Rice Krispie Treats

I honestly don't know anyone who dislikes Rice Krispie Treats. How can you not like something with a name that contains the word "treat"? I know my Mom loved these; marginal cooking and extremely kid friendly. I mean, come on, can anyone say "Bake Sale"? There are many, many versions of these gooey wonders, some requiring way, way too much effort. I work just across from a bagel shop that sells giant, hunky squares of krispie marshmallow deliciousness as big as my hand. Back in the day, before adolescent dietary guidelines, the basket next to my lunch lady cashier was always full to the brim with tiny, slightly stale, cereal squares held together by what must have been a marshmallow substitute complete with plenty of high fructose corn syrup and trans fat. We as Americans love these squares of gooey goodness, for better or worse. I was completely surprised to learn recently that it's hard to find marshmallows in some countries. How can you not make or stock marshmallows? You need them for Rice Krispie Treats. You must have the Treats! Everyone loves the Treats!

As I seem to have had a slight stroke, probably from lack of sleep and copious amounts of caffeine and sugar, please bear with me. There is a recipe forthcoming, I promise. This concoction is almost totally straight from the cereal box. I seem to have a mental block when it comes to making these sweets though. I never can remember the right ratios and my little treats often tend to become super sweetened, buttered, crumbly cereal chunks. Not tasty. Thanks to David Lebovitz, however, I feel much more confident in my treat making ability. White chocolate, why did I never think of that? Aside from taste, the chocolate helps bind the other ingredients upon cooling, forming a structurally sound square. I use white almond bark, aka dipping/coating chocolate, because that's what I have in my pantry and I often have trouble finding white chocolate bars. Chips just don't melt right because of the lecithin, which is really the point of the additive anyway.

Makes 12-24 squares

1 ½ tbsp butter + enough to butter baking dish
1 square white almond bark, or 1 ½ oz white chocolate
5 oz mini marshmallows
3 c. Rice Krispies cereal

1. Butter an 8x8 square baking dish.
2. Place the butter in a medium-sized, microwave safe bowl. Heat until melted, ~30 sec on High.
3. Add the almond bark, or chocolate, to the butter. Continue heating at 30 sec intervals until just melted. Stir to combine.
4. Add the marshmallows and heat until puffed up and gooey, ~1 min on High. Stir until smooth.
5. Add the Rick Krispies. Stir well to coat completely.
6. Scrape mixture into prepared pan, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and press firmly into pan.
   
7. Cover. Allow to cool and firm up.
8. Cut into bars or squares. I've found that a metal spatula works great for this purpose.