February 21, 2018

adulting is hard

Brown and peanut butter cereal treats. I loved crispy rice treats as a kid and, hilariously, even more as a college student.


I still think they're pretty darn delicious, but as I've (somewhat) matured, so has my palate. This batch, inspired by a recipe from Joy the Baker, uses browned butter and adds in peanut butter and salt for extra flavor. She also adds a few whole marshmallows in at the end, which as far as I can tell doesn't really do anything except make them look a little less boring.

These are really good! They're enough like the treats from my childhood to cause me to reminisce, but they're also complex enough to sate my 34-year-old tastes.

Buttery Cereal Treats
Based on this recipe
(printable recipe)
Makes 12 bars
Ingredients:
  • 6 cups crispy rice cereal
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
  • 1 (10-ounce) bag mini marshmallows, divided use
  • 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
Directions:
Line an 8-inch or 13x9-inch baking pan with wax paper; set aside.
Place cereal in a large bowl and set aside.
In a large, heavy bottom saucepan, melt butter over medium heat until just browned.
Swirl the pan occasionally to be sure the butter is cooking evenly.
The butter will begin to foam and the color will progress from lemony-yellow to golden-tan to a toasty-brown.
Once you smell that nutty aroma, add all but one cup of the marshmallows and the peanut butter.
Stir with a spatula until the marshmallows are melted and the mixture is smooth.
Remove the pan from the heat, add the vanilla, and immediately pour into the cereal bowl.
Add the salt and mini marshmallows and stir, coating all of the cereal in the peanut butter mixture.
Turn the mixture out into the prepared pan and press to fill all sides of the pan with a spatula.
Let cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing into 9 or 12 squares.

16 comments:

  1. Browned butter and peanut butter...these must be particularly yummy!

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  2. Mmmm. Everything is better with brown butter. These look amazing.

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  3. OH MAN, those look so good! Will have to bookmark for a diet cheat day! <3 - www.domesticgeekgirl.com

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  4. These sound super -- you can't go wrong with brown butter or pb!

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  5. I'd be tempted to leave out the chunkier bits of marshmallow and add whole salted peanuts for the texture.

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  6. I haven't made homemade treats like these in forever, Grace. I love the addition of peanut butter and my kids believe there's no such thing as too many marshmallows. Serious yum and I know these will be a big hit!

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  7. Oh my gosh. Adulting really is hard--I'll need a few of these beauties to get me through :). They sound amazing!

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  8. It's funny -- I hadn't had these in ages when I spied them at two recent parties. Eating them made me remember just how fun and satisfying they are, not only in terms of chewy-goodness, but in the fond childhood memories they bring back.

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  9. This is a great twist on a childhood classic, I’m a sucker for anything with peanut butter in it.

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  10. I've never had anything like this, but my first thought was that my children would probably love them! :) They do look sweet and delicious!

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  11. Sound Awesome, thanks for sharing.

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  12. Brown butter rules and with this goodie, it's perfect! My boys would've loved this when young!

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  13. Well, I have just got to try these! Wishing I had cereal in the house!

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  14. These look so good and they sound delicious! Would love one with my morning coffee!

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