February 1, 2015

Rice Krispies Footballs

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Rice Krispies Footballs

February: Super Bowl

Celebrate Super Bowl Sunday and the end of football season with a simple sweet treat: Rice Krispies Footballs. Islander makes these and other game day desserts ahead of time so she can help Highlander prepare other foods when we host a Super Bowl Sunday supper and invite our neighbors, Glenn and Anna Maria B., to join us to watch the game on our big screen TV. Score a touchdown at the table with these Rice Krispies Footballs. They are fun and festive and are sure to be a favorite football food!

Recipe

(Adapted from Rice Krispies)

Ingredients

  • ¼ cup (½ stick) butter
  • 1 package (10 ounces) or 5 cups chocolate-flavored regular marshmallows
    (or 4 cups miniature marshmallows)
  • ½ cup peanut butter (optional)
  • 6 cups chocolate-flavored rice cereal (Cocoa Krispies)
  • white fondant (optional)
  • white tube frosting

Directions

In a large pan, melt the butter over low heat. Add the marshmallows (and peanut butter, if using) and stir until completely melted. Mix in the cereal until combined well. Remove from heat.

Generously butter hands and form mixture into football shapes. Place on a tray lined with waxed paper. Set aside. Roll out a small ball of white fondant, if using, flatten into 1/8-inch thickness and slice into thin strips.

Position on the football shapes (brush a little water on the strips before positioning, if necessary). With a small round trip on the white tube frosting, squeeze out the stitching detail on the football shapes. Yield: 18 two-inch size Rice Krispies footballs.

Notes

 

February 5, 2014

Rocky Road Nutella Treats

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Rocky Road Nutella Squares

Rocky Road Nutella Treats

February 5: World Nutella Day

Chocolate Rice Krispies Treats, a childhood favorite, get a grown-up makeover with a Rocky Road topping. But it is the Nutella and chopped hazelnuts that give this confection a fuller flavor of filberts and chocolate!

Rocky Road refers to a decadent dessert that has a chocolate base (ice cream, cake, Chocolate Rice Krispies Treats, etc.) mixed with marshmallows and chopped nuts (usually walnuts, almonds or peanuts). Chocolate Rice Krispies Treats are made with cocoa rice cereal and marshmallows already. Adding Nutella and toasted hazelnuts/filberts give the treats a tasty twist to the traditional Rice Krispies Treats and Rocky Road.

For World Nutella Day, add the creamy chocolate hazelnut/filbert spread to chocolate rice cereal bars/squares and make Rocky Road Nutella Treats.

Recipe

(Adapted from Redbook magazine)

For the Chocolate-Nutella Rice Krispies Treats

  • ½ stick (¼ cup) butter, unsalted
  • 1 bag (10 ounces) mini marshmallows
  • 2/3 cup Nutella
  • 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 6 cups chocolate rice cereal (we used Cocoa Krispies)
  • 1 jar marshmallow cream (we used Marshmallow Fluff)

For the Rocky Road topping

  • 1 cup mini marshmallows
  • ½ cup hazelnuts, chopped and toasted
  • ½ cup chocolate chips, semi-sweet

Directions

Line a 9×13” baking pan with foil, leaving some overhang on the edges. Mist with cooking spray. In a large pot, melt the butter over medium-low heat, swirling to coat the sides. Add the bag of marshmallows and stir until smooth. Mix in the Nutella.

Rocky Road Nutella Treats

Stir in the vanilla extract. Mix in the chocolate rice cereal and blend until well coated. Press evenly into the prepared pan. Cool completely before spreading the marshmallow cream over the top of the mixture.

Rocky Road Nutella Treats

Sprinkle the marshmallows and chocolate chips over the cream. Chop and toast the hazelnuts/filberts.

Rocky Road Nutella Treats

Scatter the cooled nuts over the empty spaces among the marshmallows and chocolate chips. Gently press down on the topping to make everything adhere to the surface. Using the foil “handles”, remove the dessert from the pan and peel away the foil. Cut into 24 squares and arrange on a platter, keeping them slightly apart so they do not stick to each other.

Rocky Road Nutella Treats

Notes

  • Be careful when cutting through the solid sweetness of the Rocky Road Nutella Treats. Use a large, sharp knife and press down hard to slice all the way through.
  • Rocky Road Nutella Treats are also terrific on National Cereal Day (March 7) and National Rocky Road Day (June 2).
 

March 7, 2012

Rice Krispies Treats

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Rice Krispies Treats

Rice Krispies Treats 

March 7: National Cereal Day

We went on a “food field trip” to Cereal City USA in 2005, a few years before the tourist attraction closed down. Located in Battle Creek, Michigan, the “Breakfast Capital of the World” and headquarters of the Kellogg Company were about a four-and-a-half hour drive from where we used to live in Northern Illinois.

Rice Krispies Treats

At Cereal City USA, we were able to tour part of the production facility and learn how corn became corn flakes, see several interactive and historical exhibits on display, play in the kids’ area, put our picture on a mini-cereal box and eat toaster tarts and, of course, cereal. We even had breakfast with Tony the Tiger (Frosted Flakes cereal) and mingled with other mascots, such as Toucan Sam (Froot Loops cereal) and Snap, Crackle and Pop (Rice Krispies cereal)!

Rice Krispies Treats

Our own mothers used to make marshmallow treats out of toasted rice cereal for us when we were children. Nowadays, these sweets snacks can be found from bake sales and bakeries to coffee shops and convenience stores. They are also pre-packaged as breakfast bars/square treats. But why buy them when they can be made at home in a snap…crackle and pop?!

Below we post the original recipe for Rice Krispies treats and its chocolate variation. Rice cereal marshmallow treats are good to eat for breakfast, at snack time and on National Cereal Day.

Recipe

(Adapted from Rice Krispies)

For the original rice cereal treats

  • ¼ cup (½ stick) butter
  • 1 package (10 ounces) or 5 cups regular marshmallows (or 4 cups miniature marshmallows)
  • 6 cups rice cereal (Rice Krispies— gluten-free also available)

Directions

In a large pan, melt the butter over low heat. Add the marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Mix in the cereal until combined well.

Rice Krispies Treats

Spread the mixture into a greased 13×9-inch pan. Press down evenly using parchment or waxed paper. Allow to cool, then cut into squares and serve.

Rice Krispies Treats

Bonus Recipe

Cocoa Krispies Treats

Cocoa Krispies Treats

For the chocolate rice cereal treats

  • ¼ cup (½ stick) butter
  • 1 package (10 ounces) or 5 cups chocolate-flavored regular marshmallows (or 4 cups miniature marshmallows)
  • 6 cups chocolate-flavored rice cereal (Cocoa Krispies)

Directions

In a large pan, melt the butter over low heat. Add the marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Mix in the cereal until combined well.

Cocoa Krispies Treats

Spread the mixture into a greased 13×9-inch pan. Press down evenly using parchment or waxed paper. Allow to cool, then cut into squares and serve.

Cocoa Krispies Treats

Notes

  • There are other flavored marshmallows in jumbo and mini sizes. And there are other kinds of toasted rice cereal (fruit-flavored, gluten-free, frosted and generic). Check for availability in local grocery stores.
  • Rice cereal marshmallow treats may be formed or cut into shapes, stacked as cakes, dipped in chocolate, frosted and decorated, made into pops, fortified and flavored with fruits and nuts and much more!
  • Click HERE to download a PDF of Kellogg’s press release about the Rice Krispies mascots—Snap, Crackle and Pop.
  • Check out the Cheerios Bars recipe which we also blogged about for National Cereal Day.