Going back to school?
When I was growing up, I’d often find a rice crispy treat—in that famous turquoise wrapper—packed into my school lunchbox. So rice crispy treats remind me of school… in a good way!
No-bake, and they can be gluten-free!
Rice Crispy Treats
(Or you can make squares)
- 3 cups rice crispies (I used brown rice crispies)
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp salt (I used salted pb, too)
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp peanut or other nut butter
- 1/2 cup sticky sweetener ( (I used agave. Honey will work, unless they are for strict vegans.)
- optional: you can add 2-4 tbsp protein powder
Rice Crispy Treats Recipe: Mix your pb, sweetener, extract, and salt. Melt (either in the microwave or stove), then pour over the cereal and stir very well, making sure to coat all the crispies. Form into balls or line a pan with wax paper and spread the mixture evenly into the pan. Place a sheet of wax paper on top of the mixture, then press down as firmly as you can. Really press it down!!! Freeze for at least a half hour before slicing. These treats can be stored in the freezer, in the fridge, or loosely covered in a cool, dry place. But the best place to store them is in your tummy.
Click for lower-sugar and Lower-Calorie Options.
And yes, there is definitely a chocolate version. I will post it soon.
Speaking of chocolate…
I changed chocolate-ified my About Me page.
It’s now really chocolate-covered!
Colleen says
You must be telepathic, I was just thinking about rice crispy treats this morning, and wondering how they could be made without marshmallows. I LOVE putting peanut butter in RCTs, and my mom would sometimes stir butterscotch chips into the mix; pure brilliance. Thanks so much, Katie!
Michaela says
these treats look so yummy!! totally reminds me of Ireland 😉
hopefully I will find brown rice krispies!
and again, love your pictures!
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
LOL these actually aren’t some of my favorite photos! I did the shoot in like 5 minutes and wanted to do it over… but then I got hungry and ate the subjects ;).
Michaela says
oh really? I do like the simplicty of the pictures so much and also the colour combination.
I bet they tasted superb 🙂
Julie H. of Spinach and Sprinkles says
LOVE this! …I’ll be having to make treats for my kids at school VERY soon and these will come in handy. I love that I don’t feed them junk when I treat them. Thanks for the idea!
–Can’t believe that they stuck together so well, that’s awesome! Mmmm!
Kristin @ STUFT Mama says
These are so so cute! Love rice crispies so I’m so excited to try them and make them for my boys too. And I just HAVE to tell you that I tried the peanut butter fudge last night and OH MY GOODNESS……….I don’t even know waht to say. Wait, yes I do. AMAZING! Your recipes are incredible! I look forward to checking out your page everyday.
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
Ooh I am SO excited you tried the fudge!
Mia says
Oh yum! I’m gonna try these with some puffed kamut that I have! Thanks for the recipe!
Ashley O. @ The Vegetable Life says
I love rice krispy treats but since going vegetarian I have not had one because of the marshmallow component! These look AMAZING! I’ll def. be making these ASAP!
Katelyn (new kid on the vegan block) says
Okay I’m really inspired – I’ve been addicted to puffins lately, so I may try a version of this recipe with broken up puffins and use banana butter instead of PB. Thanks 🙂
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
I love the Puffins idea! Let me know how they work; I’m curious too!
Gen says
Aaaw how cute!!! And I bet they’re delicious, too!
Raychel says
These look delicious! About how many does one batch make?
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
It depends on how big you cut them or roll them. It’ll fill an 8×8 pan.
Kim says
Just make these and from the finger-licking test they should be great! I used Wow butter which is a soy nut butter(my kids have allergies), a combo of cornflakes and rice crispies as i ran out of rice crispies and corn syrup. The only trouble I had was forming them into balls. Yours look so perfect!! I used my melon baller to get them startedbut tried to form them a bit mire but they just stuck to my hands…which meant of course I had to lick them clean!!
Thanks for the great recipe.
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
Yeah, they’re not so fun to roll into balls. They were sticky… It was so much easier to make them in pan-form (use an 8×8)! 🙂
VeggieGirl says
You. rock. PERFECT treats!
Lindsey @ Why Just Eat says
I love that these can be made with any nut butter. My daughter is in a peanut-free school, and that eliminates about half of the foods she loves! I’ll make these with homemade almond butter 🙂
Amber K says
They look delicious! And so easy to make. I love GF desserts 🙂
Jennyb says
rice krispie cakes were something we always used to make as children, brings back good memories!
