Buttery and ultra-gooey Vegan Rice Crispy Treats! This classic no-bake treat comes together in a little over 30 minutes with just a handful of ingredients. Such a family favourite!
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FEATURED COMMENT:
"This was a very straightforward and easy recipe to follow. It worked EXACTLY like the instructions showed. Could not have been much easier. I hadn't had rice crispy treats since going vegan, so this was such a treat!" - Ryan ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ More reviews →
Take just one bite of these chewy, gooey, buttery Vegan Rice Crispy Treats, and you'll immediately remember why they are such a well-loved family favourite! They are melt-in-your-mouth, soft, gooey, chewy, light and crispy all at the same time, and extra rich and buttery!
I'll be sharing all of my tips and tricks for getting incredible flavour in your bars, and for working with vegan marshmallows too, because they can be tricky little things. They put up such a fight when you try to melt them, but I have a solution!
Mel x
Ingredients
Here is what you need at a glance, along with some important ingredient notes & substitution ideas:
- Vegan crispy rice cereal - Note that Kellogg's Rice Krispies cereal is not vegan. It contains animal-derived vitamin D3. I like to use either Nature's Path Organic Crispy Rice Cereal or One Degree Brown Rice Crisps.
- Vegan marshmallows - For lots of gooey sweetness! Regular marshmallows are not vegan or even vegetarian, so you need to seek out some vegan ones. They are easy to find in most grocery stores these days. I use Dandies, and I highly recommend using mini marshmallows rather than the larger ones because they melt more easily. Or cut the big ones up with kitchen scissors before you add them to the pan.
- Dairy-free butter - You can use my vegan butter recipe or store-bought vegan butter. You can even use vegan brown butter if you want to take your treats up a notch with lots of extra delicious flavour (see below for details)!
- Vanilla extract & salt - Essential for the best flavour. Use the vanilla even if your marshmallows are vanilla flavoured.
How To Make Vegan Rice Crispy Treats
Can't wait to make them? The full printable recipe is below, but first, let me walk you through the steps to set you up for success in your kitchen.
Melt the butter or brown the butter (for loads of extra delicious flavour), then add the marshmallows.
Melt the marshmallows into the butter. This isn't as easy as it is when using non-vegan marshmallows. Keep stirring and smushing them with the back of a spoon. They will end up looking pretty much melted and soft but still clumpy and separated from the butter. Not a cohesive mixture. Don't panic. That's ok.
Now add the water, stir again, and the marshmallows will magically smooth out, and the butter will incorporate properly. Mine looks speckly because I used brown butter.
Add the rice crispies and mix it all up using a sturdy spoon or spatula.
Press gently into an 8 x 8 inch pan or ceramic baking dish lined with either cling-wrap or parchment paper to make removing them easy and allow to set for about 20 minutes.
Important!
Don't press the rice crispy mixture into the pan too firmly. Use damp fingertips or a damp spatula to stop it from sticking and gently press until just spread out enough. If you press too hard, the mixture will get too compacted, and your treats will be less gooey and set up harder.
Take Them Up A Notch With Brown Butter!
A very easy way to make your rice crispy treats taste even better is to make them with vegan brown butter instead of regular melted vegan butter.
Vegan brown butter rice crispy treats take an extra 10 minutes to prepare because you need to brown the butter first, but it's so worth it for the extra flavour. Brown butter really does make everything better!
Rice Crispy Treat Add-Ins
Vegan Rice Crispy Treats are perfect as they are, but feel free to make them your own. Some of my favourite add-ins and flavourings include:
- Sprinkles! I wouldn't add more than half a cup, and make sure they are vegan! Add them after you've mixed in the rice crispies and don't stir too much, or the dye might bleed into the marshmallow.
- Mini chocolate chips or a drizzle of melted chocolate.
- Freeze-dried raspberry or strawberry pieces.
- A s'mores spin with crushed vegan graham crackers and a swirl of chocolate.
- A cookies-and-cream spin with crushed chocolate sandwich cookies in the mix.
- Use almond extract instead of the vanilla. I would only use half a teaspoon, though, as it's a bit stronger.
Recipe FAQs
Yes. Melt the butter in a large microwave-safe bowl (or brown it, then add it to the bowl), add the marshmallows, then microwave on high for 40 seconds. Take them out and give it a good stir, then continue microwaving in 30-second increments, stirring each time. After about 3 minutes, the marshmallows should have lost their shape and will be really soft. Give them a quick beat with a spoon, then continue with the recipe as written. Things won't be completely smooth and emulsified, but don't worry. The next step takes care of that.
You can, but you will need to double the recipe.
I don't recommend freezing them. The texture isn't the same once they are defrosted.
Recipe
Vegan Rice Crispy Treats
Author:Ingredients
- ½ cup (110 grams) vegan butter, store-bought or homemade
- OR 1 batch vegan brown butter, for extra delicious flavour!
- 10 oz (283 grams) vegan marshmallows, I use Dandies. Mini marshmallows melt more easily than large ones (add an extra 1 or 2 handfuls if you want your bars extra, extra gooey!)
- 4½ cups (180 grams) vegan rice crispies
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (use even if your marshmallows are vanilla flavoured)
- heaping ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt, not table salt
INSTRUCTIONS
To make the brown butter (optional)
- If you want to use brown butter, please visit my Vegan Brown Butter post. It contains full and detailed instructions, step-by-step pictures and a video. It's not difficult and only takes 10 minutes, but it needs more detail than I can comfortably fit here. You can make it up to 2 weeks in advance.
To make the Rice Crispy Treats
- Line an 8 x 8 inch pan/dish with parchment paper or cling-wrap and have the rice crispies measured out and everything else to hand before you begin.
- In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, add the butter or brown butter and melt over medium-low heat. (If the brown butter is freshly made, you won't need to melt it). Add the marshmallows and stir, smush with the spoon and beat over the heat until they become really soft and gloopy. It takes a good 10 minutes, maybe up to 15. They put up a fight, but if you keep beating and smushing, they will get there. At this stage, they won't be completely fluffy and smooth, and the butter will stay separated and not mix in properly. This is normal. Don't worry. (There are step-by-step pictures of this in the post above).
- Now add the water, salt and vanilla and mix and beat again. The butter will magically combine with the marshmallows, and it will all become perfectly smooth and pillowy soft.
- Turn off the heat and add the crispy rice. Stir until it is all thoroughly coated in marshmallow.
- Spoon the mixture into the pan and gently press to fit without compacting too much. Either use wet fingers or a wet spatula to stop any sticking. A light touch is essential. Compact too much and they won't be as gooey and could become hard.
- Allow to set at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes, then turn out and cut into 9 squares (or 12 smaller ones).
NOTES
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Ryan Scofield says
This was a very straight-forward and easy recipe to follow. It worked EXACTLY like the instructions showed. Could not have been much easier. I hadn't had rice crispy treats since going vegan, so this was such a treat! I ended up adding a layer of peanut butter, chocolate, and chocolate chips to be extra fancy. They turned out so good! I can't stop eating them.