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Naturally Sweetened Rice Krispies Treats

Sugar free rice crispy treats made with peanut butter.

Healthy rice krispie treats–build a better Easter basket for your kids with these naturally sweetened rice crispy treats made without marshmallows and naturally sweetened.

Brown rice syrup is stickier than honey and maple syrup, and STICKY is a very good thing when you’re making rice crispy treats without marshmallows.

Regular krispie treats have marshmallows, which contain gelatin. It binds things together, and makes them gooey and delicious. Since we’re not using marshmallows in here, powdered gelatin is a good sub, however you can totally leave it out.  And if you’re vegan/ plant-based, agar agar is a great substitute.

Finally: the brown rice crisp cereal. Honestly, this is really hard for me to find at any store besides Whole Foods. Be sure the box says ‘crisps’ and not ‘puffs,’ as puffs are too soft and won’t give you the same crispy effect. You can definitely use regular rice crispy cereal, too.

Ingredients:

  • ½ cup creamy peanut butter
  • ½ cup brown rice syrup
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 packet powdered gelatin (2 ¼ teaspoons)
  • 2 ½ cup brown rice crisp cereal

Optional topping:

  • ½ cup dark chocolate chips
  • 1 teaspoon coconut oil
  • sprinkles!

Instructions:

  1. Lightly spray a 8×8″ baking pan with cooking spray (or rub with butter), and set aside.
  2. In a small 1-quart sauce pan, heat the peanut butter, brown rice syrup and salt until smooth and melted. It might even bubble a bit around the edges–it’s fine, but don’t let it boil too hard.
  3. Turn the heat off, and stir in the powdered gelatin.
  4. Next, add the rice cereal, and stir until evenly coated.
  5. Press the mixture into the prepared baking pan, making sure it’s flat and even.
  6. Let set for about an hour.
  7. Next, use an Easter egg cookie cutter to cut out 6 eggs (cut them horizontally, not at an angle like seen in the photo, or you’ll only get 4 eggs!)
  8. If you’re making the chocolate topping: melt the chocolate chip and coconut oil in a small bowl in the microwave at 50% power. Stir every 30 seconds until evenly melted.
  9. Drizzle each egg with the melted chocolate, and add the sprinkles on top.