This homemade recipe for Christmas Rice Krispie Treats is a cute, fun and easy DIY. Keep it simple with these cute Peppermint White Chocolate Rice Krispies or we have ideas for fun variations below like M&M's, trees, wreaths, ornaments, and more for some Pinterest-worthy fun!
These are super popular during the Christmas season and also work for other winter holidays. Switch up the sprinkles to be festive for any holiday or season.
We love putting these on Cookie Plates during the season along with our Christmas Popcorn, Peppermint Bark Milkshake, Peppermint Brownies, Christmas Chex Mix and our Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies. Add them with these adorable Easy Cut Out Christmas Cookies. They are also great to take to a party.
Also check out our Halloween Rice Krispie Treats!
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What You'll Love About This Recipe
- Quick & Easy- these are done from start to finish in under 15 minutes!
- Kid Friendly - not only are these easy enough kids can make them with you and do most of the work, these are also a great kid friendly holiday treat.
- Festive - not only do they look festive, but one bit in to them with the yummy peppermint white chocolate flavor, they also taste festive too!
- Traditional - Rice Krispie Treats are very traditional and classic. They're a simple treat that children love that adults enjoy too, with their memories of childhood.
- Easy to Make With Food Allergies - Check out our substitutions below for Gluten and Dairy Free as well as Vegan options.
- Party Friendly - while these are great to quickly make and enjoy with kids, they are also special enough with the added flavors and sprinkles that they look amazing on a dessert table at a party.
Ingredients
- Rice Krispies cereal - you can use off brand Rice Krispies for this recipe and it will turn out fine.
- salted butter - for that yummy slightly salty- sweet flavor! This will help the consistency and also help it not be overly sticky.
- marshmallows (mini or large)- mini marshmallows will melt more quickly, but we use large marshmallows too without any problems.
- white chocolate chips - These will make that yummy white chocolate peppermint flavor that is so delicious!
- red and blue sprinkles, I recommend a variety of sizes.
- candy canes or other hard peppermint candies. These will get crushed and stirred in.
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
1. Over medium/ medium low heat, melt butter in a large pot. Add marshmallows.
2. Allow to melt. Stir occasionally to keep from sticking and to heat them evenly.
3. Add Rice Krispies cereal and crushed peppermint candies. Stir a few times until mostly evenly coated (it will become more evenly coated in the next step.
4. Allow to cool about 3 minutes, then stir in the sprinkles and white chocolate chips. Be careful not to over stir so that they stay nice and light and fluffy.
5. Pour into a 9x13 pan for regular sized treats, or into a 9x9 or even 8x8 for thick, bakery style Rice Krispie treats.
Hint: Allow the mixture to cool a bit and wait to add the white chocolate chips and sprinkles. Otherwise the white chips will melt and the sprinkles will melt a bit and be prone to smearing all over.
Substitutions
- Dots - use the red and green Dots in the Christmas package instead of sprinkles for a chewy and beautiful alternative.
- Dairy Free- simply switch the regular butter for vegan butter and omit the white chocolate chips and these are dairy free!
- Vegan - most marshmallows are not vegan! However, these can be made with vegan marshmallows. We recommend following this recipe and adding crushed candy cane and sprinkles of choice for the Christmas vibe.
- Gluten Free- Rice Krispies are not labeled as gluten free, and should not be assumed to be so. We recommend to find other brands of rice krispies cereal that are labeled as gluten free for this recipe. Though most marshmallows are gluten free, many are not, so we also recommend checking the marshmallows you buy.
- Cheerios- feel free to make these with Cheerios or other plain cereal if you don’t have Rice Krispies on hand
Variations
- Cinnamon - Use red hots instead of crushed candy cane and even cut up some cinnamon bears to throw in for a fun yummy cinnamon variety!
- Hot Cocoa- substitute the white chips for chocolate chips and stir in 1 cup of mini mallows after it has cooled for a few minutes. OR instead of chocolate chips use ½ Cocoa Pebbles and ½ Rice Krispies and stir in mini mallows after allowing to cool a few minutes.
- Rice Krispie Treat Trees- Pour these into a 9x13. After they have cooled, remove from pan and place on a cutting board. Cut diagonally in a zig zag pattern for the trees. You could also use green food coloring in with the marshmallows for a "decorated tree" look.
- Wreaths - use green food coloring into the melted marshmallows. Then form into circles on a piece of wax paper. They will be ornament decorated wreaths.
- Christmas Rice Krispie Treats with M&Ms - throw in 1 cup of your favorite m&ms!
- Chocolate Dipped Ornaments- make as directed above, then form into balls and place on wax paper. Melt some chocolate. You can use regular chocolate or white chocolate. Dip cooled Rice Krispie balls into the chocolate and allow to cool until chocolate hardens.
Equipment
- pot
- spatula
All you need to make this is a pot and a spatula!
If you don’t have a pot, you can make them in the microwave. The microwave can be more finicky, but will also work. Place the butter and marshmallows In a large microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 2 minutes. Stir, then microwave 1 more minute. Continue to heat in 30 second intervals stirring between each time, until marshmallows are fully melted. Then stir in the Rice Krispies and finish as directed above.
Storage
These store great! We recommend storing in an airtight container to maintain freshness. Store at room temperature for up to 4 days. If there is any question about air tightness, wrap in saran wrap to preserve freshness. Humidity or dryness will ruin the texture of these!
Top tip
Don’t be too anxious to mix in the mix-ins in! Let them cool for a few minutes to preserve the colors of your sprinkles and keep the white chips whole.
Recipe
Christmas Rice Krispie Treats
Ingredients
- 3 Tablespoons butter salted
- 6 ½ cups mini marshmallows or 48 regular jet-puffed
- 6 cups rice krispy cereal
- 3 candy canes or about 15 peppermint candies, crushed
- ½ cup white chocolate chips
- festive sprinkles
Instructions
- Butter a 9x13, 9x9 or 8x8 baking dish and set to the side. Crush candy canes or peppermint candies and set to the side.
- Heat butter in a pot over medium/ medium low heat. Once the butter has melted add the marshmallows. Stirring occasionally, keep the marshmallows from sticking and help them heat evenly.
- Once the marshmallows are melted, remove from heat and pour in the crushed candy canes and Rice Krispies cereal. Stir with a spatula until almost combined. Wait 2-4 minutes until they have cooled a bit, then stir in the white chocolate chips and sprinkles.
- Pour mixture into buttered baking dish and press lightly. Do not pack in, or Rice Krispie treats will be dense instead of light. Allow to cool then remove from pan to cut into squares using a sharp knife.
Notes
- To maintain softness, wrap in saran wrap and store in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
- See above for other fun variations or our substitutions to make them allergy friendly .
Nutrition
FAQ
That usually happens when there is too much cereal! With this recipe, we have extra mallows than usual, which makes them ooey gooey and they will NOT fall apart.
Rice Krispie Treats can be tough and chewy as they cool if they are mixed too much. Only mix until combined, being careful not to over mix!
About 1 day left open to the air. To make last longer, wrap in saran wrap then store in an airtight container. They should last about 4 days this way.
Make as usual, then stir in crushed candy cane, festive sprinkles, and white chocolate chips! You can also use some green and red frosting and pipe it on then add some sparkles on top.
Make Rice Krispie Treats as usual, but use extra marshmallows. Then stir in crushed peppermint candies, white chips and festive sprinkles.
Food safety
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
Nicole
We love these homemade Christmas Rice Krispie Treats. It's a great easy DIY recipe with the white chocolate flavors. Excited to try some of the other fun ideas you've suggest.