Christmas Rice Krispie Treats
Festive colors and extra sweetness make these simple Christmas Rice Krispie Treats a special holiday treat. It takes just minutes to mix up a batch and bring an extra touch of cheer to your Christmas celebration.
There is nothing better than a super simple holiday treat. Something that just takes minutes to whip up but tastes amazing and instantly puts you in a cheerful mood.
Treats like Hello Dolly Bars, Crockpot Christmas Crack, Christmas Trifle or Peanut Butter Cornflake Cookies make it easy to make any day feel like a holiday. You can add these Christmas Rice Krispie Treats to that list.
Rice Krispie Treats are notoriously easy to throw together. It takes just minutes to melt some butter and marshmallows and stir in the rice krispie cereal. These Christmas Rice Krispie Treats are just as easy to make, but have an elevated flavor and texture to them.
There’s the marshmallow and crispy cereal you know and love, but there’s also a subtle caramel flavor from sweetened condensed milk, chocolate from M&Ms and an extra bite from sprinkles. Plus all the bright red and green makes these bars magnets for kids.
Why Make This Recipe
- Easy Fun: A little splash of color makes everything more magical.
- Bakery Worthy: These are not your average rice krispie treats. They are extra chewy, extra gooey and extra delicious.
- Fan Favorite: Who doesn’t love a classic rice krispie treat? They are simple, sweet and full of nostalgia, plus the Christmas decorations make them great for celebrations!
Ingredients for Christmas Rice Krispie Treats
Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the recipe at the bottom for quantities.
- Rice Krispies Cereal: You can also use off-brand cereal, but Rice Krispies keeps it iconic.
- Unsalted Butter
- Mini (or jumbo) Marshmallows: You can use regular or mini. The regular or jumbo may take longer to melt but they work just as well!
- Vanilla Extract: You could also use almond extract if you prefer or use a little bit of both. Vanilla extract helps balance all the flavors nicely
- Salt
- Sweetened Condensed Milk: This is the secret ingredient that makes these rice krispie treats so yummy and chewy.
- Mix-ins: Mini marshmallows, Christmas m&ms, Christmas sprinkles are all great. Decorate with any red and green sprinkles you can find!
Tools
Have these tools on hand to make this recipe:
- Large Pot
- Mixing Bowl
- 9×9 baking dish
- Nonstick spray
How to Make this recipe
Step 1: Melt your butter in a large pot.
Step 2: Add the 10 ounce bag of marshmallows to the pot and continuously stir until they completely melt.
Step 3: Add in the vanilla extract, salt, and sweetened condensed milk, and stir to combine.
Step 4: Pour your marshmallow mixture over the top of your rice krispies
Step 5: Use a large wooden spoon or rubber spatula to fold the ingredients together until evenly distributed. Add the mini marshmallows, Christmas M&Ms, and half of the Christmas sprinkles.
Step 6: Gently press the warm rice krispie treats into a prepared baking dish
Step 7: Allow to cool completely, then slice and serve
Expert Tips
- Give your treats time to cool before you try to slice them! Slicing into these rice krispie treats while warm will make them fall apart in a sticky, gooey mess. Cool for at least an hour.
- You can make your Rice Krispie Treats thicker or thinner just depending on the pan you use. Choose a larger 13×9 inch size pan for thin rice krispie treats or an 8×8 pan for extra thick.
- To keep your rice krispie treats soft it’s important to remove your marshmallows from the heat as soon as they are melted and mix your cereal gently. You do not want to overcook your marshmallows or crush your cereal.
- Don’t use a lot of force when you press the treats into the baking pan. Gently press just until the bars come together.
- If you struggle with sticky rice krispy treats when pressing into your pan, spray a tiny bit of non-stick spray on your hands or spatula to press down. You can also use a scrap of parchment paper to help cover your hand while you press down.
Why Are My Rice Krispie Treats Hard?
If your Christmas Rice Krispie Treats didn’t turn out as soft and chewy as you would like, it is likely one of two reasons.
