Our red, white, and blue Patriotic Rice Krispie Treats feature strawberry, blueberry, and vanilla flavors. They’re quick, no-bake (of course), and for fun, we serve them on skewers. The result is a cute dessert all will remember!
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Everyone loves them (especially strawberry flavor), and they are perfect for Independence Day, Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and other patriotic holidays.
By the way, looking for easy desserts for summer celebrations? See the most delicious strawberry popsicles or our AMAZEBALLS lemon mousse.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe…
- Have you ever found yourself scrambling for a 4th of July dessert everyone will love? This one is perfect. It’s a crowd-pleaser, fun, festive, and screams U.S.A. Make them for your backyard barbecue or potluck, and the gathering will feel more like a proper Patriotic celebration.
- Are you just kinda like “ugh” about baking in the summer? Yeah, me too! When summer rolls around, I have like zero interest in turning on the oven. Even with the AC, the oven is not fun in the summer. That’s why we make no-bake treats like this!
- Not only are they no-bake, but they’re also super-easy to whip up a batch. Simply melt, mix, and press into a pan. It’s that easy. Yep, they’re virtually foolproof. So it’s also the perfect recipe for the kiddos to help with.
- If you’re anything like me, Rice Krispie treats always take you back to childhood! It’s the gooey marshmallows, the perfect crunch, and helping mom make them. But the red, white, and blue make them even more memorable.
Ingredients
- Rice Cereal – you can grab the national brand or the generic stuff, either will work fine.
- Marshmallows – mini marshmallows melt quicker than larger ones.
- Butter – You can use salted or unsalted butter. We prefer unsalted as it allows us to control the amount of salt in the treats.
- Vanilla Extract – add vanilla extract to the original recipe.
- Freeze-dried Strawberries – pulverized freeze-dried strawberries add an irresistible strawberry flavor and gives the treats a red/pink hue.
- Freeze-dried Blueberries – pulverized freeze-dried blueberries add blueberry flavor to the treats and gives them a light blue hue for the patriotic treats.
- Condensed Milk – makes the treats even richer and gooey-er.
- Salt – if you don’t use salted butter, add a pinch of salt. It intensifies the flavor. Strawberry and blueberry flavors actually become more fruity.
See the recipe card for quantities.
How to Make Patriotic Rice Krispie Treats
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Spray 3 9×9-inch pans with butter cooking spray and set them aside.
Follow the instructions to make these delicious Rice Krispie Treats. Only need to make a ½ batch.
Place the freeze-dried strawberries in a food processor and blend until they become a powder. Set it aside.
Then, place the freeze-dried blueberries in a food processor and blend until they become a powder. Set it aside.
In a large pot over medium heat, melt 3 tablespoons of butter and add ⅛ teaspoon salt. Use a rubber spatula to spread some butter up the sides of the pot to help prevent sticking.
Pour in ⅓ cup of sweetened condensed milk and stir to mix it with the butter.
Add 6 ounces of mini marshmallows and stir continuously over medium heat until they are fully melted. Then, remove the pot from the heat.
Stir in ½ teaspoon vanilla, freeze-dried blueberry powder, and blue food coloring until everything is well combined. Add more food coloring if needed to get the desired color. Pour in 3 ½ cups of Rice Krispy cereal and use the rubber spatula to gently fold everything together until the cereal is evenly coated.
Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Wet your hands, shake off the excess water, and gently press the mixture into the pan.
Repeat steps 5-9 to make the strawberry rice krispie treats, except omit the food coloring.
Leave the treats at room temperature for about an hour to cool and firm up. Using a rubber spatula, remove the treats from the pan and then cut them into squares with a knife. Enjoy!
Top Tips
You want chewy treats instead of rock-hard briquettes that send your guests to the dentist’s office, right? So, whatever you do, don’t overheat the marshmallow mixture. Remove it from the heat as soon as the marshmallows are melted.
Also, dissolve the salt into the butter. Doing so will spread the salt evenly throughout the treats.
Storage
You can keep them on the counter for up to 3 days and they’ll stay soft and chewy (and surprisingly still crispy).
If you want them to last longer, place them in the fridge or freezer in a food storage container or freezer bag. If you have more than one layer, use parchment paper to separate them. They’ll last up to 2 months in the freezer.
Bring them to room temperature before serving.
FAQ
We use freeze-dried fruit like strawberries and blueberries. But there are other ways to do it. You can use food coloring (gel has less moisture), colored gelatin, or even sprinkles.
Yes! These patriotic Rice Krispie treats are perfect to make ahead of time. But I would only make them a day in advance. Store them in an airtight food storage container at room temperature.
We do two things to keep Rice Krispie treats soft and chewy. First, don’t overheat the marshmallow mixture. Second, add the sweetened condensed milk.
Patriotic Rice Krispy Treats Recipe
Equipment
- 1 Food Processor
Ingredients
- Rice Krispie Treat ½ Batch
- 6 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
- ¼ Tsp Kosher Salt
- ⅔ Cup Sweetened Condensed Milk
- 12 Oz Mini Marshmallows
- 1 Tsp Vanilla Extract
- 7 Cups Rice Krispie Cereal
- ½ Oz Freeze-Dried Strawberries
- ½ Oz Freeze-Dried Blueberries
- 3 Drops of Blue Gel Food Coloring Optional
Instructions
- Spray 3 9×9-inch pans with butter cooking spray and set them aside.
- Follow the instructions to make these delicious Rice Krispie Treats. Only need to make a ½ batch.
- Place the freeze-dried strawberries in a food processor and blend until they become a powder. Set it aside.
- Then, place the freeze-dried blueberries in a food processor and blend until they become a powder. Set it aside.
- In a large pot over medium heat, melt 3 tablespoons of butter and add ⅛ teaspoon salt. Use a rubber spatula to spread some butter up the sides of the pot to help prevent sticking.
- Pour in ⅓ cup of sweetened condensed milk and stir to mix it with the butter.
- Add 6 ounces of mini marshmallows and stir continuously over medium heat until they are fully melted. Then, remove the pot from the heat.
- Stir in ½ teaspoon vanilla, freeze-dried blueberry powder, and blue food coloring until everything is well combined. Add more food coloring if needed to get the desired color. Pour in 3 ½ cups of Rice Krispy cereal and use the rubber spatula to gently fold everything together until the cereal is evenly coated.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Wet your hands, shake off the excess water, and gently press the mixture into the pan.
- Repeat steps 5-9 to make the strawberry rice krispie treats, except omit the food coloring.
- Leave the treats at room temperature for about an hour to cool and firm up. Using a rubber spatula, remove the treats from the pan and then cut them into squares with a knife. Enjoy!
Notes
- The butter and sweetened condensed milk will look like it’s separated, but it will come together.
- Store leftovers in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- Make sure you spray the utensils with cooking spray, this recipe is sticky.
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