Secrets from the Cookie Princess: Patriotic Rice Krispies Treats

Looking for something fun and festive to take to a last minute get together today? These are just basic Rice Krispies treats dressed up in red, white and blue to celebrate today's festivities. Cute and layered, these treats are sweet and crunchy. Plus no bake is always a win on a hot day, right?

Among all the other festive Fourth of July recipes that have been circulating the interwebs over the last few weeks, these made the rounds and I loved them for their ease and great colors. The first place I saw this recipe was from Lil' Luna. Luna makes her treats from the traditional recipe, but divided the ingredients into thirds and colored one part red and one part blue. I'm not sure how I failed at this concept, but I couldn't get my first layer to coat properly and I was concerned about my layers not smoothing out evenly. So I improvised. I increased the cereal by 50%, but doubled the butter and marshmallow components. The result is a soft and chewy bar with a little extra sweetness that still puts a smile on your face. I did get a little help from Dave adding in the food coloring so I could keep stirring, so this is a great recipe if you've got little helpers in your kitchen. You probably have all these ingredients in your kitchen, so whip up a batch before you head to today's cook-out!

Patriotic Rice Krispies Treats

Ingredients

10 1/2 cups Rice Krispies cereal
2 10.5 ounce packages mini marshmallows, divided
6 Tablespoons butter, divided
red and blue food coloring

Divide cereal into three bowls with 3 1/2 cups of cereal in each bowl.

For the red layer, melt 2 Tablespoons of butter in a medium saucepan. Add 7 ounces of marshmallows and stir until melted. When just about melted, add food coloring to desired shade, mixing constantly until melted and color is uniform.