Pumpkin Spiced Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats

Need an easy fall dessert that will wow everyone? These Pumpkin Spiced Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats take the humble rice cereal treat from ordinary to super extraordinary!

These Pumpkin Spiced Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats are an inspiration from my daughter-in-law, Lindsay. We were leaving Nick and Lindsay's home several weeks ago after having dinner together. We'd already enjoyed dessert, so when Nick went to the kitchen and came back with a little piece of what looked like a Rice Krispie treat, I wasn't super interested. "Just try this.", he said and popped the little morsel in my mouth... "Wow!" I said, "What is this and where have you been all my life?!"

"Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats" was Nick's answer. I went home and googled it. Yikes! It turns out that I must be living under a rock. There were tons of recipes for this delightful, simple sweet treat. The New York Times has their rendition as does Epicurious, Smitten Kitchen, Pioneer Woman and a zillion other blogs and websites.

I thought that, perhaps, there might be a few of you who have also been living under that same rock and decided to come up with my own, fall-inspired version of this delicious old classic. So I've been playing around with the recipe for the last couple weeks and I think you're going to love the final results.

Microwave or stovetop?

Browning butter can be kind of messy as the butter splatters and spits a bit in the process. Not being a fan of a dirty stovetop, I thought using the microwave might be easier and create less mess than making these Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats in a pot. After several trials, my final vote is using a large pot on the stovetop, which eliminates the uncontained spattering.

I also discovered that browning butter in the microwave creates a very hot bowl, even if it's designated as "microwave-safe" and it's never fun to get burned in the process of making dessert. So grab yourself a big pot and let's get on with it!

Definitely not ordinary!

If you haven't tried brown butter, you're missing out on something wonderful. What is brown butter? Originally a French culinary technique (beurre noisette) it's a simple, but super magical technique that's used for both sweet and savory recipes. It involves melting and cooking butter until the water is cooked out and the milk solids turn brown.

The result is incredibly delicious, the butter takes on a beautiful, deep golden hue and a nutty, toasty, almost caramel-like aroma. Beurrre noisette (the French name for brown butter), is literally translated "hazelnut butter". Bon Appetit describes brown butter as having a "deep, nutty, miraculous flavor that has the capacity to transform foods into better versions of themselves."

And that's one reason why one bite of these Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats will make you say "Wow, what is this and where have you been all my life?!"

A few other touches that take these little bars up a notch are a spoonful of pumpkin pie spice and an extra handful of mini marshmallows that are added at the end to create little pockets of melty marshmallow throughout.

Oh, and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt cuts the sweetness and adds a wonderful gourmet touch.

Perfect for gifting

Because Rice Krispie Treats are a universally popular sweet treat, this delicious, gourmet version makes a fun gift to give to family, friends, neighbors, hairdressers - anyone whose day you'd like to brighten. I've created a little gift tag that I'm happy to share with you. Just leave a comment below and we'll send you the PDF via email.

Make a batch today!

So, if you've always thought that Rice Krispie treats were for little kids, think again! A few extra little steps yields an incredibly delicious fall-inspired treat that kids of all ages go crazy over!

Café Tips for making these Pumpkin Spiced Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats

• This recipe calls for rice cereal. The most well known rice cereal here in the U.S. is probably Rice Krispies, but there are also lots of generic brands which will be much less expensive and will work well.
• If you don't generally eat rice cereal and don't want to have a large box of cereal get stale, this type of cereal freezes well so just stash the excess in the freezer for the next time you want to make these Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats. (Warning - it will probably be sooner than you think!)
• I like to use mini marshmallows for this recipe however, the small marshmallows are not always available. Regular size marshmallow will work for this recipe but for the 4 ounces that are added at the end (to create the pockets of melty, marshmallow) you can cut the larger marshmallows into small pieces. To do this, simply spray a kitchen shears with cooking spray to eliminate stickiness. You may have to repeat this a few times. After the marshmallows are cut up, toss the pieces with 1 teaspoon of cornstarch to keep them from sticking to each other.
• This recipe calls for pumpkin pie spice. Pumpkin pie spice is a blend of falls spices including cinnamon, ginger, allspice and sometimes cloves and nutmeg. I checked my local grocery the other day for pumpkin pie spice. They wanted $6.99 for a small jar. Yikes! You can make your own for pennies (check out one of the following sites) and use it for cookies, muffins, cakes, pies and all kinds of other fall baking.
• I like to sprinkle these bars with a bit of flaky sea salt. I use Maldon Sea Salt. Maldon is a finishing salt, used by many chefs as a final (gourmet) touch for vegetables, entrees, desserts, etc. It's more expensive than regular salt, but it's worth it and it lasts a long time.
• Use a large pot to make these brown butter Rice Krispie treats. This will eliminate a lot of mess on your stovetop from the spattering butter as it is cooking and being transformed to the lovely brown butter.
• I like to make these treats in an 8x8-inch square pan for pretty and tall bars. You can also use a 9x9-inch pan though the bars will be a little shorter.

Thought for the day:

The name of the Lord is a strong tower;
The righteous run to it and are safe.|
Proverbs 18:10

What we're listening to for inspiration:

You'll Always Be

If you enjoyed this recipe, please come back and leave a star rating and review! It’s so helpful to other readers to hear other’s results and ideas for variations.

5 from 17 votes

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Pumpkin Spiced Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats

Need an easy fall dessert that will wow everyone? These Pumpkin Spiced Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats take the humble rice cereal treat from ordinary to super extraordinary!

Author: Chris Scheuer

Course: Dessert, Snack bars

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats, Pumpkin Spiced Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats

Prep Time: 20 mins

Cook Time: 10 mins

Total Time: 30 mins

Servings: 16

Calories: 167 kcal

Ingredients

• ½ cup butter (1 stick)
• 16 ounces mini marshmallows divided, (divided
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 5½ cups crispy rice cereal
• flaky sea salt optional

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

1. Spray an 8x8 square pan with cooking spray (or lightly oil it). Line the pan with heavy duty foil (or regular foil that’s been doubled) so that two ends extend over the edges of the pan. Spray the foil with cooking spray. Set aside. Also spray a large pot or Dutch oven and a large spoon or spatula with cooking spray.

2. Heat the butter in the prepared pot over medium heat. After the butter melts it will start to splutter a bit and a white foam will develop on the top. If it’s spluttering and splattering too much reduce the heat a bit. Continue cooking for 3-5 minutes until the butter turns a deeper yellow. Start stirring at this point until the butter turns a deep golden brown and has a nutty aroma.

3. Turn down the heat to the lowest setting and add 12 ounces (about ¾) of the marshmallows to the butter. Stir (with the oiled spatula or spoon) until the marshmallows melt and the mixture is smooth. then add the vanilla and pumpkin pie spice and stir to combine.

4. Add all of the rice cereal and stir until well combined. Then add the remaining 4 ounces of mini marshmallows and stir just until they’re beginning to melt (you want little pockets of marshmallow).

5. Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan. With slightly wet fingers, press the mixture lightly into the pan. Don’t pack it in or the bars will be dense. Sprinkle the top lightly with flaky sea salt, if desired. Allow to cool and enjoy! You can store the treats in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.

Recipe Notes

See Café Tips above in the post for more detailed instructions and tips.

Calories 167kcal

Fat 6g

Saturated fat 4g

Cholesterol 15mg

Sodium 74mg

Potassium 7mg

Carbohydrates 29g

Fiber 1g

Sugar 16g

Protein 1g

Vitamin A 177%

Calcium 3%

Iron 1%

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