Black and White Rice Krispie Treats

These are the best rice krispie treats that I’ve ever had.

That said, I don’t eat rice krispie treats all that often, but every time I have had them they have been consistently tasty. Much like the Tollhouse chocolate chip cookie recipe, almost everyone has used the original and it’s popular because it makes a very good product. But also as with chocolate chip cookie recipes, I can’t resist playing around a little bit with things to try and make something even better.

This recipe was inspired by a photo I saw in an Australian food magazine that used a mixture of plain rice krispies (a.k.a. rice bubbles) and chocolate rice krispies (such as cocoa krispies) to make a similar snack. I don’t care for the artificial taste of those chocolate breakfast cereals and decided to see if I could work out a better recipe, using real chocolate and cocoa powder to dress up the treats.

I added melted dark chocolate and cocoa powder into half of my rice krispie mixture and made the white half to rice krispie back-of-the-box specifications, adding only a bit of vanilla to make sure there was a nice contrast between light and dark. I tossed a handful of mini chocolate chips into the chocolate batch for good measure, as well. Once the mixtures were ready, I doled out spoonfuls into lined muffin tins, creating a layer of chocolate topped by a layer of vanilla in a single-serving size. Muffin liners are really useful here because they don’t stick to the treats and make the treats very easy to get out of the pan. As an additional bonus, they keep the treats from sticking to anything else (including eachother) if you’re going to pack them up in a lunch bag or take them along on a road trip.

The chocolate was surprisingly rich and cut the usual sweetness of the plain vanilla side slightly, giving the treat a nice twist. I love the color contrast between the two sides, too. Grownups can have after-school snacks too, can’t they?

Black and White Rice Krispie Treats
4 tbsp butter, divided
1 1/2-oz dark chocolate, chopped
1 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 cups mini marshmallows (or 40 reg marshmallows), divided
6 1/2 cups Rice Krispies/rice bubble cereal, divided
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Line 18 muffin tins (1 1/2 standard 12-cup trays) with paper liners.
In a large microwave-safe mixing bowl, melt 2 tbsp butter, dark chocolate and cocoa powder. Stir frequently to fully incorporate cocoa and to prevent scorching. Add 2 cups mini marshmallows and microwave for 1-2 minutes, until fluffy and melted. Add in 3 1/4 cups rice krispies and stir to combine, making sure chocolate covers the whole batch. Stir in mini chocolate chips and divide mixture evenly among prepared muffin tins, filling each 1/2 way up.
In a large microwave-safe mixing bowl, melt 2 tbsp butter and mini marshmallows in microwave for 2-3 minutes, until marshmallows are fluffy and butter is completely melted. Add in vanilla and remaining 3 1/4 cups rice krispies and stir to coat every rice krisp (feel free to scrape in a little bit of vanilla bean, if you like).
Divide evenly among chocolate-filling muffin tins, filling each the rest of the way up.
Chill in the refrigerator for 15 minutes or let set at room temperature before serving.
Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Makes 18*

*Note: I also had one all-chocolate one leftover, but I might have simply added a spoonful of extra rice krispies to my mixing bowl by accident. Even so, don’t worry if you want to go into more than 18 muffin cups. Make the treats as big or as small as you like.