4th of July Rice Krispie Treats
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4th of July Rice Krispie Treats make a fun patriotic treat! They taste just like the classic treats except these have colorful red, white, and blue layers that everyone will love!
PIN these Red, White and Blue Rice Krispie Treats to try later!
4th of July Rice Krispie Treats
If you’re looking for an easy no bake dessert for the 4th of July, these are perfect and made with only 5 ingredients. You make these treats in the microwave and they’ll be a show stopping treat any where you take them.
These patriotic treats are made with red, white, and blue layers and loaded with soft and gooey marshmallows so they still taste the same as the original treats! Add festive sprinkles or candies or you can cut them out into star shapes for an extra fun treat. Kids will love helping you with these!
Other homemade rice krispie treats to try are my Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats, Birthday Cake Rice Krispie Treats, Strawberry Rice Krispie Treats, and Oreo Rice Krispie Treats.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Portable: Bring these sweet treats anywhere by easily placing treats in an airtight container or ziplock bag. Pack them up for a 4th of July BBQ, party, lunch box treat, or bring them to work. They make a perfect addition anywhere!
Patriotic dessert: Perfect for all patriotic holidays. The 4th of July, Memorial Day, or any time you want to make a patriotic recipe.
Easy dessert: This easy recipe is made with simple ingredients and are made in the microwave so no need to turn on your oven or stove.
Crowd pleaser: Friends, family, adults, and kids of all ages will love these crispy treats. The red, white, and blue layers are so fun and colorful.
Key Ingredients
- Rice Krispies or crispy rice cereal: The main ingredient and base of this recipe. Any rice krispie brand will work.
- Mini marshmallows: You’ll need 6 cups of mini marshmallows to make these extra gooey. They will melt and bind the other ingredients together. Mini marshmallows works best for this recipe as opposed to regular marshmallows, this way you’ll get size.
- Butter: I use salted butter to cut balance the sweetness a bit but you could also use unsalted butter.
- Vanilla extract: Enhances and adds a warm flavor.
- Food coloring gel: Used for the layers. Add more or less drops of food gel to get the shade of red and blue that you want.
How To Make 4th of July Rice Krispie Treats
Prepare pan: Line a 9×9 inch pan with aluminum foil or parchment paper and grease with butter or nonstick cooking spray.
Make melted marshmallow mixture: You’ll need 3 medium microwave-safe bowls. Add 2 cups of mini marshmallows, 1 tablespoon of butter, and 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract to one of the bowls. Heat in 30 second intervals until marshmallows start to bubble and look puffy. Stir well until the marshmallows melt and are smooth.
Add food gel and cereal: Add a few drops of red food coloring to the melted marshmallows (I usually add about 5-7 drops). Then add 2 cups of rice cereal to the mixture and stir until evenly coated in the marshmallow mixture.
Press into pan: Add the cereal mixture to the prepared baking dish or pan and gently press the mixture into the pan. Make sure you don’t press too hard otherwise your treats will be too dense and hard.
Repeat: Repeat without using any food coloring (for the white layer). Then repeat using blue food coloring. It doesn’t matter if you add the blue layer or red layer on the bottom of the pan first.
Cut into squares: Let rest for 30-60 minutes and slice into squares. Enjoy!
Pro Tips
- Spray your hands or rubber spatula: Use either cooking spray or rub them with butter before you press the rice krispie mixture on into your dish. This will prevent your hands from sticking to the sticky mixture. You can also use a butter wrap to press the mixture.
- Marshmallow tips: Be sure to use melt the marshmallows on LOW heat to insure they stay soft and will make the treats fluffy. Only use fresh marshmallows- stale marshmallows won’t make these treats as gooey.
- Treat size: I use a 8×8 or 9×9 inch pan because I love the thicker sized treats, but you can also use a 13×9 inch pan to yield 20-24 treats.
- Brown the butter: If you’ve ever had Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats, you already know how amazing they are. Follow the steps in this recipe to brown the butter first before adding the marshmallows. This will add a rich, caramel, nuttiness flavor to your treats.
Recipe Variations
- Alternative cereal: Chex cereal or Cheerios would also work since they don’t have any added flavors or colors.
- Add-Ins: Add in 1 or 2 extra cups of marshmallows to make these extra gooey. White chocolate chips, red, white, and blue m&m candies, patriotic sprinkles, or any other festive candies are fun to add.
