Chocolate Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats

Yesterday my daughter had one of those days where she seemed to grow up before my very eyes.  It started with her dressing herself for school.  You may think "so what?" but this is  huge deal because while most kids her age have been dressing themselves for awhile she has refused.  This was a victory.  Secondly, she became a true kiwi suddenly adding "eh" at the end of every sentence or saying "eh mum?"  I nearly fell over laughing the first time she said it!  Finally, last night she stood at the gate watching all the kids riding their bike in the cul-de-sac  longing to join them.  I decided to let her spread her wings a little and join them and she was so proud of herself, feeling very grown up.  When Dad arrived home she didn't seem to notice him but instead stayed out laughing and playing with the kids.  We both felt as though we lost our baby and instead a grown up little girl was in her place.  I guess every parent encounters this at some stage and the only thing you can do is eat yummy treats to make yourself feel better.  

These peanut butter rice krispie treats definitely helped to soothe the pain, bringing back memories from childhood.  I thought I would share this recipe as these are incredibly popular to make in the US but I have not encountered many kiwis who make these.  You can buy them as bars for school lunches but I assure you that once you realize how easy and cheap they are to make, you will have a hard time buying these again.  The recipe link I have give has peanut butter in it but if you are not a fan, simply leave it out and you will get the same result!  Also, I melted Nestle Melts and spread them over the top and put in the fridge to harden.  

For the marshmallows I use a brand called Mr Mallow.  It is the closest I can find to marshmallows found in the states.  These are in the confectionery aisle at countdown or Woolworths or you can also get them from the pick and mix bins.  They are expensive at full price so I only ever buy them on special.  For 10 oz I use around 285 g of marshmallows which works out to be roughly 40 marshmallows.  When spreading out the rice krispie treats in your pan, it helps to use baking paper to press it down, then you don't get your hands all sticky.  

I will fill you in on a little secret with cake decorating.  When making structures and models on a cake many cake decorators use rice krispie treats, aka 'cereal treats' to mold.  I use this medium a lot as it is really strong and you can manipulate it into just about any shape you want.  Once it hardens you can cover it in fondant or modelling chocolate.  People are often 

For this recipe go to: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/peanut-butter-kelloggs-rice-krispies-treats/