Megan says
This will make such a nice and easy snack to bring with me when I’m on the run doing tasks. I love the variety of recipes on this blog. It seems like we have similar taste in food since I notice a lot of ingredients I like are in the recipes.
I really do look forward to getting to see and try the different recipes as they appear on the blog… it gives me something to look forward to during the day and ends up making me smile.
Who you are makes a difference! You help spread so much happiness and the people in your life are so lucky to have you around n_n
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
Wow, YOU just made me smile SO much!!
babette says
I really want to make this. It must be much cheaper and healthier in the end than making it with vegan marshmallows.
Aja says
They look so cute! Yum yum yum!
Char says
Ohhh gosh, I’m excited for these!! I lovelovelove rice krispies but haven’t had one since going vegan 😀 thank you, Katie!!
Cait @ beyond bananas says
Girl these look amazing! Rice crispy treats were Always a favorite of mine! I may just make a batch of these to welcome my new class to second grade!
Rachel Ramey says
Just FYI, and/or so your readers don’t get confused, regular Rice Krispies are not gluten-free. (They contain barley malt.) But they do have a new GF version that uses whole grain brown rice (and is sweetened with real sugar).
Ragnhild says
Haha- yey, I love how they are best stored in the tummy 😀 Ill keep that in mind 😉
These looks so good btw!
Aine @ Something to Chew Over says
Yay I love rice crispy treats! I never thought of using nut butter before.
The question is will there be any left for me to freeze? 🙂
Katie @ Nutrition in a peanut shell says
I love rice krispie treats, and I haven’t had one in soo long!
What about if you don’t want a PB tasting treat? (I have friends who love the krispies but not the PB).
Do you just omit the nut butter?
Katie @ Nutrition in a peanut shell says
Nevermmind, checked out your Lower calorie option page 😉
Anna Crouch says
These look delish! I actually tried this recipe (almost to a T! I didn’t use vanilla or salt) a long time ago and used PUFFED rice cereal–it DID NOT work! I noticed you had the idea to try the puffed rice as a lower calorie option, and asked if anyone knew if they worked, so I wanted to let you know they dont! haha I think it’s because the puffed rice absorbs so much moisture, that they don’t hold together. I tried to form mine into balls too, but they sucked up all the agave and some peanut butter and would not stick together into balls. The cereal started to get soggy after a few minutes and then the second I let my fingers off of it, they would crumble. Soooo….unless I did something terribly wrong, the puffed rice is a no-go 🙂
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
Eek good to know!
Grace says
I had the same problem using puffed rice, they got soggy by the time I’d finished mixing them with the banana mixture. Not so tasty. But next I’m going to try lightly processing some bran flakes and krispies with pb
Cristina says
Aww 🙂 I used puffed rice and it worked perfectly (I used browb rice syrup) Thanks Katie!
Kate (Bread & Chocolate) says
Great bite-sized snacks! I can’t wait for the chocolate version…
Jen says
I used to love rice crispy treats when I was a kid too. Today, my taste buds would definitely prefer your version. You should make a batch with mini chocolate chips in them!
Holly @ The Runny Egg says
Very cute — you should definitely make these on a stick and dipped in chocolate (and sprinkles!)
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
Oh my word, that is the best idea ever, Holly!!!
Abby @ Abz 'n' Oats says
Yum! I have always loved rice krispie treats! I love seeing a healthier version! 🙂
Heather @ Get Healthy with Heather says
Yummy I’d love these way more than the packaged kind… Sooooo much better for you too!
Lauren @ What Lauren Likes says
So cute!! these are the perfect “back to school” treat haha 🙂
reid says
Awesome! I love that you made these without marshmallows.
Kiah says
These are ADORABLE! And they certainly remind me of back to school time 🙂
Lilly says
I made something really similar using different puffed grains, although rice seems to be the Perfect size… Puffed millet is tiny and corn is big, but puffed kamut worked awesome too 🙂 These look totally yum!
Alexandra (Veggin' Out in the Kitchen) says
Aww these are so cute! 😀 I never really liked “real” rice crispies because I thought they were too sweet and didn’t have a lot of flavor. But with these, I could adjust the sweetness, and since it’s one of your recipes, I know it won’t be lacking in the taste department 😉
And thank you so much for letting me know about the coconut milk. Mine did have water so that must be why it was thinner. I guess that just means I’ll have to make it again… ah, what a bummer (enter squeals of excitement here) 😉
<3 <3
p.s. I love the even more chocolatey about page 🙂
kaila @ healthy helper! says
mmmm pb rice crispy treats!!! yum yum!
