Crispy Rice Cereal Treats

Best Ever.  How exactly does a recipe achieve "best ever" status?  Has it been tested up against every other recipe in its category?  Are there panels of judges who sit around tasting food and awarding only the top contenders the "best ever" award?  What is the standard for which each recipe is judged?  Most buttery? Creamiest? Perfect blend of flavors?  And who's to say which foods deserve the coveted title of "Best Ever"?

In general, I think that bakers attach the words "best ever" to any recipe that is so common that they feel that they need to distinguish their recipe from all of the others.  I myself have been known to get caught up in more than one "best ever" brownie recipe.  How could I resist?  Clearly, if the recipe claims to be the "best ever" it must have some super secret ingredients or baking technique that no other brownie baker is aware of.  

Everyone knows and loves Rice Crispy Treats.  What's not to like, after all?  Following the recipe on the back of the cereal box results in some universally acceptable crispy cubes.  Kids love them.  Adults love them.  There's absolutely nothing wrong with the standard Rice Crispy Treat recipe but with just a few simple tweaks, you can really take them to exceptional and dare I say "best ever" status.  Yep, I said it.  I would put these crispy rice cereal treats up against any other Rice Crispy treat cereal bar in a cereal bar taste test.  Maybe you need to conduct a taste test of your own.  Bake a batch of my cereal treats and a batch using the recipe on the box.  Decide for yourself, which recipe deserves the title of "best ever".

Cereal Rice Crispy Treats
8 Tablespoons butter 
20 ounces large marshmallows 
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
10 cups crispy rice cereal (12 ounce box)
​

Melt butter in large saucepan until browned.

Add marshmallows, vanilla and salt. Cook on low until marshmallows are almost melted. ​

Remove from heat and stir in cereal. 

Transfer to a greased 9x13" pan.  Let sit for 1 hour. 

Flip out of pan and slice into 12 equal squares. 

Enjoy those chewy, buttery cubes of cereal goodness.

Ever play jenga with rice crispy treats?  (Asking for a friend.)  

Rice Crispy treats are perfect for any occasion.  They're great for car trips,  for afternoon snacks and they're perfect for gifts.  It's time for me to start making some of my candy corn rice crispy treats too.  

Ciao!

Click here for a printable version of this recipe