Carrot Rice Krispie Treats for Easter

My great-grandma used to make rice cereal treats. They were sweet, delicious, and well, rock hard. Haha! I can assure you these homemade Easter Rice Krispie treats are NOT my grandma’s Rice Krispie treats recipe! They are an adorable way to celebrate Spring whether you’re in the classroom, at home, or having a little get-together with family and friends.

This Carrot Rice Krispie Treats for Easter idea comes together with a bit of melting and stirring, but no baking! It’s a fun project whether you’re waiting for the snow to melt or Easter to arrive. Children will love eating this Easter treat, and if you’re up for it, they would love to help make it too!

Celebrate Spring

After snuggling up and enduring what Mother Nature threw at us all winter, Spring always feels like a time to celebrate! There are so many ways to enjoy the new season both indoors and out.

When the weather allows, try to get outside with your kids! Take a walk, grab the bikes, or just sit on the porch and share a drink.

Spring is also a great time to set goals as a family, or as a class. Maybe create a Summer bucket list of projects, trips, or activities you want to make sure you complete in the coming months.

My personal favorite Spring activity is gardening. Enlist the family to help! Rake, plant, weed, and seed your way to an awesome landscape. In the classroom, plant seeds and watch them grow.

Easter Rice Krispie Treats Recipe

*Makes 8 Easter Rice Krispie Treat carrot gardens

Ingredients:

• 6 cups rice cereal
• 10 1⁄2 ounces colored mini marshmallows
• 3 tbsp butter
• 2 cups crushed chocolate sandwich cookies for dirt (approximately 10)
• Wilson’s green pastel gel food color
• 2 cups coconut
• 2 cups green melting chocolate
• 2 cups brown melting chocolate
• 1⁄4 tsp coconut oil for each melting chocolate dish
• Tiny sugar carrots

Additional items:

• 2 bread pans
• 2 pint-sized canning jars (1 wide mouth)
• Rubber spatula
• Wire rack for drying
• 2 tbsp butter for greasing pans (or cooking spray)
• Long sucker sticks
• Clear plastic treat bags
• Ribbon
• Double boiler setup as pictured to melt chocolates

Instructions:

Grease two bread pans with butter. Set aside.

In a large pot over medium heat, melt butter.

Add the marshmallows to the pot and stir to melt and incorporate with butter.

Remove pot from heat.

Add rice cereal and mix well.

Split the cereal, marshmallow, butter mixture between the two pans evenly.

Using a rubber spatula, press the cereal firmly and evenly into bread pans. Set aside. *I like to place parchment or wax paper on top before pressing.

Prepare the colored coconut by adding 2 cups coconut to a canning jar and 1⁄4 tsp green gel food color.

Place a lid on the jar and shake vigorously.

Check the color against the green melting chocolate for similarity. Add more gel color to achieve the desired color vibrancy. *There should be pops of bright green and pale green as well.

Empty coconut into a shallow bowl.

Prepare the double boiler by adding water to a large pan that will hold the wide mouth pint jar (for the green melting chocolate) and another dish (for the chocolate melting chocolate). Alternatively, try melting chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl, stirring every 30 seconds.

Add melting chocolates to the jar and dish, along with 1/4 tsp coconut oil in each, stirring occasionally. Heat on low temp until melted and smooth.

Crush cookies into crumbs and pour into a small dish.

Cut the rice treats into 2 1/2 ” x 4 1/2 ” rectangular pieces and remove them from the pan.

Insert the sucker stick into the rice treat 3⁄4 of the way through. Set aside on a wire rack as you repeat with all 8 pieces.

Spread the green melting chocolate with a knife over the top 1⁄4 of the treat and quickly cover with green coconut.

Dip the other end of the treat into the brown melting chocolate, spreading with a knife to smooth off excess. Be sure to cover all of the rice, then quickly sprinkle on the sandwich cookie “dirt.”

Add embellishments like mini sugar carrots by placing a small dollop of brown melting chocolate and then adding the orange candy carrot. Use a utensil, toothpick, or a piping bag. If you use a piping bag, work quickly before the melting chocolate cools and hardens. *If you can see the chocolate, simply sprinkle more Oreo dirt around it before it hardens.

Place your Easter carrots Rice Krispie treats in a treat bag and add a colorful ribbon.

Fun Spring Crafts

After you’ve exhausted your supply of butter and marshmallows, it’s time to get crafty! Try some of these Springy crafts to continue your celebration of the season.

• I love exploring symmetry and pattern with paper Easter eggs! The possibilities are endless: Paint, stamp, use paper shapes, use pastels, or create repeating patterns with buttons.
• Edible slime made with real marshmallow Peeps is a hands-on sensory feast for young kiddos.
• Handprint crafts often become a cherished memory for preschool parents. Use neon paper to make a bouquet of handprint flowers with all of those growing hands.
• Create delicate yarn eggs by dipping yarn into a glue/water mixture and wrapping around small egg-shaped balloons until dried.