Lorin says
oh yum! I have a question about the vegan cool whip. Can you use the coconut milk from Trader Joe’s, like the one from the box? Or do you recommend a can?
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
Has to be canned.
Maya says
Did you hear Bill Clinton is vegan now? http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/08/18/bill-clintons-vegan-journey/ He should read your blog 🙂
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
WOW! I knew he did a vegan challenge, but I had no idea he was a full-fledged vegan now! Amazing!! First Ellen DeGeneres, now Bill Clinton. Next??? Mark Zuckerburg? LOL who says veganism is not mainstream? 😉
Liz @ lactosefreelizzie says
wooooooah. katie you are so freaking smart! i lovee rice crispy treats but i can’t eat them because of my allergies/veganisim. 😛
Allie (The Beach Season Chronicles) says
I haven’t had these in so long! Can’t wait for the chocolate version :D.
Rachelle says
Yay! I was just now looking at a post on The Mother Huddle and sighing, realizing that I couldn’t make any of the four fun rice crispy treats for my little kiddos, AND NOW I CAN! Thank you, thank you for the great reminder that being vegan really does rock. Not only are we able to live an amazingly healthy lifestyle, but we can still have a blast (maybe even more so than otherwise) in the process. 🙂
Rachelle says
P.S. Would somebody please tell me how in the world I add my face onto my comment? I am tired of being gray and white, he he.
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
LOL I did mine a long time ago. I think I went to gravatar.com!
LizAshlee says
I LUV rice crispy treats and have made quite a few variations on the blog! I love using nut butter..peanut and almond so far!
Great new addition to my collection of recipes..and with 5 ingredients..I LIKE!
Averie @ Love Veggies and Yoga says
I am a huge rice krispie treat fan and have about 10 version on my site, the latest being raw vegan chocolate chip cookie dough STUFFED rice krispie treats…with choc frosting of course 🙂
The other nice thing about RKTs is that is so easy to make them vegan (as long as the marshmallows are, you’re pretty much set) as well as GF since rice is naturally GF.
I love your individual ones. So cute in the little papers and rolled into balls. just READY for munchin’ 🙂
Jessica @ Jess Go Bananas says
I used to get that same wrapper! Along with some yodels and tastycakes and other treats I am tad embarrassed to say were eaten 🙂
Mary @ Bites and Bliss says
Realllly wishing I had rice crispy treats right now!
Moni'sMeals says
Pretty much one the of the best things you have come up with yet again. 🙂 HUGE fan of krispie anything!
I make this stuff all the time but what I love is your idea of making them into balls. Bravo Love!
🙂
Jackie says
um, I made rice krispies this past weekend – I LOVE them and they are one of my favorite desserts. but as I was eating and making them, I was thinking to myself, I wonder if Katie has a version of these that is healthified (that’s probably not a word)? because that would be AWESOME! and look, I think you read my mind!!!
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
Wow, lol! Hmmm, let’s see if I can read your mind right now. You are currently thinking about… chocolate.
Oops, I think I accidentally read MY mind ;).
Mellie says
Yum! my mom used to make rice crispy treats all the time, but we liked her Fiber One treats even better. She’s spoiled me- I won’t eat the packaged treats.
Anna @ Food Fitness and Frolicking says
Ahhh yes! Those turquoise wrappers SCREAM childhood for me! But these look SO much better. I wonder if you could make them into a regular bar sized form? Maybe add chocolate chips? Mmm.
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
Yup! It’s actually easier (less messy) to make bars.
Katelyn @ Chef Katelyn says
AHHHH I WANT THESE. They are so darn cute. Portion control 😉 ahahah
[email protected] says
Whaaaat I was trying to think of a way to make these vegan!!! Nut butter, duh! That’s what I have you for 🙂 I’ll have to show these to my bf’s sis. She’s vegan and loveeeees rice crispies!
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
🙂
You could also use marshmallow fluff. Smuckers is vegan (although not exactly healthy lol) as is Ricemellow Cream, if you can find it.
Marianne says
The only rice krispie treats I’ve ever had are homemade. I thought it was crazy that you could buy them in the store all packaged and made, and couldn’t believe how expensive they are! Love doing peanut butter ones, especially covered in a nice layer of chocolate 😉
lindsay says
good luck with the new site! I totally feel ya!
😉
Tres Delicious says
I’m sure this one is delish and I would like to try it.
Kathleen @ KatsHealthCorner says
Katie, ohmygosh. You are my life saver.
