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Kellogg's® Rice Krispies Treats® are an American favorite snack that is both easy to make and fun to eat. Much of its charm comes from the crispy yet chewy texture and sweet (but not too sweet) taste. The recipe can also be made easily in the microwave lending it well to preparing with young children.
According to Kellogg's, an employee by the name of Mildred Day concocted the snack as a treat for a Camp Fire Girls fundraiser. The recipe was first published in 1941 and has been such a success that Kellogg's has been selling a premade version of Rice Krispies Treats for the last ten years. Although many crisped and puffed cereal snacks have been popular prior to the Kellogg's recipe, the Rice Krispies Treats formula's genius is in its simplicity.
Only three ingredients make the basic Rice Krispies Treats recipe: 6 cups of Kellogg's Rice Krispies cereal, 10 ounces of marshmallows, and 3 tablespoons butter. If Rice Krispies aren't available where you are, crisped rice (or for that matter any puffed cereal) can be substituted. Are you even allowed to call them Rice Krispies Treats if they don't contain Rice Krispies cereal? I wrote to Kellogg's and didn't get a clear answer. They did tell me the following:
The Rice Krispies TreatsŪ recipe is trademarked by Kellogg Company and is not available for use by the public. Therefore, we can not grant permission to use this name. As with any recipe you make, it can be used as you want. However, you would have to use a generic name such as rice crisp cereal bars should you decide to sell them.
Even though I don't plan to ever sell puffed rice treats, for the purposes of this article, I will refer to these snacks as crisped rice treats and only call the unmodified recipies Kellogg's Rice Krispies Treats. [IMG]
I often find that unmolding the crisped rice treat can be a pain, so I make myself a little sling out of parchment paper. Just butter a 9x13-in. baking pan and lay a sheet of parchment paper across the pan leaving the ends folded over the edge for use as handles. [IMG]
Melt 3 Tbs. salted butter (if using unsalted, add a pinch of kosher salt) over medium-low heat in a large pot or saucepan (big enough to hold all the puffed rice and marshmallows you put aside earlier). Even though the marshmallows will melt down and take less volume, a large pot will be handy as you stir the ingredients. [IMG]
Once the butter has melted, pour in all the marshmallows. [IMG]
Stir until the marshmallows melt into a nearly smooth mass. (These steps can be accomplished with a microwave by heating both the marshmallows and the butter in the microwave on high for about two minutes and then stirring them to redistribute. Heat again for another minute on high and then stir until all is melted together. My trouble is getting a microwave safe bowl big enough to fit all the marshmallows and Rice Krispies cereal so when I stir, I don't make a mess.) [IMG]
Pour the crisped rice into the pot and stir until the rice is evenly coated and no more large clumps of white marshmallow remain. This is when I add a half cup of something extra if I'm so inclined - chocolate chips, M&M's, raisins, currants, nuts, or anything that Tina asks for. [IMG]
Scoop the mixture into the 9x13-in. pan and spread into an even layer. [IMG]
When cooled, lift out of the baking pan and place on a cutting board. Use a knife or a pizza cutter to cut into two inch squares. [IMG] If you're bored with Rice Krispies Treats, try the same recipe with regular Cherrios or another puffed grain cereal.
I swear (after intense research), Cocoa Pebbles make The Best krispies treats. Their flatter surface compared to cocoa krispies allow for a better texture or something. -Kay
You can also add 1/4 cup (or maybe 1/2 cup?) peanut butter for another tasty version. I recently made some with Koala Crisps (organic version of Cocoa Pebbles) and I found the texture of the Koala Crisps to be extra crispy and most delightful.
I remember taking these out of the dining commons at Berkeley--the real problem was that they'd always stick to the napkin I'd smuggle them out in. The answer--butter the napkin.
Good tools that I find helpful: a silicone spatula for spreading and an enormous Tupperware bowl for microwaving. Large marshmallows work better for me than the tiny ones. And fresh marshmallows and cereal are essential.
My favorite recipe for these krispie treats: Use regular puffed rice but add a heaping teaspoon of peanut butter to the melted marshmallows just before adding the puffed rice. Then, once the treats have cooled somewhat, top with a mixture of melted chocolate and butterscotch morsels. I use a ratio of approximately 2 parts chocolate to 1 part butterscotch. This recipe is trickier because the peanut butter reduces the volume of the melted marshmallows and hastens cooling so you have to get the puffed rice in the bowl and mixed up more quickly, but the additional effort is worth it. Brad from Michigan, USA.
I found that if you use the mini marshmallows, it is good if you save a cup back and don't melt them. Then when you mix in the cereal, mix in the unmelted mallows and they partially melt making "gooey" pockets of delight.
mmmmmmm
Reading the comments I came across this quote "Tupperware bowl for microwaving." I just read an article from the AMA that Tupperware and plastic wraps on microwaved foods leak carcinigins into foods. One reason for the drastic rise in cancers. So be careful.
I have melted the chocolate flavored marshmallows with the butter and then when I have stirred in the cereal I also add a 12oz bag of mini chocolate chips. Double chocolate! Mmmmmmm Goood! windycitygirl31@yahoo.com
Joined: 10 May 2005 Posts: 1654 Location: Austin, TX (USA)
Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2005 5:31 pm Post subject:
an anonymous reader wrote:
Reading the comments I came across this quote "Tupperware bowl for microwaving." I just read an article from the AMA that Tupperware and plastic wraps on microwaved foods leak carcinigins into foods. One reason for the drastic rise in cancers. So be careful.
There was once a popular internet chain mail scam/hoax claiming that microwaving Saran Wrap (or other plastic wraps) will release a chemical contaminant called dioxin into the food you are cooking. This was not true if you are using plastic or plastic wrap products labelled microwave safe (in the United States) as these do not contain any dioxins. A supporting e-mail later went on to encourage the use of paper towels instead for microwaving. As part of the backlash against this e-mail hoax, it was put forth that using paper towels might contribute more dioxins into your diet because the bleach used to produce paper towels contains chlorine and chlorine and wood form dioxins. There are plenty of websites that claim that dioxins are formed during the production of the paper towel or that microwaving creates dioxins, but I haven't found one that doesn't make a scientific error in their claim or discussion of the process. To my knowledge, dioxin is produced during combustion, which is not a part of the paper towel making process. The conclusion? I don't know. The Federal Drug Administration (FDA) just says to use products marked microwave-safe.
By the way, a food-safe vs. microwave-safe vs. other use plastics article is on my to-do list.
The "I don't know" in the quoted passage was refering to the potential dioxin release from microwaving food on paper towels (e.g. bacon). Microwaving food on or in microwave-safe (not just food-safe) plastics is dioxin free.
The FDA article for plastics and microwaving is here.
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