Salted caramel rice krispie treats combine sweet, salty caramel with mellow pecan nuts and classic vanilla marshmallow rice krispie treats. This easy no-bake recipe for salted caramel bars creates a seriously gooey and dangerously addictive treat.
A salted caramel latte goes nicely with this bake.
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This recipe for salted caramel rice krispie treats is as good as it sounds. There’s a princely layer of soft, creamy, salty caramel & pecan nuts wedged between layers of sweet vanilla-scented rice krispie marshmallow treats.
I’m a self-confessed caramel obsessive and I have plenty of recipes featuring this goodie, ranging from my popular salted caramel ice cream to my outrageous caramel cornflake brownies. So it should come as no surprise that I can think of endless ways to sneak this sweet nectar into my baking. This time I’ve decided to pair it with pecan nuts, marshmallows and Rice Krispies to create these magical salted caramel rice krispie treats.
All-in-all, it’s decadently sweet. Utterly gooey. Totally tempting.
Recipe for Salted Caramel Bars
These salted caramel rice krispie treats are a breeze to make. There’s no baking involved. The caramel is fool-proof. And you can cut small or large squares depending how gluttonous you feel like being.
- Begin by making the caramel: melt the condensed milk, butter, sugar and syrup over a medium heat, then boil for 2-3 minutes. Take off the heat, stir in some sea salt and set aside
- In another pan, heat half of the butter until melted and then stir in half of the marshmallows. Once they have also melted, add half of the rice krispies and stir in. Press into the base of a lined baking tin
- Give the caramel a stir and pour over the krispie base. Scatter the chopped pecan nuts over the top and place in the fridge for 1-2 hours to set
- Use the remaining butter, marshmallows and rice cereal to make another batch of marshmallow krispies and spoon it over the caramel layer. Spread the krispies out and press down gently, but firmly
- Leave to set
Can I Leave Out the Salt?
Of course. Though I’d argue that a tiny pinch (say ⅛ tsp) really enhances the flavour of any caramel without giving it that pronounced salty twang associated with salted caramel.
Do I have to Use Pecan Nuts?
The pecans can be left out altogether or substituted for another nut. Peanuts would be a great alternative.
Tip for Making Rice Krispie Treats
And bonus – I have a tip for making Rice Krispie Treats. I’m bursting to tell you this tip. But I’m also a little nervous… in case you all know this already and I’m last to the party. Here goes…
One of the things I’ve always found frustrating about making Rice Krispie Treats is just how sticky the stuff is and how quickly it starts to set. I always end up in a very sticky mess. That was until out of sheer desperation – midway through getting the mixture stuck to metal spoons, wooden spoons and my hands – I reached for the cellophane wrapper from the marshmallows. It didn’t stick. Not one bit. I could gently ease the cereal into the corners of my baking tin and level the top without difficulty. No more cursing. No more mess. I have to say, I’ll be storing up clean cellophane wrappers for this purpose from now on.
You knew this already, didn’t you? Party over?
I’ll be honest, when I first thought up this recipe for salted caramel bars I was thinking that they would be a grown-up version of my Millionaire’s Caramel Krispie Squares. After all, they do contain nuts and don’t contain chocolate (I never like to stereotype).
However, really, the flavours in these salted caramel rice krispie treats blend so well together that I defy any child not to like them simply because they contain nuts.
Find More Exciting Caramel Recipes
Have you made these salted caramel rice krispie treats? Please let me know if you enjoyed them by leaving a review.
