Brown Butter Caramel Rice Krispie Treats
Say it with me… Brown Butter Caramel Rice Krispie Treats. It’s a mouthful to say, and seeing as you’re about to have a mouthful of this ooey gooey treat, I think grunting and waving one these squares around will communicate the same thing.
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Not Your Boring Puffed Rice Treat
To be fair, there’s nothing wrong with a classic rice krispie treat, but this recipe just kinda takes the whole thing to the next level. As a kid, I loved the rare times my mom would let us grab one of the multi packs of rice krispie treats for our school lunches. One of the flavors was caramel, and I was a fan.
In this recipe, we’re adding more flavor by browning our butter first, stirring in caramel sauce (if you can, use cajeta!!), drizzling on some salted caramel candy melts, and finishing off our classy treat with edible gold leaf. It’s extra, but oh so easy. You’ll love it!
But Why Brown Butter?
There’s not a ton of butter in this recipe, so if for some crazy pants reason you don’t want to, you can totes skip this. But like, have you tried brown butter? It’s insanely delicious. This adds more caramel and toffee notes to the finished rice krispie treats.
A word of caution though! Don’t take the butter too far. Once it is a light amber color, add your marshmallows. The butter will continue to cook as we melt the marshmallows, so you don’t want to risk burning anything.
Caramel Sauce Overload
First of all, make sure you use a caramel sauce that is super thick. If it’s runny, this next bit might not quite work for you. I used cajeta from HEB. It’s a caramel made with goat’s milk and it’s sooooo good.
This bit is optional, but after you place about half of the mixture into your pan, drizzle the rice krispie treats with a thin layer of caramel. That’ll add more stickiness, but also even more caramel goodness.
Alternatively, you could just drizzle the mixture while it’s still in the pot and mostly combined. I didn’t want any caramel on top though, so I kept it as a middle layer.
Salted Caramel Candy Melts
The caramel rice krispie treats of my youth featured a caramel drizzle, if memory serves. I wanted to recreate this effect, but I knew caramel sauce just wouldn’t work. Luckily, I found some salted caramel candy melts at Michaels (Sweet Tooth Fairy brand). You can also find Wilton salted caramel candy melts on Amazon.
They added a yummy salted caramel touch to the finished treats. And since they are candy melts, they set up nice and firm! I was able to stack the brown butter caramel rice krispie treats between layers of wax paper without an issue!
Related Reading: Homemade Boozy Hibiscus Marshmallows
Tips & Tricks
- After you brown the butter, use a pastry brush to coat the sides of the pot with the butter to prevent marshmallows from sticking.
- The best marshmallows for this recipe are large and fresh. But if you only have an opened bag, or mini marshmallows, that’s fine!
- If you don’t have pot large enough to mix in the cereal, spray a large bowl with oil, then mix everything together in there.
- Grease your spatula before stirring in the rice krispies.
- Grease a glass to firmly, yet gently, press the mixture into the pan.
Edible Gold Leaf Because Why Not?
These caramel rice krispie treats looked totally scrumptious after their drizzle, but I am an extra person, plus I’ve got edible gold leaf on hand. What’s a girl to do?! I added just a few touches on each square and totally love the result.
If you don’t have edible gold leaf, or just don’t feel like using it, I feel like pretty gold sprinkles or even flaky sea salt would be wonderful touches.
Thank You Kathryn
These brown butter caramel rice krispie treats are legit, and you can thank my friend Kathryn from Sinful Confections for them. Ya see, I confessed to my fellow baking buddy that while I love eating rice krispie treats, I hate making them. She was aghast to say the least.
Ya see, dear reader, the last time I made them was roughly 5- 10 years ago and I swore to never make them again. It was a sticky mess and it made me supes frustrated. Kathryn gave me some great tips (some of them are listed above!) and encouraged me to give them another try.
She was right. Basically, spray oil is your bff. Use that shiz and you won’t end up with sticky marshmallows goo everywhere.
Enjoy!
Brown butter caramel rice krispie treats do not require any baking, taste decadent as heck, and are pretty dang easy to make. That makes them perfect for your next bake sale, potluck, or office party.
And while you let them set up, pop on over and visit Bakes & Blunders on Instagram. I’ve got yummy food photos and I’d love to flood your feed with some positivity!
Brown Butter Caramel Rice Krispie Treats
Ingredients
- 5 Tbsps unsalted butter
- 10 oz marshmallows
- 2 oz caramel sauce plus extra if desired
- 1 tsp vanilla
- Pinch of salt
- 6.5 oz puffed rice cereal
- 1- 2 oz salted caramel candy melts optional
- 1/2 tsp coconut oil optional
Instructions
- Prepare a 9x13 dish by spraying with oil, then line it with parchment paper. Spray the paper lightly and set the pan aside for later.
- Place the butter in a large pot and melt over a medium- low heat. Once melted, bump the heat up to medium and cook, stirring regularly, until the butter begins to turn a light amber.
- Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the marshmallows. Once the marshmallows are starting to melt and incorporate into the butter, place the pot back on a medium- low heat. Stir until the mixture is completely melted and combined.
- Turn off the heat and stir in the caramel, vanilla, and salt. Once well combined, scrape any excess mixture off of the spatula and spray the spatula with oil. Fold in the puffed rice cereal until completely combined.
- Add roughly 1/2 - 2/3 of the mixture to the prepared pan. If desired, lightly drizzle on more caramel sauce. Top with the remaining mixture and use a greased spatula to gently, but firmly, press it into the pan. I like to finish it off by greasing the bottom of a glass and gently pressing the surface to ensure it is well packed and even.
- Let the rice krispie treats cool and set up for at least 30 minutes, or overnight. Once firm, slice into squares. If using the candy melts, melt then with the coconut oil in the microwave. Do 10 second bursts at 50% power until you have a smooth consistency (do NOT overheat!). Drizzle over the squares and let it set for 15 minutes. Enjoy!
- To store: layer the squares between parchment paper in an airtight container. Keep on the counter for up to a week.
Notes
- Depending on how big you cut the squares, you could easily get 16- 20 servings.
My Favorite Products For This Recipe
Colleen
Hi there! I’m Colleen, a novice baker with a passion for learning and improving my bakes… and blunders. On Bakes and Blunders, you can find all sorts of tasty recipes that range in difficulty, but most importantly, I’ll try to explain the reason behind important steps. If you know why a recipe works, you can tweak and adapt it to suit your unique tastes, and you’ll be able to reliably produce some very delicious treats. If you love baking and want to expand and grow your skills, or if you are a casual baker and just need some pointers, my blog is right up your alley! Join me on my baking journey and we’ll learn how to make more impressive recipes together.
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