Peanut butter and honey add grown-up flair to nostalgic crispy rice treats

Crunchy, gooey, sweet and easy to make, crispy rice treats are a dessert that delivers joy and invites creativity. The recipe as we know it first appeared on a box of Kellogg’s Rice Krispies cereal in 1940 and is a simple combination of the cereal, marshmallows, butter and vanilla. It has not only stood the test of time as an American favorite, but also has inspired unique variations galore, with add-ins such as fruit, nuts and candy; forms including animal shapes and Bundt cakes; and spin-offs made with different cereals and sticky binders.

I developed a chocolaty version for The Washington Post in the past, but I decided to get back into the game with this recipe that amps up the playfulness and nutrition by turning the treats into cups ready to hold any fun filling you like and uses more healthful ingredients to make them.

Instead of binding the cereal with butter and marshmallows, here peanut butter and honey do the trick. The peanut butter adds unmistakable flavor and makes the dessert deliciously rich thanks to its healthy fats. Plus, it provides protein to make it more nutritionally balanced. (If you can’t have peanuts, any other nut or seed butter would work just as well.) The honey does the heavy lifting, gluing the ingredients together while adding sweetness without refined sugar. Simply warm the peanut butter and honey in a medium pot until they have melted, then stir in the cereal. Crispy brown rice cereal, which can be found at most health food stores and well-stocked supermarkets, turns this into a whole-grain treat, though regular crispy rice cereal is fine, too.

To make the cups, divide the cereal mixture into the paper-lined wells of a muffin tin and press each down with a spoon to form them, then pop them in the refrigerator to set. Once chilled, the sweet, crunchy cups can be filled with anything you can imagine - a scoop of ice cream, melted chocolate, a dollop of whipped cream - but I prefer them piled with fresh raspberries, which give the cups major PB&J vibes and are a fresh, colorful and better-for-you way to satisfy a sweet tooth.

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Crispy Rice Cups With Raspberries

Servings: 12 (makes 12 crispy rice cups)

Active time: 25 mins. Total time: 55 mins

These crispy rice treats are held together with peanut butter and honey rather than marshmallow to form cups that hold a pile of fresh raspberries. They are a fun and better-for-you take on the popular dessert.

Make ahead: Refrigerate the unfilled cups in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

INGREDIENTS

Neutral oil or nonstick cooking spray

3/4 cup (190 grams) creamy, natural peanut butter

1/2 cup (170 grams) honey

3 1/2 cups (135 grams) crispy brown rice cereal

8 ounces fresh raspberries (48 raspberries)

DIRECTIONS

Step 1
Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners, and brush the inside of each lightly with oil, or spray with nonstick cooking spray.

Step 2
In a medium (4-quart) pot over medium-low heat, combine the peanut butter and honey, and cook, stirring frequently, for 2 to 3 minutes, or until melted and well combined. Remove from the heat. Stir in the rice cereal, coating it evenly with the peanut butter mixture.

Step 3
Evenly divide the rice mixture among the wells of the prepared tin, using about 1/3 cup in each well. (To make portioning even easier, you can grease the measuring cup with oil or nonstick spray.) Use the back of a spoon to firmly press the mixture into each cup, forming a shallow well in the center.

Step 4
Refrigerate for 30 minutes to set, then remove each cup (with the paper liner) from the tin, fill with about 4 of the raspberries, and serve.

Substitutions: Peanut butter >> other nut butter or sunflower butter. Vegan? >> Use agave instead of honey. Crispy brown rice cereal >> regular crispy rice cereal. Gluten-free >> Be sure to use cereal labeled such. Raspberries >> other fresh berries.

Nutritional facts per cup: Calories: 196, Fat: 8 g, Saturated Fat: 1 g, Carbohydrates: 27 g, Sodium: 87 mg, Cholesterol: 0 mg, Protein: 5 g, Fiber: 3 g, Sugar: 14 g.

This analysis is an estimate based on available ingredients and this preparation. It should not substitute for a dietitian’s or nutritionist’s advice.