These are a perennial favorite in pretty much every household, and almost everyone has a twist on making these treats their own. For me, it’s combining cherries and chocolate in the beloved mix of marshmallows and puffed rice, along with shredded coconut and walnuts.
The end result is a deliciously layered flavor profile, and a decadent texture that swings from crisp and crunchy to smooth and gooey.
These are a delight for palates of all ages. Sweet, crispy, chunky, sticky, and gooey, with a delicious combination of cherry and chocolate, set against a marshmallow backdrop, these are well within the pantheon of what I consider “perfect desserts,” right alongside my Vanilla Cake Fudge Bars.
As a nice bonus to the above, these treats really couldn’t be simpler to make. They are no bake (except for heating up a frying pan), require just a handful of basic ingredients, and then you let them rest in the fridge until solid and that’s it. They’re ready to go.
As a dessert platter for a relaxed get together, consider arranging today’s Rice Krispies Treats alongside my Vanilla Cake Fudge Bars, and my Chocolate Bliss S’mores.
Today I’ll be walking you through how to put these treats together, covering some basic substitutions, along with providing you a list of tips and ideas for kicking them up a few notches.
Now, without further delay, let’s make some Rice Krispies Treats.
Ingredient Checklist
- Rice Krispies Cereal. Not much to say here other than that you can’t make Rice Krispies without puffed rice cereal. Any puffed rice cereal will work for today’s recipe.
- Shredded Coconut. Sweetened or unsweetened is fine for today’s treats.
- Walnuts. These add a nice bit of complexity to the treats, in my opinion, both in terms of taste and texture. See below for substitutions.
- Dried Cherries. Give these a few decent chops before adding them into the mix. The reason here is to check for pits or pit fragments.
- Chocolate Chips. Basic chocolate chips, I prefer dark chocolate for today’s treats, but milk chocolate will work just fine. I would definitely steer clear of baking chips, however, as a good chunk of the sweetness in today’s treats comes from the chips.
- Butter. Plain, unsalted butter works best here.
Substitutions
- Walnuts. Pecans are my go-to substitute for walnuts, and visa versa. Pecans substitute at a one-to-one ratio. They feature a crisp and buttery texture, whereas walnuts are a bit ‘woodier’ in terms of flavor, which I find stands out more in the mix. Peanuts or almonds would also work just fine in place of walnuts.
- Shredded Coconut. Feel free to leave this out if you don’t have it on hand. To keep the coconut flavor, you can use a dash of coconut extract. Conversely, shredded macadamia nuts or shredded Brazil nuts are decent substitutions – at a one-to-one ratio.
- Dried Cherries. Your dried fruit of choice will substitute just fine in place of the dried cherries. However, dried cranberries or chopped apricots would be my recommendation.
Recipe Variations
- Nuts & Seeds Pumpkin seeds, almonds, walnuts, pecans, poppy seeds, and hazelnuts are perfect here. The bit of crunch adds a fun texture to the bars transforming them into a energy snack as well.
- Medley of Dried Fruit. Raisins, apricots, currants, raspberries, dehydrated strawberries, would all go great in today’s treats.
- Mix Ins. Peanut butter, caramel, or Nutella (or all three!), would be delicious mixed into the treats. Conversely, you could also consider topping today’s treats with melted chocolate.
Step by Step
- Process it. In a food processor, combine the walnuts, coconut, chocolate chips, dried cherries, and marshmallows, and process until well combined.
- Bring the Heat. In a large frying, melt down the butter and then add in the marshmallow and puffed rice mixture. Allow the marshmallows and chocolate to melt completely, stirring occasionally to make sure everything remains well combined. This is done over low heat.
- Pour. Once the chocolate and marshmallows are completely melted, pour into a well-buttered baking dish, and smooth the top with a spatula.
- Refrigerate. Refrigerate until the mixture has become firm, and then cut into squares and serve.
Rice Krispies Treats
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 1 dozen bars 1x
Ingredients
- 6 cups Rice Krispies Cereal
- 10 oz. package of mini-marshmallows
- 1/2 cup shredded coconut
- 1/2 cup walnuts
- 1/2 cup dried cherries
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips
- 4 tbs. butter (unsalted)
Instructions
- Place in a food processor the walnuts, coconut, chocolate chips, dried cherries and marshmallows.
- Process until all is well combined.
- In a large frying pan, melt the butter and then add the mixture from the food processor. Allow the marshmallows and chocolate to melt. Leave the heat on very low while adding the Rice Krispies Cereal and tossing until everything is well combined.
- Place in a well buttered baking dish (11 x 8) and flatten with the back of a spatula.
- Place in the refrigerator until the mixture becomes firm and able to cut into squares.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: rice krispies treats, dessert, bars
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This post has been updated August 2022. The original recipe was published October 7, 2009.
Miranda says
Great minds think alike.
I just made rice crispy treats. I added orange food coloring and cut them into pumkins for my husbands boss...
Rice crispies are her fav..Do you blame her?
Great dish!
alwayswinner786 says
What a treat!
Delicious mothwatering total fab-crispies.
Thumbs up for this great dish.
Cinnamon-Girl Reeni♥ says
I love rice krispy treats. Noone else in my house likes them so I don't make them often.
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MAC says
One the recipes in my book is a Rice Krispy Cake. I press it into a tube pan to give it a cake shape. It also slices like a cake.
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Thanks so much for the article, quite effective information.
Beth says
Holy cow! These are like gourmet rice krispie treats. I have never seen them like this before. I can't wait to make them.
★★★★★
Claudia Lamascolo says
these look so delicious we would love them in our family, my husband is addicted to rice krispie treats!
★★★★★
Nayna Kanabar says
These rice crispie treats look so delicious and I love all the ingredients you have added. they are good to make with kids.
Stephanie says
I never thought about putting so many add-ins in Rice Krispies Treats! What a great idea. The most I've added was sprinkles but now I want to try with coconut and chocolate and all the things!
★★★★★
DAVID J MYERS says
Catherine, My wife has been a Rice Krispies Treat aficionado for ever! However, she has always been a purist...she always uses high quality butter but she's never added anything other than the basics to her treats. My goal will be to break her out of her shell and experiment with other ingredients...as you've list in your post today. Take Care, Big Daddy Dave
Furniture Mosaic Design says
This looks DELICIOUS!!! I can't wait to make your recipe, can't wait.
Khushboo says
It looks really so yummy to eat. I want to try this recipe too.
Yeah Lifestyle says
Love how versatile this recipe is! I will be making this for our next kids play date as I bet the kids would enjoy eating this
★★★★★