Special K Blueberry Krispies Bars

Special K Blueberry cereal is a new flavor for us and I’ve blasted through a couple boxes of it in the last couple weeks. I even filled a container with the fruity flakes and clusters before I ran out the door the other day. By the time I got to work, I had crumbs trailing down my shirt and in my bra. I made Special K Blueberry treats that night. The sticky marshmallows seem to keep the cereal crumbs out of my shirt.

I still love traditional Special K bars, well, as traditional as they can be since I have a special Special K bars recipe (of which I am sworn to secrecy by my sister who holds the proprietary ingredients). There are just some things best kept between sisters.

Special K Blueberry Krispies

4 tablespoons butter

6 cups mini marshmallows

6 cups Special K Blueberry cereal (or any kind of your favorite cereal)

Melt the butter in a small saucepan or in the microwave. (I’ve found that using a large plastic bowl in the microwave works best.)

Stir in the marshmallows, coating with the melted butter.

Over medium heat or in the microwave, slowly melt the marshmallows. This only takes a minute or two. Spray your spoon or spatula with cooking spray. Stir butter and marshmallows until creamy. Add cereal. Stir until all the cereal is coated with marshmallow mixture.

Spray a 10×8-inch or similar pan with cooking spray or gently grease with butter. Dump the cereal mixture into the pan. To spread evenly, spray the back of a large metal spoon with cooking spray and spread the mixture.

Cool bars completely. Cut and serve. Store in an airtight container.

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What’s in the layers? | Marshmallow chocolate cream cheese bars

You may recognize these treats from childhood potlucks in your church basement or from family reunions with people you didn’t really know. And unless your mom shared the recipe with you, the secret layers in these marshmallow chocolate cream cheese bars have long been revealed only to those who bake them.

Each bite holds four layers of cake-like brownies, sweet cream cheese, chewy chocolate, salty pecans, sticky marshmallows, and soft, almost flaky, chocolate vanilla frosting. You will wear a path in the floor to the refrigerator.

Prepare yourself — you’ll use three mixing bowls, a small bowl, and a saucepan to make these bars. But trust me. I would never steer you down a dishwashing path if it weren’t absolutely, without a chocolate doubt, worth every squirt of dish soap.

Marshmallow chocolate cream cheese bars

Brownie base:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened (do not substitute margarine)

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 (1-ounce) square unsweetened chocolate, melted and set aside to cool slightly

1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup pecan pieces or chopped pecans

Cream cheese layer:

6 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature

1/4 cup butter, softened (do not substitute margarine)

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

2 tablespoons flour

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 cup pecan pieces or chopped pecans

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

3 cups miniature marshmallows

Frosting:

1/4 cup butter

2 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature

1 (1-ounce) square unsweetened chocolate

2 tablespoons milk

3 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350°.

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, melted chocolate, and vanilla; mix well on medium speed. In a separate bowl, combine flour and baking powder. Gently stir into chocolate mixture. Fold in the pecans. Pour into a greased 13 x 9 pan and spread evenly.

In a small mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the butter and beat until well combined. Beat in the sugar, egg, flour, and vanilla until creamy. Fold in the pecans. Spread evenly over the chocolate layer. Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the cream cheese layer and bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes. Edges will begin to pull away from the sides of the pan. Do not overbake or the brownie layer will be dry.

Remove the baking pan from the oven. Sprinkle the marshmallows over the chocolate chips. Bake another 2 minutes or until the marshmallows become puffed. Remove from oven. Gently spread the marshmallows over the layer of chocolate chips. Cool on a wire rack.

Frosting:

In a small saucepan over low heat, cook and stir the butter, cream cheese, unsweetened chocolate and milk. Slowly melt and stir until smooth. Pour into a large mixing bowl. Add one cup of powdered sugar at a time, beating after each cup. Beat in vanilla. Spread over the cooled bars. Store in the refrigerator.

Makes 2 to 3 dozen, depending on how large you cut them.

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{I Can’t Bake at 350 | No-bake S’mores Bars}

No-bake goodies are a hit in the summer when we don’t want our ovens to heat up the house. Like these S’mores bars. But now it’s fall and kitchens everywhere are heating up with warm nutmeg, spicy ginger, and creamy pumpkin sweets.

Except at my house. My oven is broken. So, to prevent myself from going into a serious I-can’t-bake-depression, I’m flipping through my recipe box for recipes that will satisfy my need to preheat to 350°. Gooey, chocolatey S’mores bars do the trick.

The key to making S’mores bars taste like the real campfire deal is to use HERSHEY’S chocolate candy bars.

