Brown Butter Cookie Dough Rice Krispie Treats

Today has been a day I have been looking forward to for the last two months since today is the first day of March! I don't have a specific month that I call my "favorite," but if I did, it would probably be March and definitely not January, February or August. Those three months just have bad vibes radiating from them.



I love March because it is not super hot (or isn't supposed to be) and not too cold, either. It is the start of spring and other great things like days with more sunlight.

So, naturally, we can celebrate by making dessert, right? How do these rice krispies sound? Because they are really amazing. I guess it is hard to go wrong when brown butter and cookie dough meet in a rice krispie treat.



First, we start by making the rice krispie bottom and top layers.



Make sure you do not overcook your marshmallows because that can totally happen. Even if the marshmallows look fine and not burnt at all, they may have been heated just a tad too long. To avoid this, take the pot off the heat after you brown the butter and let the hot butter and the heat from the pot do the melting of the marshmallows.



If you overcook them, they won't string together and create a great texture and taste. They will still be great, but it is worth the extra time to stir the marshmallows into the butter off the heat rather than let the stove do all the work.



Also, taking the pot off the heat sooner allows these treats to cook while you are stirring the marshmallows. That way, when you make the bottom layer of rice krispies followed by the cookie dough, your dough doesn't completely melt and turn into a mess.



One thing I really loved about these is the texture that the chocolate chips and rice krispies provide when they are together. The little chunks and the thick krispie layer is really great.



Now, go celebrate the fact that it's March!

Brown Butter Cookie Dough Rice Krispie Treats

adapted from The Cookie Dough Lover's Cookbook and The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook

makes 9 treats

Ingredients:

for the cookie dough:

1/3 cup unsalted butter, room temperature 

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 cup milk, heavy cream or half-and-half

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips 

for the rice krispie treats:

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1/8 teaspoon salt 

10 oz. marshmallows 

6 cups rice krispies cereal

Directions: 

Butter an 8x8-inch pan and set aside. 

To make the cookie dough, cream together the butter and sugars in the bowl of an electric mixer until fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Beat in the vanilla and milk until incorporated. Add the flour and salt in low speed until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chips. Set aside. 

To make the rice krispies, brown the butter in a large pot over medium heat. It will melt, foam, bubble and brown. Once it browns, take off heat and stir in the salt, followed by the marshmallows. Stir until the marshmallows are completely combined with the butter and melted. If the marshmallows do not melt completely, place back over heat until the marshmallows do melt. Then, gently stir in the cereal. 

To assemble, spread half of the rice krispie mixture in the prepared pan. Then, evenly spread the cookie dough on top, followed by the second half of the rice krispie mixture. Buttered hands will work the best to assemble the treats as they are very sticky. 

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.