Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats

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The best thick and chewy Rice Krispie treats with a peanut butter twist! Peanut butter is added to the delectable marshmallow cereal mixture and then topped with a smooth and creamy chocolate peanut butter topping!

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Rice Krispie Treats are great on their own, but Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats? PERFECTION.

For this recipe, we add a heaping scoop of peanut butter to the marshmallow butter mixture and pour it over a bowl of Rice Krispies and peanut butter chips.

But you know I can’t stop there.

Next, we top the whole pan off with a rich, chocolate topping–with even more peanut butter added.

It’s a simple no bake treat that’s made a little extra special!

How to make Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats with Chocolate:

Ingredients:

• 6 cups of Original Rice Krispies cereal
• 1/2 a cup of peanut butter chips (optional)
• 5 1/2 cups of mini marshmallows
• 5 tablespoons of unsalted butter
• 1 cup of creamy or crunchy peanut butter

For the chocolate peanut butter topping

• 1 1/4 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup of creamy peanut butter

Instructions:

Spray an 8 x 8″ baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.

In a large bowl, add the Rice Krispies cereal and the peanut butter chips (if using). Set this aside too.

In a 2 quart saucepan, melt the butter, marshmallows, and peanut butter over medium low heat.

Stir constantly until all the ingredients are melted completely and smooth.

Once melted, turn off the burner, and immediately pour the peanut butter marshmallow mixture over the cereal.

Using a rubber spatula, quickly mix and combine all the ingredients until the cereal is well coated and there is no remaining marshmallow mixture pooling at the bottom of the bowl.

Dump the peanut butter Rice Krispie mixture into your prepared baking dish. Use a piece of plastic wrap to press the cereal mixture into the dish tightly and evenly.

Set aside while you prepare the chocolate peanut butter topping.

To make the topping, place the chocolate chips and 1/4 cup of peanut butter into a heat safe bowl. You can melt the chocolate and peanut butter by microwaving in 30 second increments or you can set the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water. Stir and heat the mixture until it’s completely melted and smooth.

Pour the chocolate mixture over the top of the Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats. Use an offset spatula or a spoon to smooth the chocolate into an even layer.

Allow the mixture to set. You can pop the pan in the fridge for about 1-2 hours or let it sit at room temp for several hours.

Once the treats have cooled and set completely, run a knife along the edge of the pan and cut the treats into 12 bars.

Store treats in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days.

What Can I use Instead of Butter for these Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats?

Use coconut oil!

Peanut butter and coconut are delicious together in my opinion–so it would make a great substitute.

Another substitute would be margarine. The Rice Krispies’ website says not to use margarine, BUUUUUUTTTT I’m going to say it’s fine. When I was growing up, that’s all we had in the house and it always worked for me. Just don’t use the tub stuff, use the stick margarine.

Keeping Your Rice Krispie Treats from getting too hard:

1. Make sure you have enough marshmallow goo!
   • I’ve made the original recipe off the box and honestly, there’s not enough marshmallows for me. The last time I made the recipe per the instructions listed, my treats were too hard and crunchy. Then I saw the Rice Krispie Treats recipe on the bag of my marshmallows and that called for 1 1/2 cups more than the recipe on the cereal box! So I went with the recipe listed on the bag of mini marshmallows–which is 5 1/2 cups.
2. I added extra butter to the marshmallow mix.
   • The extra butter will add additional moisture to the treats. Paired with the peanut butter, you’ll have enough goo to coat the cereal completely and the extra fat and water from the butter will keep the Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats from drying out too quickly.
3. The most important way to keep your Rice Krispie Treats from getting too hard and crunchy is by wrapping them and storing them really, really well.
   • Air is the mortal enemy of Rice Krispie treats and they dry out easily. So make sure to keep the treats in a super airtight container, zip bag, or wrapped really well in plastic wrap at room temp.
   • Wrapping the treats individually wouldn’t be a bad idea if they needed to be kept for an extended period of time.

