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Home » Baking

Salted Caramel Rice Krispie Treats

May 25, 2016 by Jane Saunders 19 Comments

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SALTED CARAMEL RICE KRISPIE TREATS - pinterest image
SALTED CARAMEL RICE KRISPIE TREATS - pinterest image

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.

Salted Caramel rice Krispie Treats served with coffee

I’m a self-confessed caramel obsessive, 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.

Am I right in thinking that salted caramel is taking over the world? It appear in anything and everything from cupcakes to cocktails. I, for one, am all in favour of this current food fashion since I’m crazy about the combination of sweet, silky caramel with a savoury hit of sea salt.

Pecan nuts and marshmallows

And in this recipe for salted caramel bars it’s as good as it sounds – a princely layer of soft, creamy, salty caramel & pecan nuts wedged between layers of sweet vanilla scented rice krispie marshmallow treats.

All-in-all, it’s decadently sweet. Utterly gooey. Totally tempting.

I took a tray of these salted caramel rice krispie treats to my unsuspecting in-laws last weekend to see what other people thought of them.

My lovely Father-in-Law (Hi Ron) is not a greedy man. He does have a sweet tooth, but he also has far more self-restraint than me. A lot more. He took just half a square (half a square???). I think he thought I’d been ambitious in my serving size given the inherent sweetness of the caramel and the marshmallow Rice Krispies.

However, those pecan nuts and the sea salt just seem to temper that sweetness in just the right way. Even my non-greedy Father-in-Law told me that half a square was not enough.

Salted Caramel rice Krispie Treats being cut into squares in parchment

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
Pouring caramel over a rice krispie treats layer in a baking tin

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.

Pecan nuts sprinkled over caramel in a baking tin

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?

Salted Caramel Rice Krispie Treats with pecans cut into squares on a worktop

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.

I’ll also bet they can eat an entire square in one sitting.

Find More Exciting Caramel Recipes:

  • Hot Drinking Caramel (with or without bourbon)
  • Salted caramel ice-cream
  • Chocolate caramel shortbread bars or fruit & nut caramel shortbread
  • Stroopwafel ice-cream with caramel
Salted Caramel Rice Krispie Treat

Salted Caramel Rice Krispie Treats

Jane Saunders
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.
5 from 1 vote
Print Pin Rate
Course: Baking, Dessert
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes minutes
Servings: 16
Calories: 261kcal
Prevent your screen from going dark

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

    Notes

    Several readers have requested conversions into American cups. At the time of publishing, I was not confident I had the cup measures right and only go ahead and publish cup measures when I am confident. I hope this doesn’t bother you too much. Please remember that I’m offering up my recipes for free. I do not get paid. Please also remember that I am a UK blogger, where grams and ounces are normal measures – not cups. It’s just one of our many little differences. I do my best to convert as many recipes as possible for my readers, but sometimes this just isn’t possible (blame the butter & marshmallows in this instance).
    Below is my best attempt at converting this recipe. I’d love to know how you get along if you use these measures. 40g/ 3 tbsp/ ⅙ cup butter 220g/ 8 oz/ 3 cups/ 25 regular vanilla marshmallows -not mini and not jumbo 130g/ 4 ½ oz/ 5 cups rice krispies !For the Salted Caramel 300g/ 10 ½oz / 1 cup condensed milk 75g/ 3oz / ⅓ cup butter 75g/ 3oz / ⅓ cup dark brown sugar 3 tablespoon golden syrup ½ – ¾ teaspoon sea salt (depending on taste) 100g/ 4oz/ 1 cup pecan nuts – roughly chopped

    Nutrition Per Serving (Approximate)

    Calories:261kcal | Carbohydrates:37g | Protein:3g | Fat:12g | Saturated Fat:5g | Cholesterol:22mg | Sodium:312mg | Potassium:112mg | Fiber:1g | Sugar:27g | Vitamin A:774IU | Vitamin C:6mg | Calcium:63mg | Iron:3mg
    Tried this Recipe? Pin it Today!Mention @littlesugarsnap or tag #littlesugarsnaps!

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    1. browneyes

      August 24, 2021 at 1:31 pm

      what size is a 20cm by 20cm pan?

      Reply
      • Jane Saunders

        August 24, 2021 at 1:36 pm

        that’s an 8x8inch tin

        Reply
    2. sandy carder

      May 11, 2021 at 3:13 pm

      what size is a 20cm by 20xm baking dish

      Reply
    3. sandy carder

      May 11, 2021 at 3:10 pm

      what size of pan is a 20cm by 20cm

      Reply
    4. sandy carder

      February 10, 2021 at 9:55 pm

      can u use light brown sugar?

      Reply
      • Jane Saunders

        February 10, 2021 at 10:25 pm

        yes you can Sandy. You’ll find the caramel may vary in colour slightly.

        Reply
    5. Susie

      August 17, 2017 at 1:08 pm

      What is golden syrup? Dark karo?

      Reply
      • Jane Saunders

        August 22, 2017 at 5:20 pm

        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.

        Reply
    6. Juanita

      April 22, 2017 at 4:53 am

      Sorry for the long absence. Thank You so much. I haven’t made them yet, but hope to real soon.

      Reply
      • Jane Saunders

        April 24, 2017 at 5:03 pm

        I hope you enjoy when you do!

        Reply
    7. Juanita

      January 26, 2017 at 1:37 am

      Jane this looks extremely delicious!
      I’m greatly confused on the measurement listing.
      Can you convert the amounts to Cup sizes, please?

      Reply
      • Jane Saunders

        January 26, 2017 at 11:01 pm

        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.

        Reply
        • Margaret

          December 21, 2020 at 12:14 am

          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

          December 21, 2020 at 10:28 am

          That’s good to know – scales make accuracy in baking so much easier! Hope you enjoy them.

      • Jane Saunders

        January 29, 2017 at 1:24 pm

        Hey Juanita – I’ve just put some cup measures up – you’ll find them in the notes section. Enjoy!

        Reply
    8. Mary Anne

      June 03, 2016 at 12:40 am

      Can you cut them and serve with caramel on top by chance or is caramel to soft and runny?

      Reply
      • Jane Saunders

        June 03, 2016 at 1:30 pm

        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.

        Reply
    9. Thalia @ butter and brioche

      May 26, 2016 at 9:32 am

      love rice krispie treats and i love your unique take on them with that pecan filling. looks SO delicious! Xx

      Reply
      • Jane Saunders

        May 26, 2016 at 10:18 am

        ah, thanks so much Thalia.

        Reply

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