Salted Caramel Rice Krispie Treats (with Chocolate!)

Salted caramel rice krispie treats are next level cereal treats! Made with homemade salted caramel, these no-bake bars are perfectly gooey with a nice balance of salty and sweet. Top with a layer of rich chocolate and flaky salt for the best rice krispie treats! Recipe makes 16 squares.

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These grown-up chocolate caramel rice krispie treats are inspired by the “Fuhgeddaboudit” rice krispie bars from Bouchon Bakery. The soft, chewy marshmallow squares are the perfect blend of sweet, gooey marshmallow and creamy salted caramel.

Top with a layer (or drizzle) of melted chocolate for extra indulgence. Or leave them plain for caramel rice krispie treat goodness!

Love salted caramel? Try my salted caramel cheesecake or caramel crumb bars next!

Salted Caramel Options

You have three different options to make rice krispie bars with caramel:

1. Salted caramel: The homemade caramel in this recipe is made on the stovetop with granulated sugar. The texture is rich and creamy, similar to a caramel jam or spread.
2. Shortcut caramel: Don’t feel like making caramel from scratch? No problem. Just grab about 10 ounces (280 grams) of soft caramel candies instead. Melt them into the marshmallow mixture over medium-low heat until gooey. Stir in vanilla and salt, then fold in the cereal off the heat.
3. Brown sugar caramel: Want to make it yourself, but keep it simple? Try the brown sugar version. It’s a buttery, brown sugar-marshmallow coating made with heavy cream. See the recipe notes below for the details!

How to Make Caramel Rice Krispie Treats

Make salted caramel: Without stirring, cook granulated sugar and corn syrup in a heavy saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves and mixture is bubbling (about 3 minutes).

Continue cooking until mixture is a light amber color (about 2 minutes more). Remove pan from the heat and add butter, heavy cream, salt, and vanilla. Return pan to the heat and whisk mixture for 1 minute or until smooth. Pour caramel into a bowl and cool for 20 minutes.

Make rice krispies: Melt butter in large pot over medium heat. Once butter has melted, add marshmallows to the pan. 

Stir the mixture over medium-low heat until marshmallows are gooey and melted. Stir in vanilla extract and flaky salt to combine.

Remove pan from the heat. Add salted caramel to marshmallow mixture and swirl together with a spatula to combine. Add crispy rice cereal.

Fold in rice krispie cereal until completely incorporated and mixture is gooey. Transfer mixture to prepared 8-inch pan and press into an even layer with a metal spatula.

Pour melted chocolate over the rice krispie layer and smooth with a spatula. Let set for 20 minutes, then sprinkle the top with flaky sea salt.

Move the pan to the refrigerator for 20 to 30 minutes, or until topping is set. Lift the parchment to transfer bars to a cutting board and cut into squares with a sharp knife.

More favorite dessert bars:

• Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats
• Fudgy Homemade Turtle Brownies
• Chocolate Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats
• Salted Caramel Crumb Bars

Salted Caramel Rice Krispie Treats (with Chocolate!)

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.7 from 3 reviews

• Author: Laura Kasavan
• Prep Time: 1 hour
• Cook Time: 15 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
• Yield: 16 treats
• Category: Dessert
• Method: Stovetop
• Cuisine: American

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Description

Salted caramel rice krispie treats are next level cereal treats! Made with homemade salted caramel, these no-bake bars are perfectly gooey with a nice balance of salty and sweet. Top with a layer of rich chocolate and flaky salt for the best rice krispie treats!

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Ingredients

Salted Caramel

• 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup (85 g) light corn syrup
• 1 Tbsp (14 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup (120 g) heavy cream, at room temperature
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp (2 g) vanilla extract

Rice Krispie Treats

• 6 Tbsp (84 g) unsalted butter
• 16 oz (455 g) jet-puffed marshmallows
• 1 tsp (4 g) vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp flaky salt
• salted caramel (from above)
• 5 cups (150 g) crisp rice cereal

Topping

• 6 oz (170 g) semisweet chocolate, chopped
• flaky salt

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Instructions

1. Spray the sides of an 8-inch square baking pan with nonstick spray and line the pan with parchment paper.
2. Make caramel: Without stirring, cook sugar and corn syrup in a heavy saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves and mixture is bubbling (about 3 minutes). Swirl the pot as needed, but do not stir. Continue cooking until mixture is a light amber color (about 2 minutes more). Remove pan from the heat and add butter, heavy cream, salt, and vanilla (the mixture will bubble up rapidly). Return pan to the heat and whisk vigorously for 1 minute or until smooth. Pour into a glass bowl and let cool for 15 minutes.
3. Make rice krispie treats: Melt butter in large heavy saucepan over medium heat. Once butter has melted, add marshmallows to the saucepan. Use a silicone spatula to stir the mixture over medium-low heat until gooey and marshmallows are completely melted. Stir in vanilla and salt until combined.
4. Remove saucepan from the heat and fold in caramel. Add crisp rice cereal and fold until completely incorporated and mixture is gooey. Add rice krispie mixture to prepared pan and press into an even layer with a metal spatula.
5. Melt chocolate: Place chopped chocolate in a double boiler or in a heat-proof bowl over a saucepan of gently simmering water. Slowly melt the chocolate, stirring occasionally until glossy and smooth.
6. Pour melted chocolate over the rice krispie layer and smooth with an offset spatula. Let set for 20 minutes. Sprinkle the top with flaky salt, then move the pan to the refrigerator and chill for 20 to 30 minutes, until chocolate is set. Lift the parchment to transfer bars to a cutting board (if necessary, loosen the edges with an offset spatula) and cut into squares with a sharp knife.
7. Store in a single layer on a parchment-lined pan in the refrigerator. Bring treats to room temperature before serving.

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Notes

Pan size: I pressed the marshmallow mixture into an 8×8-inch square pan. If you prefer thinner bars, use a 9×9-inch pan.

Shortcut caramel: If you don’t want to make the salted caramel from scratch, you can use soft caramel candies (such as Werther’s Soft Caramels) instead. You’ll need about 10 ounces (280 grams). Add the soft caramels to the marshmallow mixture and melt over medium-low heat until gooey and melted. Stir in vanilla and salt. Remove from the heat and fold in crisp rice cereal.

Brown sugar caramel: Alternatively, you can make a brown sugar marshmallow coating. Melt 3/4 cup (168 g) unsalted butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add 3/4 cup (150 g) light brown sugar and 6 Tbsp (90 g) heavy whipping cream. Heat over medium-low heat for 5 minutes or until slightly thickened. Remove from the heat and stir in 1 teaspoon flaky salt. Stir in marshmallows until melted, then fold in crisp rice cereal.

Caramel adapted from Thomas Keller’s Bouchon Bakery. Brown sugar caramel adapted from Pinch of Yum.