Madison says
I made these as popcorn balls since I didn’t have any rice crispies. (Also I love popcorn balls!) They are setting now, so I haven’t had a set one yet, but the pieces I ate were delicious! About 1/4 cup of kernels made enough popcorn for the balls, and a snack for afterwards.
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
Oh wow, I LOVE your idea!
christina says
Just made these with pb & organic koala krisp (chocolate krispies). They’re in the freezer now. This will be a long 30 mins….
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
Oh wow, I’ve added cocoa powder to mine, but I never thought to use cocoa crispies! What a fabulous idea!
christina says
they are amazing! used an 8×8 pan, my husband ate half the pan in 5 mins! cookie pie is next on the list – for my nieces bday this wknd!
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
I am so excited you liked them! And good luck with the pie… tell your niece happy birthday for me!!
kate says
i really want to make these for a friend, but i was wondering – i know its not as healthy, but if i have a few marshmallows to use up (leftover from summer and don’t want to waste food!), would those work if i melted them in too? And what would you think about the addition of oatmeal, choc chips, or raisins, as far as the bars holding up? Thanks!
Amanda says
I made these exactly as you said, but with the lower peanut butter option and they turned out perfectly- the extra two tablespoons of PB are not missed, so might as well save the calories!!
MJ @ MD School Mrs says
Help! Where do you find brown rice crispies??? I have brown puffed rice cereal that I was planning on using, but now see the warning against it…
Though I am really craving these and might just wing it with the puffed rice anyway…
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
Brown rice crispies are just rice crispy cereal (like the ones that come in the Kelloggs box) made from brown rice instead of white. In fact, Kelloggs makes one, as does Erowon. Look in the cereal aisle :). (But regular rice crispies will work too!)
ellen says
i made these yesterday and they are delicious! and dangerously easy to make =)
Camille- the college girl says
My mom and I made these last night and the only word that came to mind was, “INCREDIBLE!” I LOVE peanut butter, so this was a bowl of peanut butter dreams. We ended not even making balls and literally ate the whole bowl full (no guilt included). I used the less sugar version, which made me use less krispies and I used 1/4c+2T of crunchy pb and 2T of Better n’ butter (because it doesn’t have a real pb taste, but it is less cals/fat) and next time I might add 1/2tsp extra of vanilla extract. I will be making these again and that thought alone makes me excited. Also, you cuold make it with rolled oats, if you wanted to try a different texture. Thank you again, for all your amazing recipes 🙂
holly says
where do I find nut butter? I can’t eat the nuts I have Chrohns disease but I can eat peanut butter is it the same??
Sondra says
Nut butter can be anything, Peanut butter, almond butter, coconut butter, even sunbutter!
Sondra says
I really wanted to make this recipe, but you know how when you’re out of ingredients substitutions can lead to creating whole new foods…. Well I went a bit crazy….
1 cup Fiber One Squares+1 cup golden grahams+1 cup of captain crunch, all slightly crushed.
Sweetener- 1/4 cup of Blue Agave+ 1/4 Cup of Ricemellow cream
Fat= 1/4 cup earth balance+ 1/4 cup coconut oil+ 2 tbs PB&CO Crunch Time
Added in a handful of unsweetened Navitas Naturals Cacao Nibs a handful of Guittards Chocolate chips and topped it with PMS chocolate swirls…
Its a monstrosity…
A delicious, calorie laden, chocolate covered nightmare of yumminess….
Have you ever had a recipe get out of hand Katie?
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
Haha oh yes definitely… especially when a food processor is involved. It’s just too easy to keep adding things! Or soup…
Alex says
I made these with freshly ground almond butter today and…OH MY GOD THESE ARE AMAZING. I swear I just went to heaven
Ashley says
Eep! Please edit your post so people know that most brands of rice krispies are NOT gluten-free? You have to look for specially-marked packages. Thanks!
Veronica says
Hi Katie. I’ve been a subscriber for a few months now (ever since being recommended to your g-lazy glaze by nouveau raw). I don’t usually comment, but I had to take the time today. I just wanted you to know that these have been on my to do list for quite some time and today was finally THE DAY. And oh my. These things are DELICIOUS!!!! I made mine with homemade almond butter and my 7 yr old, who helped, said I could make these for him all the time. LOL. Thanks for a great recipe!!!
CCK says
I am so glad you enjoyed them. My favorite part of blogging is when someone actually makes what I posted. 🙂 🙂
Stacy says
I made these (into bars) and had an issue with them getting soggy, but after reading comments above I realize that I used brown puffed rice cereal instead of a rice crispies style one. Next time I will use a different cereal. Can I just say that I could have eaten the melted mixture with a spoon?? It was crazy good!