Variations:

There’s not much I’d change about these Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats. BUT you know I love embellishment, so here are a couple of fun ideas you can add to these treats:

• Chop up some peanut butter cups and add them to the cereal mixture! Make sure you freeze the peanut butter cup chunks after chopping so the bits don’t melt when the hot marshmallow mix hits
• Add chopped peanuts, toffee, peanut butter cups, or Reese’s Pieces to the top of your treats
• Replace the chocolate topping with melted peanut butter chips for a super peanut butter explosion
• Add in some chocolate chips to the cereal mixture (make sure to freeze the chips first)
• Swap the Original Rice Krispies for Cocoa Krispies for an extreme chocolate and peanut butter situation
• You can make the bars thinner by pressing them into a 13 x 9″ pan rather than an 8 x 8″ pan. You’ll just need to double the chocolate topping mixture to account for the extra surface area on the top!

Tips for making the best Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats with Chocolate

• Spray the baking dish really well! That marshmallow mixture is super sticky, so making sure the baking dish is well greased will set you up for success. You can also line your baking dish with a little parchment or wax paper too for extra insurance.
• Work fast when you’re stirring your mix! That stuff starts to set quickly and can just cement itself to the bottom of your mixing bowl before it gets to the pan. Make sure to have everything you need ready to go so you can mix and dump in the baking dish quickly!
• You can spray your rubber spatula with cooking spray to reduce sticking while combining the cereal and marshmallow mix.
• Use a sheet of plastic wrap to help press the peanut butter Rice Krispie mixture into the pan. It’ll keep your hands clean!
• The peanut butter reduces the sweetness in the Rice Krispie Treats. So if you like your treats really sweet, stir in an additional 1 cup of mini marshmallows with the cereal (don’t melt) and/or 1/2 cup of peanut butter chips. This will help add a little extra sweetness to your Rice Krispie treats without losing all that peanut buttery goodness.
• When removing your treats from the baking dish, run a knife along the edge to loosen the treats. They’ll pop out a little easier.

More Cereal Treat Bar Recipes

If you LOVE making no bake desserts with cereal, then you are going to love these other recipes we have right here on the blog:

Chocolate Chip Rice Krispie Treats

Valentine’s Day Rice Krispie Treats

Halloween Rice Krispie Treats

Golden Grahams S’mores Bars

Continue to Content

Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats

Yield: 12 Treats

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

The best thick and chewy Rice Krispie treats with a peanut butter twist and chocolate topping!  

Print

Ingredients

• 6 cups of Original Rice Krispies cereal
• 1/2 a cup of peanut butter chips (optional)
• 5 1/2 cups of mini marshmallows
• 5 tablespoons of unsalted butter
• 1 cup of creamy or crunchy peanut butter

For The Chocolate Peanut Butter Topping

• 1 1/4 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup of creamy peanut butter

Instructions

1. Spray an 8 x 8" baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, add the Rice Krispies cereal and the peanut butter chips (if using). Set this aside too.
3. In a 2 quart saucepan, melt the butter, marshmallows and peanut butter over medium low heat. Stir constantly until all the ingredients are melted completely and smooth.
4. Once melted, turn off the burner, and immediately pour the peanut butter marshmallow mixture over the cereal. 
5. Using a rubber spatula, quickly mix and combine all the ingredients until the cereal is well coated and there is no remaining marshmallow mixture pooling at the bottom of the bowl.
6. Dump the peanut butter Rice Krispie mixture into your prepared baking dish.
7. Use a piece of plastic wrap to press the cereal mixture into the dish tightly and evenly. 
8. Set aside while you prepare the chocolate peanut butter topping.
9. To make the topping, place the chocolate chips and 1/4 cup of peanut butter into a heat safe bowl. You can melt the chocolate and peanut butter by microwaving in 30 second increments or you can set the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water. Stir and heat the mixture until it's completely melted and smooth.
10. Pour the chocolate mixture over the top of the Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats. Use an offset spatula or a spoon to smooth the chocolate into an even layer.
11. Allow the mixture to set. You can pop the pan in the fridge for about 1-2 hours or let it sit at room temp for several hours.
12. Once the treats have cooled and set completely, run a knife along the edge of the pan and cut the treats into 12 bars.
13. Store treats in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 451Total Fat: 26gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 13mgSodium: 242mgCarbohydrates: 51gFiber: 4gSugar: 29gProtein: 10g

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