- Crushed Cereal: It’s very easy to crush your rice crispy cereal a little too hard when you’re mixing or pressing the mixture into your pan. With all the marshmallow and sweetened condensed milk holding these bars together you don’t have to press hard to get them to stick. Mix gently and press gently for the best results.
- Overcooked Marshmallow: Melted marshmallow is chewy and gooey. Overcooked marshmallows get hard. When melting your marshmallows, cook them just until they melt and then stop!
Recipe FAQs
Christmas Rice Krispie Treats should be stored in an airtight container to keep them from drying out and becoming hard. You can also wrap individual bars in plastic wrap which makes them perfect to deliver to friends, coworkers or neighbors!
If you struggle to get your rice krispie treats into your pan without them sticking all over your fingers, there are a couple tricks to try. You can use a scrap piece of parchment paper to help gently press your rice krispie treats down, or you can just get your fingers a little bit wet before you begin.
Cover your fingers with either a drip of water or a quick spray of nonstick spray and it should work great to keep the treats from sticking to your fingers!
Did you enjoy this recipe? If so, make sure to check out these other recipes I picked out just for you:
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats
- Lucky Charms Rice Krispie Treats
- Caramel Rice Krispie Treats
- Peanut Butter Balls with Rice Krispies
- Peanut Butter M&M Cookies
If you tried this Christmas Rice Krispie Treats Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below!
Christmas Rice Krispie Treats
Equipment
- Large Pot
- Mixing Bowl
- 9×9″ Baking Dish
- Nonstick spray
Ingredients
- 6 cups Rice Krispies cereal
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 10 ounce mini marshmallows, or jumbo marshmallows
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup sweetened condensed milk
- ½ cup mini marshmallows
- ½ cup christmas m&ms, extra for topping
- ¼ cup christmas sprinkles
Instructions
- Fill a large bowl with 6 cups of Rice Krispies cereal. Set aside.
- Spray a 9×9 baking dish with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- In a large pot add the unsalted butter and stir until melted.
- Add the 10 ounce bag of marshmallows to the pot and continuously stir until they completely melt.
- Add in the vanilla extract, salt, and sweetened condensed milk, stirring everything once again until combined.
- Remove the marshmallow mixture from the heat and pour over the bowl filled with the Rice Krispies cereal. Use a large wooden spoon or rubber spatula to fold the ingredients together until evenly distributed.
- While the mixture is still warm, add the mini marshmallows, christmas M&Ms, and half of the Christmas sprinkles. Fold the two together briefly so that the M&Ms don’t melt.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish and press into the pan evenly.
- Let the treats sit at room temperature for about an hour before eating.
- Cut and enjoy or store in a ziploc bag or a tightly sealed container for later. Enjoy!
Notes
- Rice Krispies Cereal: You can also use off-brand cereal, but Rice Krispies keeps it iconic.
- Mini (or jumbo) Marshmallows: You can use regular or mini. The regular or jumbo may take longer to melt but they work just as well!
- Vanilla Extract: You could also use almond extract if you prefer or use a little bit of both. Vanilla extract helps balance all the flavors nicely
- Mix-ins: Mini marshmallows, Christmas m&ms, Christmas sprinkles are all great. Decorate with any red and green sprinkles you can find!
- Give your treats time to cool before you try to slice them!
- Slicing into these rice krispie treats while warm will make them fall apart in a sticky, gooey mess. Cool for at least an hour.
- You can make your Rice Krispie Treats thicker or thinner just depending on the pan you use. Choose a larger 13×9 inch size pan for thin rice krispie treats or an 8×8 pan for extra thick.
- To keep your rice krispie treats soft it’s important to remove your marshmallows from the heat as soon as they are melted and mix your cereal gently. You do not want to overcook your marshmallows or crush your cereal.
- Don’t use a lot of force when you press the treats into the baking pan. Gently press just until the bars come together.
- If you struggle with sticky rice krispy treats when pressing into your pan, spray a tiny bit of non-stick spray on your hands or spatula to press down. You can also use a scrap of parchment paper to help cover your hand while you press down.
