Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats

🍯 Why This Recipe Works

1. They're easy to make. While we do add in some peanut butter, we don't add in any extra effort or steps. These treats are just as simple and basic to make as any other variety, and that's just one more reason to love them!
2. They're flavorful. Traditional rice krispie treats are already pretty tasty, but add in the savory taste of peanut butter and we get a wonderful fluffernutter flavor in every square.
3. The kids love them! You may want to double this recipe and make it in a 9x13 baking dish if you have crispy treat loving kids like I do. These squares are really hard to resist (not like you'd want to), but having extra pieces means that you can save some for later too.

📖 Variations

You can creamy or chunky peanut butter for these peanut butter crispies! Personally, I like the creamy peanut butter because it's what we have on hand, but if you want a little extra grit then chunky peanut butter works great.

Adding chocolate to the top-

Take a bag of chocolate chips and place them in a microwave safe bowl with 3 tablespoons of coconut oil or heavy cream. Heat for 30 seconds, stir, and then another 30 seconds, repeating until they're completely melted.
Pour over the top of the crispy bars in the baking dish and let the top harden. You can speed this process up by placing them in the freezer for a few minutes.

🔪 Instructions

Step 1: Add your butter to a large pot over low heat.

Step 2: Let the butter melt fully.

Step 3: Add in the marshmallows.

Step 4: Stir occasionally to prevent burning.

Step 5: Once the marshmallows have almost completely melted, add in the peanut butter.

Step 6: Stir until the marshmallows are completely melted and the peanut butter is well incorporated.

Step 7: Remove the pot from the heat. Add in the cereal.

Step 8: Stir to combine.

Step 9: Pour the cereal into a greased 9x13 baking dish or an 8x8 baking dish if you want them thicker.

Step 10: Press into the pan until they're an even layer.

Step 11: Let them cool for about an hour to set before slicing into them.

Serve and enjoy.

🍴 Recipe Tips

Making Rice Krispie treats with peanut butter and marshmallow is pretty simple but there are a few things to note:

1. Greasing your pan can be done with butter or nonstick cooking spray.
2. When you press the Krispies into the pan, it really helps to have your hands greased too. This prevents it from sticking. So either rub softened butter on your hands or spray your palms with cooking spray.
3. When you're melting the marshmallows, it's important to do it over a low temperature and to stir as little as possible to avoid overworking the marshmallows. It's okay to stir, but you don't need to do it constantly (except for when you melt in the peanut butter and add the cereal- that's different).

ANOTHER GREAT TIP: You can make these peanut butter rice crispy treats DAIRY FREE with the use of a plant based butter! Just double check the ingredients list on the back of the cereal box as some may contain traces of milk.