for the wonderful recipe! This is rice crispy treats on the highest level!! INCREDIBLE!!!!! This recipe is a game changer!!!!!!!!

      • 17) Dana

        OH awesome! Yay!! Now I want rice Krispie treats 🙂 haha

  11. 18) Emily

    Dana, I moved to a new town over the summer and just joined a women’s book club. Really it’s a 30-something women’s club to escape children and drink wine and eat snacks. I brought these last night. They were a hit! Thank you.

    • 19) Dana

      Awesome! I almost can’t make them anymore because I will eat ALL of them. 🙂

  12. 20) Naomi

    I always use stove top. Try them with Choco krispies.

  13. 21) KELLI

    Two words: browned butter. Amazing!

  14. 22) Missy

    I love this recipe and have made it several times. I’m picky with Rice Krispies, too. One day we did chocolate fondue and had a bunch of dippers, including these and it was amazing! Thanks!

  15. 23) Jeanni Chapmam

    I have been using this recipe for years. I also do Lucky Charms treats for St Patrick’s, but my favorite are Cocoa Pebbles.Yummy!

  16. 24) Collette Rand

    I do something like this but brown the butter first a la Smitten Kitchen. Oh my stars!!!!

    Oh, I see Kelli and I have the same idea! We’re geniuses!

    • 25) Dana

      YES!! I’ve started doing that too and I LOVE it! I need to update my recipe 🙂

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