Candy Corn Rice Krispie Treats

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Do you love candy corn? I totally do. I start eating it the minute it shows up in the grocery store each fall. In fact, this is probably me by November…:)

I also love Rice Krispie Treats. So when I saw Martha Stewart had put out a recipe to make Candy Corn Rice Krispie Treats, well, she had me at candy corn. And Rice Krispies. So I decided to make them.

I don’t undertake a lot of her recipes because they have novel-length ingredient lists and so many steps and I just lose my will to live by the time it’s all over. But this one seemed pretty doable.

All you need are mini marshmallows, Rice Krispies, butter, and orange and yellow food coloring.

You also need a standard-sized loaf pan. You will want to spray it with a nonstick cooking spray.

You’re going to make each color of the candy corn as a different batch. You start with the white layer first, making the treats by melting butter and the marshmallows together, then adding the Rice Krispies and mixing together.

Then you put the mixture into the loaf pan. Use an offset spatula to press it down firmly into the pan.

Then you start the process again, this time making the orange layer. Martha adds orange zest to this layer, and then later adds lemon zest to the yellow layer. I want no part of that. 🙂

I don’t really love citrus flavors, and I certainly don’t want that stuff messing with my Rice Krispie Treats. But you feel free to add those flavors if you like.

I just don’t like messing with perfection, and to me, Rice Krispie Treats are perfect just the way they are in their original form. One of the tastes of childhood.

It’s like when they start adding chocolate to PayDay bars or mint flavor to the cream filling of an Oreo. Just no.

Speaking of PayDay bars, if you love them like I do, I have another use for candy corn for you. Did you know you can replicate the flavor of a PayDay by simply combining equal parts candy corn and cocktail peanuts?

Try it. It absolutely tastes like a PayDay. You’re welcome. 🙂

My friend JoAnn that I have told you all about before that taught me how to paint and be crafty showed me how to make that snack. You can even do it at Christmas when they make that red and green and white candy corn. It’s quite festive.

Back to the Rice Krispie Treats. You can just wipe out the pan from the first layer and use it again to make the second layer.

For the second layer, you combine the butter and marshmallows again. Once they have melted together, you add the orange food coloring. Do this before you add the Rice Krispies.

You can either use orange coloring if you can find it, or combine drops of red and yellow to make the orange.

Once you have added the Rice Krispies and mixed everything thoroughly, you add this to the loaf pan to make the second layer right on top of the first layer.

Then the final layer. You will need to thoroughly wash the pan between making the second and third layers because you don’t want the colors to mix. So with a clean pan, melt the final butter and marshmallows, then add yellow food coloring.

Then add the Rice Krispies. Once everything is combined, add it to the loaf pan and use the offset spatula to make sure everything is pressed firmly together.

Now comes the hard part. You have to let this all set up for a minimum of two hours.

After the excruciating wait, run a knife along the edges of the pan and turn it upside down. You may need to help it out a little, but the mixture should come out easily.

Then you have a loaf of three layers that look like this:

You then slice the loaf shape into ten slices, which will yield you pieces that look like this:

Then you will cut each of the slices in half.

All that’s left to do now is shape each piece into a piece of candy corn. This involves some handling, so you will want to wear plastic gloves, especially if you plan to serve these to other people. Even if these are just for yourself, gloves make it easier because the treats are very buttery.

Just gently shape each piece until it looks the way you like it. I’ve also seen recipes on Pinterest where you make these in a round pan, shaping the layers like a bulls eye. This seems like it might be a bit harder initially, but then all you have to do is cut them and they are already shaped like candy corn.

Don’t allow the treats to fully set up before attempting to shape them. Rice Krispie Treats harden up at some point so it will not be possible to shape them if you wait too long.

Store any uneaten treats at room temperature in plastic zip lock bags with parchment paper in between layers. These supposedly stay fresh for three days. I wouldn’t know if they last that long. 🙂

These were pretty easy to make and I would make them again. I think next time I will make the orange and yellow layers darker than I did this time. The color looked good when it was just the butter and marshmallow mixture, but once the Rice Krispies were added it muted the color a bit. So I might make them darker than I think I need to next time. But they taste wonderful and as good as you remember.

I don’t have to remember back very far because I make Rice Krispie Treats a lot. I make them just plain and also at Christmas using the red, green, and white limited edition Rice Krispie cereal.

Are you getting the idea that I have the culinary tastes of a 5-year-old? I just love kid food and Lucky Charms is my favorite cereal to this day, long after I should have graduated to Kashi or Grape Nuts or some such nonsense. 🙂

As I’ve mentioned before, I even buy bags of extra marshmallows to supplement my Lucky Charms because there are never enough in there and never could be.

And the kid cereal gods have finally heard our prayers because now Lucky Charms has finally started making just bags of the marshmallows! Why, Lucky Charms people, did this take so stinking long? 🙂

I wonder what would happen if I tried to make Rice Krispie Treats using these cereal marshmallows. Would they look like unicorns or would the colors all blend together into some sad gray mess? I may need to experiment and let you know.

So if you love candy corn and Rice Krispie Treats, give these a try! They would be a great treat to serve at a Halloween party or to make for yourself just to celebrate the fall season. One never needs an excuse to make Rice Krispie Treats. 🙂

And if you are all in on candy corn like I am, a local jeweler here in Texas that really gets us created a candy corn bracelet!