Chocolate and Caramel Stuffed Rice Crispy Treats

You will soon realize my love for stuffing delicious goodies with other treats is almost equal to my desire to try out new foods (and better ways to make them). It's hard for me to resist, and I will admit, the addition tends to be chocolate. My friends like to tease me that I will decide to make something perfectly lovely and then think, "Must.Add.Chocolate." 

What better way to start out sharing my dessert trials with you all than with a classic dessert (I refuse to call anything with that much sugar and butter a snack, sorry) with a twist! So yes, rice crispy treats are tasty on their own, but they are 10x better with chocolate, of course. This time I decided to add caramel and marshmallows as well. Still a quick and easy dessert to share! Next time I want to try chocolate and peanut butter. Other ideas are swirling as I type this. Any recommendations?

Chocolate and Caramel Stuffed Rice Crispy Treats

How I did it

10 cups rice crispy cereal 

10 1/2 cups mini marshmallows

1/2 cup butter (yes, one whole stick)

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup milk chocolate chips

1 cup caramels 

1. Coat a 9x13 pan with cooking spray (I use Canola Oil) and set aside

2. Melt half of the butter (1/4 cup) in a medium pot. Once completely melted add 4 cups of marshmallows. Stir until smooth. Add half of the cereal (5 cups) into the melted marshmallow. Add one cup at a time and stir to make sure it is coated evenly. Spread mixture evenly into the prepared 9x13 pan and lightly press down.

3. Cover with 2 1/2 cups of mini marshmallows (should form one layer on top of the cereal mixture)

4. Melt chocolate chips in a double boiler or in a small bowl in the microwave. If you use the microwave, make sure to check the chocolate every 20 seconds as it burns easily and burnt chocolate is worse than awful (trust me). The chips may not look melted, but once they are very shinny you should be able to stir them to finish the job. Pour the melted chocolate evenly (or as evenly as you can) over the marshmallows.

5. Melt caramels in a bowl in the microwave until they are smooth when stirred. Caramel hardens back up rather quickly so make sure you immediately pour it over the chocolate.

6. Melt the rest of the butter (1/4 cup) in a medium pot. Once melted add the remaining marshmallows (snack on the ones from the bag so you still have 4 cups left). Pour, one cup at a time, the remaining cereal (5 cups) into the melted marshmallows. Stir until evenly coated. Spread mixture evenly over the caramel and press down gently to level.

Put in the fridge to set chocolate (30 min) and then cut into squares. Make sure to store in an airtight container. I prefer to serve and store at room temperature so the chocolate isn't as hard.