Rice Krispies bars are a Midwest staple. These three versions will melt in your mouth.

Michael Knock
·6 min read
2

I’ve got a monkey on my back that goes snap, crackle and pop.

It started out simple enough. When I was a kid, I’d have one or two bars after school with a glass of milk. These bars were pretty basic. Just a little puffed rice cereal, butter, and marshmallow cream. I told myself I could stop at any time. And I could.

Within a few years, I’d moved on to Scotcherooos, that Midwestern Rice Krispie version that substitutes peanut butter for the marshmallow cream and adds a sweet chocolate icing. The combination was enticing. I could polish off a couple of lines of these sweet treats without even thinking about it.

Worse yet, friends in high school started serving Scotcheroos at cast parties and at after-prom gatherings. The peer pressure was too much.

Going away to college helped me get over the worst of my cravings. No one in my dorm knew how to cook anything — not even something as simple as Rice Krispie bars. I fell back on other “drugs” like Pop-Tarts and Toaster Strudel. I seemed to have my addiction kicked.

I stayed “clean” for decades. I got to a point where I could walk past a pan of bars without even noticing them. If offered one, I would politely take one and then move on.

But then something happened. Cooks began to develop new versions of the childhood favorite that doubled down on the butter and marshmallows. Some added Graham crackers and chocolate. Others, sweetened condensed milk. Suddenly, the old crackle and pop was back, and I couldn’t get enough.

That’s good news for you. Below, I have shared a few of the recipes I have discovered in my craving-driven searches. It’s part of my effort to draw a few of you into my sweet and sticky cereal-driven web.

No need to thank me.

Note: It’s almost high school graduation season, and so I know that some of you are looking for simple themes for your parties. In the past, I know graduates who have thrown coffee-themed parties and breakfast cereal parties. Others prefer cookie themes or even taco themes.

Here’s my suggestion. Why not do a Rice Krispie theme? It’s simple, fun and takes almost no time. Seriously, I made the three recipes below in well under 30 minutes total. But wait, there’s more! I made three pans of bars and never had to turn on the oven. That’s a huge bonus in a year when it seems as though summer has come early.

Game, set and match.

Note No. 2: I want to add a note of clarification. The recipes below are for Rice Krispie bars. Bars. Not “squares.” Not “treats.” Bars. I am a Midwesterner, darn it, and I will not allow any coastal elite to change the name of my snack.

I’m sorry, but it needed to be said.

Deluxe Rice Krispie Bars

This is the recipe that gave my cravings a jump-start. At first glance, you might wonder why. It looks pretty much like the original recipe that first appeared in 1938. But don’t be fooled. This one calls for browned butter (as well as more butter) and extra marshmallows. There’s also a hint of vanilla and salt. Trust me, there is nothing ordinary here.

The recipe comes from the website Once Upon a Chef.

Ingredients

  • 12 tablespoons butter

  • 2 bags (10 oz. each) mini-marshmallows

  • ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract

  • ½ teaspoon salt

  • 8 cups Rice Krispie cereal

Grease a 9x13-inch pan with butter or cooking spray. Set aside.

Melt the butter in a large pot (it’s easier if the pot has a light-colored bottom). Watch it carefully. As it bubbles and foams, the melted butter will start to brown. Once it does, remove it from the heat immediately so that it doesn’t burn (the butter will have a nutty scent).

Add the marshmallows and return the pan to the heat. Stir constantly until the marshmallows melt (it’s OK if there are a few marshmallows that remain unmelted). Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla and salt. Stir in the Rice Krispies, and stir until the cereal is thoroughly coated with the marshmallow mixture.

Scrape the mixture into the prepared 9x13-inch pan. Flatten until even (I spray my hands with cooking spray and then use them to even out the Rice Krispie mixture.)

Let the bars cool before you cut them and serve.

S’mores Rice Krispie Bars

I adapted this recipe from the website The Spruce Eats.

S’mores are a fantastic treat on their own. Mixing them with the taste of Rice Krispies cereal is a fantastic idea. In fact, I’m not sure why I didn’t think of trying this before.

You can top these bars with additional marshmallows and chocolate chips, but that’s optional.

Ingredients

  • 4 tablespoons butter

  • ½ teaspoon Kosher salt

  • 1 (10-oz.) bag mini-marshmallows, plus more for topping

  • 5 Graham crackers, crushed

  • ⅔ cup milk chocolate chips, plus more for topping

  • 6 cups Rice Krispie cereal

Grease a 9x9-inch pan with cooking spray. Set aside.

Melt the butter in a large pan over medium heat. Add the marshmallows, and stir until melted and combined. Remove from the heat, and stir in the Kosher salt. Add the Rice Krispie cereal and the crushed Graham crackers. Finally, stir in the chocolate chips.

Press into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the top with a few more mini-marshmallows and more chocolate chips.

Cut into bars and serve.

Aunt Wilma’s Chocolate-Covered Rice Krispie Bars

If I were to host a Rice Krispie-themed graduation party, these bars would have to be included. My Aunt Wilma Knock used to make these for me every Halloween. We would make a special trip out to her farm just so she could slip one or two of these into my little plastic pumpkin.

And I was thrilled.

Let me be clear. This is not your mother’s typical Rice Krispie bar. There is no marshmallow cream in this recipe. Nor is this a recipe for Scotcheroos, those wonderfully chewy cereal bars made with peanut butter and frosted with chocolate. No, this is a different treat entirely. In fact, it’s one I’ve never seen anywhere other than at my Aunt Wilma’s house.

That’s surprising given how simple they are. They require only four ingredients and almost no preparation.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup chocolate chips

  • 1 cup butterscotch chips

  • ¼ cup crunchy peanut butter

  • 4 cups Rice Krispies cereal

Butter an 8x8-inch pan. Set aside.

In a double-boiler over simmering water, melt the chocolate chips and butterscotch chips. Add the peanut butter and continue to stir until thoroughly combined. Be careful not to let the chocolate scorch. (Note: You could melt the chips in the microwave and add the peanut butter later. The same caution against scorching the chocolate applies, however).

Pour the 4 cups of Rice Krispies into a large mixing bowl. Add the chocolate-peanut butter mixture and stir until cereal is completely coated. Press into the prepared pan. Put in a cool place until set. Cut into bars.

This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: A trio of recipes for Rice Krispies bars that you'll want to try