- Chocolate dipped treats: Dip half of the treat in melted chocolate for an extra chocolatey treat. You could also drizzle the treats with melted white chocolate, red or blue candy melts, or a combination of them all for different colors.
- Sprinkles: Add red or blue sprinkles to the tops of the cereal treats or add them with the cereal mixture.
- Star shapes: Use a star shaped cookie cutter to cut out stars to show even more patriotic pride!
Leftovers & Storage
To-store on counter: Place leftovers in an airtight container or cover a plate tightly with plastic wrap. They will store for up to 4-5 days without tasting stale. You can also store in a large ziplock bag.
To-store in fridge: These treats will last a bit longer if you store them in the refrigerator. They will store well for up to 1 week. Be sure to let sit out for at least 30 minutes because they will become hard.
Can You Freeze Rice Krispie Treats?
Yes you can! However, it can cause them to be less soft and gooey so I do not recommend it.
To freeze, place cooled treats in an airtight container and layer with a piece of parchment paper or wax paper to prevent them from sticking. Be sure to let the treats sit out at room temperature for at least 15 minutes or until softened before serving again. Store for up to 1 month.
How to Keep Treats Soft
Keep them away from the refrigerator as they will get hard and the marshmallows will loose their softness and gooeyness. You also want to store leftovers in a sealed airtight container and keep out as much air as possible.
Can You Use Marshmallow Fluff Instead?
You can, however, I don’t recommend it because it will take away from the fluffiness and softness. It will also be extra sweet since extra sugar is added. I’ve never used marshmallow fluff so if you do try it, let me know.
Are Rice Krispie Treats Gluten-Free?
Although rice is gluten-free, some of the manufacturers make their crispy rice cereal with malt which contains gluten. If you want to make these gluten-free, be to check the cereal box packaging.
Other 4th of July Recipes
- Sugar Cookie Truffles
- Red, White, and Blue Fruit Salad
- Firecracker Cake
- Red, White, and Blue M&M Brownies
- Patriotic Cheesecake Bites
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4th of July Rice Krispie Treats
Ingredients
- 6 cups Rice Krispie cereal divided
- 16 ounces mini marshmallows divided
- 3 tablespoons butter divided
- 3/4 teaspoon vanilla divided
- red and blue food coloring gel
Instructions
- Line a 9×9 inch pan with foil or parchment paper and grease with butter or nonstick cooking spray.
- You'll need 3 medium microwave-safe bowls. Add 2 cups of mini marshmallows, 1 tablespoon of butter, and 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract to one of the bowls. Heat in 30 second intervals until marshmallows start to bubble and look puffy. Stir well until the marshmallows melt and are smooth.
- Add a few drops of red food coloring to the melted marshmallows (I usually add about 5-7 drops). Then add 2 cups of rice cereal to the mixture and stir until evenly coated in the marshmallow mixture.
- Add the mixture to the prepared 9×9 inch pan and gently press the mixture into the pan. Make sure you don't press too hard otherwise your treats will be too dense and hard.
- Repeat without using any food coloring (for the white layer). Then repeat using blue food coloring. It doesn't matter if you add the blue layer or red layer on the bottom of the pan first.
- Let rest for 30-60 minutes and slice into squares. Enjoy!
Quick, easy and delicious. No way can I eat just one. This lovely Rice Crispy Treats recipe is just in time for the fourth. Many thanks!
These patriotic rice crispy treats are a perfect way to celebrate. Kids will love them!
Everyone in this house loves rice crispy treats. It was fun making them in American flag colors! Can’t wait to make them in other colors just for fun!
These colourful rice krispie treats are just perfect for holidays and kids’ parties!
My kids love making these with me for 4th of July and Memorial Day. They taste delicious and make a great dessert for the kids.
I use this recipe for different holidays and change the food coloring. They are excited to make ones for Halloween, with green and orange colors. My kids love it!
Fun! So vibrant, a classic that’s sure to be a hit 😉 Thanks for the tip about the fridge, lol, I never knew that’s what I was doing wrong for storing them!
This Rice Krispie was super easy and quick to make and everyone loved it. Thanks for sharing!
How fun! I can’t wait to make these bars for the fourth. My daughter will devour them.
The layers on these Rice Krispie Treat!! These turned out perfect, I can’t wait to make them again for the 4th of july!