Deb Perelman from the Smitten Kitchen

In the early ‘90s, I  was crowned Reid Park’s “Queen of Treats.”  Every Friday night, my sister Lorelei and I would combine dozens of batches of sticky, gooey, buttery marshmallow fluff and rice cereal to create Rice Crispy Treats. We used the microwave to melt the butter and puff up the marshmallow to create these treats, which we could then sell to raise money for Reid Park. I did this for many years, and needless to say, I over-exposed myself to Rice Crispy treats. The kids’ affection never waned, but I burned out.

It wasn’t until Deb Perelman, author of Smitten Kitchen, reinterpreted the original 1928 recipe with a few minor modifications that reawakened my love for the treats. The differences, in her own words … “oh, just a bit more (cough, cough) butter which you toast until it’s brown and nutty and help along with some coarse salt, just minor things.” 

This isn’t the good old recipe we grew up with; it is so much better. 

Ingredients

• ½ C Unsalted butter, plus extra for the pan
  1 Bag marshmallows (10-ounce)
  ¼ t Coarse sea salt
  6 C Crispy rice cereal (about half a 12-ounce box)

Directions

• Butter (or coat with non-stick spray) an 8-inch square 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 the 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.
• Let cool, cut into squares, and get ready to make new friends.