Margarete says
Thank you for this recipe. I omitted the vanilla and did not melt. I also usrd Koala Krisp. They are excellent. 🙂
Tricia says
Just made these w buscoff spread instead of PB. They are shut the front door good!!
Kate says
I just made these and they are delicious! I haven’t had rice crispy treats since I became vegan and these are better than I remember. Thanks for the great recipe!
Nutrafit says
I would like to make these, but can’t tolerate honey. Do you think I can substitute maple syrup?
trajayjay says
Sure, Katie said any sticky sweetener, so maple syrup should work. Your treats will probably have an awesome flavor too.
Sunni says
I made these today, with some substitutions to account for what I had on hand, and they were delicious! I’m trying to keep myself away from the freezer as I type! For the cereal, I used ~2 c. high fiber o’s from whole foods and ~1 c. quaker oat squares. For the pb, I reconstituted all the pb2 I had (regular and chocolate), which ended up being around 1/2 c. After tasting that, it was so delicious that I really didn’t want to add any additional sweetener, but I wasn’t sure that they would stick together without it, so I added 2-3 T. of honey. And, because I wanted a chocolate-peanut butter treat, I added 3 T. sugar-free chocolate chips. Thanks for the great recipe!
Katie says
Did you add water to your pb2 or just blended it in with everything
Camille says
I just found this today on Pinterest and have already made them. I used Apple Cinnamon Chex, Almond Butter, and Brown Rice Syrup (since there’s already so much sugar on the apple cinnamon chex).
Thanks for such a versatile recipe! I love ones that fit what you have on hand no matter what!
Chocolate-Covered Katie says
Thank you so much for trying them!
kerry says
Yummy& so easy to whip up. My kids didn’t even notice they weren’t loaded with sugar.
Michele says
Sounds yummy!
I need this recipe for my daughter’s school which is nut-free. What do you recommend I use instead of PB or other nut butter? The substitute has to be sugar/molasses/honey free.
Thx
Nicole says
Best thing I have ever tasted! Made these with honey. Yummy.. I was just wondering why you have a dessert blog if you don’t like sweets?
Kendra says
I’d encourage you to do some research on agave nectar. the majority of it sold here in the states is just as processed as high fructose corn syrup. Just a heads up
Pmanning says
So how many calories do these have?
Samantha Aoki says
I just tried your recipe this week and they came out delicious! I ate the whole batch in 2 days ><" Check out my results here http://aokiitriedntested.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/rice-krispy-protein-snack.html I made bars instead of using cupcake papers ^^
Whitney Chao says
Can you use fruit butter like apple butter or pumpkin butter instead of nut butters?
Tracy says
I made these with my 2 yr old and they are awesome! So addictive that it’s hard not to eat the whole batch at once. Thank you for sharing the recipe!
Latisha says
how would I go about using vegan marshmallows for this? and still without the butter? would I still use the pb?
Lisa @bitesforbabies says
I’ve come up with a million different recipes all similar to this one..they get better every time! I SO much prefer making these rather than purchasing store-bought ones!!! These look delicious 😉
Katie says
Have you heard if pb2 would work at all and will Walden far.s pancake syrup work
Angelica says
Great recipe! I loved how the rice crispies had a perfect balance to them! They were soft, chewy and delicious! I recently discovered your recipe and since I am starting to bake (I am a teenager), I love that the recipes are all good for you but taste amazing too. That’s hard to find:)
Corina says
I absolutely love your recipes and I’m so much looking forward to the day when your cookbook will be waiting for me besides my breakfast bowl 😉 (that might take a while ’til it arrives in Switzerland) I’d love to see a recipe for a healthier version of the Starbucks’ Vanilla Latte on your blog… 😉
mega says
What is salted pb?
Unofficial CCK Helper says
Peanut butter with salt.
Rayaan says
I was wondering…..because I’m Muslim and marshmallows have gelatine… will it work without marshmallows or do I need something to replace them??
If I do have to replace them…place give me ideas
Rayaan says
I have a nut allergy so what can I use instead❔❓❔
Kara Holland says
I was wondering since a lot of your recipes call for somewhat large amounts of honey/agave/pure maple syrup if anyone knew of any cheaper alternatives? I love honey but it is pretty expensive…. Also can’t wait to try this recipe out! I have been making your recipes for a while and have loved all of them!
Jason Sanford says
Costco sells big bottles of agave or honey for less if you have a membership. Or sometimes you can find them in stores like Marshalls or Home Goods for less.