S’mores Bars

3/4 cup light corn syrup

3 Tablespoons unsalted butter

1 cup milk chocolate chips, preferably HERSHEY’S

2 (4.4-ounce each) HERSHEY’S chocolate candy bars, divided

1 teaspoon vanilla

9 cups Golden Grahams cereal (12-ounce box)

3 cups mini marshmallows, plus a handful to sprinkle over the top if desired

Line a 9 x 13-inch pan with parchment paper or non-stick foil, or grease pan lightly with butter.

Microwave the corn syrup, butter, 1 cup milk chocolate chips, and 1 HERSHEY’S candy bar in a large bowl, uncovered, on medium-high for 1-1/2 minutes. Stir until almost smooth. Microwave again, uncovered, until large bubbles form on the surface, about 2-1/2 minutes longer.

Stir in vanilla. Pour the cereal in the bowl and toss until coated with mixture. Fold in the marshmallows. Chop the other HERSHEY’S candy bar and fold into the cereal mixture. Dump into the pan and press evenly with the back of a large metal spoon sprayed with cooking spray. Toss a handful of mini marshmallows on the top and tap down so they stick. If you have a kitchen torch, lightly toast the marshmallows.

Let cool completely. Cut and share.

See more of my no-bake recipes.

What other treats could I make while I wait for my oven to get fixed? The stove top still works.

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{New Cereal Inspires Brownie Crunch Mint Crispy Bars}

When a new chocolate cereal hits the breakfast aisle, it’s only natural for bakers to wave their magic sugar wand and turn them into a pan of sticky, gooey treats. The added bonus in these Brownie Crunch Mint Crispy Bars is the addition of Andes^® Crème de Menthe Baking Chips.

You may want to buy two boxes of the new General Mills Cocoa Puffs^® Brownie Crunch cereal because they are so good, you’ll want one box for this recipe and one for snacking.

{Brownie Crunch Mint Crispy Bars}

4 Tablespoons butter

5 cups miniature marshmallows, divided

7 cups General Mills Cocoa Puffs^® Brownie Crunch cereal

1 cup Andes Crème de Menthe Baking Chips, divided

Lightly butter a 9×13 pan or line with parchment paper.

On low heat, either stove top or in microwave, melt 4 Tbsp. butter and 4 cups of marshmallows together. Stir until melted and combined. Remove from heat. Add the cereal to the marshmallow mixture and stir until cereal is coated. Stir in 1 cup of marshmallows and 3/4 cup Andes chips. Spread mixture in pan and sprinkle 1/4 cup Andes chips on top. Gently press and smooth the mixture with the back of a metal spoon or a spatula sprayed with cooking spray.

Cool and cut into squares, triangles or rectangles. Any way you slice them, they will disappear quickly!

What is your favorite cereal treat? Have you tried the new Brownie Crunch cereal?

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{Charming Lucky Bites}

Cereal is never safe in my kitchen. There’s always a bag of flavored marshmallows and 1/2 a stick of butter close by. But hey, if you get the really big box of Lucky Charms^®, you’ll have plenty left for the kiddos.

The kids finished their hockey season last weekend and we brought these to the girls’ pizza party. The container was almost empty when we left so they must have been good. (Never mind that I shared them with my family first while we watched the hockey game.) Enjoy!

 

7 cups Lucky Charms^® cereal

1 (10.5 oz) package flavored marshmallows

4 Tablespoons butter

2 squares almond bark

Lightly spray a 9×13 baking pan with cooking spray or line with parchment paper.

In a large microwave bowl, melt butter. Stir in marshmallows and microwave until marshmallows begin to melt into the butter and lose their shape. Stir together until sticky and creamy. Stir in cereal. Spread in pan. Cool completely. Cut into 1-inch bites.

Melt almond bark on low heat. Drizzle over cereal bites and immediately place a Lucky Charms^® marshmallow on top of each bite.

What’s one of your kids’ favorite cereals to make into special treats?

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{Marshmallow Creme Crunch Brownies}

This recipe came from my kids’ stepmom. She brought these treats to a holiday gathering and I asked her to share the recipe. Luckily she did because they have become a favorite in our family and a “food day favorite” at work. (Which helps me defend my title as “Best Food Day Chef” within the Personnel department in which I work.)

For Brownie Layer:

1 cup butter, softened

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

6 Tablespoons cocoa

1 cup flour

2 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 teaspoon salt

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7 ounce jar marshmallow creme

1 cup creamy peanut butter

12 ounce bag chocolate chips

3 cups Rice Krispies cereal

Mix and bake first 7 ingredients and bake in 9×13 well-greased pan at 350˚ for 25-28 minutes or until done. Cool. Spread marshmallow creme on cooled brownies. Melt the peanut butter and chocolate chips together over low heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in cereal. Spread over marshmallow creme layer. Chill before serving. Store in refrigerator.

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Do you bake a similar version of this recipe? I’ve also seen it with marshmallows instead of the marshmallow creme.

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