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Salted Caramel Rice Krispie Treats
Ingredients
SEE THE NOTES SECTION FOR CONVERSION INTO CUPS
For the Krispie Treats
- 40 g/ 3 tablespoon butter
- 220 g/ 8 oz vanilla marshmallows
- 130 g/ 4 ½ oz rice krispies
For the Salted Caramel
- 300 g/ 10 ½oz condensed milk
- 75 g/ 3oz butter
- 75 g/ 3oz dark brown sugar
- 3 tablespoon golden syrup
- ½ – ¾ teaspoon sea salt (depending on taste)
- 100 g/ 4oz pecan nuts – roughly chopped
Instructions
- Grease and line a deep 20cm x 20cm tin with baking parchment
- Make the caramel: put the condensed milk, butter, sugar and syrup into a heavy based pan and melt, over a medium heat, stirring frequently,until the sugar has dissolved, then bring up to boiling
- Allow the mixture to gentle boil for 2-3 minutes. Take off the heat, stir in the sea salt and set aside
- Put 20g butter into a small, heavy based saucepan. Heat on low-medium, until melted. Add 110g marshmallows and stir with a wooden spoon, until the marshmallows have melted and are thoroughly blended with the butter. Quickly mix in half of the rice krispies
- Spoon the marshmallow krispies into the tin, and spread out evenly. Ensure the mixture is pressed down gently but firmly to create a solid layer. The mixture will be very sticky but using a piece of cellophane makes this task much easier.
- Give the caramel a stir and pour over the krispie base. Scatter the chopped pecan nuts over the top and place in the fridge for 1-2 hours to set
- Using the remaining butter, marshmallows and rice cereal, make another batch of marshmallow krispies and spoon it over the caramel layer. Again, using a piece of cellophane, spread the krispies out and press down gently, but firmly
- Leave to firm up for an hour before slicing into squares
- Store in an airtight tin. Best eaten within 2 days
Linda
This sounds fantastic and I would love to try it…. But what is ‘golden syrup’?
Jane Coupland
Hi Linda, it’s a type of syrup readily available here in the UK. It’s harder to come by abroad and the closest substitute would be amber coloured corn syrup. Hope this helps.
browneyes
what size is a 20cm by 20cm pan?
Jane Saunders
that’s an 8x8inch tin
sandy carder
what size is a 20cm by 20xm baking dish
sandy carder
what size of pan is a 20cm by 20cm
sandy carder
can u use light brown sugar?
Jane Saunders
yes you can Sandy. You’ll find the caramel may vary in colour slightly.
Susie
What is golden syrup? Dark karo?
Jane Saunders
Hi Susie, golden syrup is an inverted sugar syrup, made from sugar cane juice that has been concentrated and is about 25% sweeter than sugar. Lyle’s golden syrup is probably the best known brand and is available in many places, but if you can’t get it, the best substitute is light corn syrup. I’m not sure what karo is – could that be a brand name? Hope this info helps.
Juanita
Sorry for the long absence. Thank You so much. I haven’t made them yet, but hope to real soon.
Jane Saunders
I hope you enjoy when you do!
Juanita
Jane this looks extremely delicious!
I’m greatly confused on the measurement listing.
Can you convert the amounts to Cup sizes, please?
Jane Saunders
Thankyou Juanita. Grams and ounces are second nature to me. Cups and sticks, on the other hand, are hard for me to fathom, so I understand your confusion. I tend to put cups down in place of oz. when I’m confident I’ve got the measures right. Bear with me and I’ll work on the cup measurements over the weekend for you. I’ll update you when I’m there.
Margaret
I’m just making these as I write. They look delicious! I wouldn’t worry too much about converting to imperial for people, they sell kitchen scales here in Canada and the US so it’s easy for us to convert. Thanks for the recipe!
Jane Saunders
That’s good to know – scales make accuracy in baking so much easier! Hope you enjoy them.
Jane Saunders
Hey Juanita – I’ve just put some cup measures up – you’ll find them in the notes section. Enjoy!
Mary Anne
Can you cut them and serve with caramel on top by chance or is caramel to soft and runny?
Jane Saunders
Hi Mary Ann, I can see why you’d like to do that – the caramel and pecans do look glorious together don’t they? Hmm. The caramel is not ultra runny. If you wanted to try, I’d recommend chilling it for 45 minutes or so until it firms up slightly, then cutting and serving straight away.
Thalia @ butter and brioche
love rice krispie treats and i love your unique take on them with that pecan filling. looks SO delicious! Xx
Jane Saunders
ah, thanks so much Thalia.