Full confession, I didn't particularly like rice krispies nor rice krispie treats growing up. I thought the cereal by itself was pretty boring (Oatmeal Squares were my favorites) and I thought the treats were just a cardboard imitation of what a real dessert should be. But then, I made friends with people who liked rice krispie treats, including Caleb, and one day someone convinced me I should make a homemade batch. It turns out what was missing all along was a) browned butter, b) more marshmallow, and c) a little salt.
My brown butter rice crispy treat recipe is an adaptation of Smitten Kitchen's and NYT Cooking/the Tasting Rooms's. The slight change is I use more marshmallow than either and I double Deb's recipe because when is an 8x8" pan of rice crispies ever sufficient...
Ingredients
- 1 cup (8 ounces or 128 grams) unsalted butter, plus extra for the pan
- 24 ounces mini marshmallows large are fine, but they will take longer to melt
- Heaping ½ teaspoon coarse sea salt
- 12 cups (12 ounces or 320 grams) crispy rice cereal
Instructions
- Butter a 9-by-13-inch rectangular cake pan with 2-inch sides.
- In a large pot, melt butter over medium-low heat. It will melt, then foam, then turn clear golden and finally start to turn brown and smell nutty. Stir frequently, scraping up any bits from the bottom as you do. Don’t take your eyes off the pot as while you may be impatient for it to start browning, the period between the time the butter begins to take on color and the point where it burns is often less than a minute.
- As soon as the butter takes on a nutty color, turn the heat off and stir in the marshmallows. The residual heat from the melted butter should be enough to melt them, but if it is not, turn it back on low until the marshmallows are smooth.
- Remove the pot from the stove and stir in the salt and cereal together. Quickly spread into prepared pan. I liked to use a piece of waxed or parchment paper that I’ve sprayed with oil to press it firmly and evenly into the edges and corners, though a silicon spatula works almost as well.
