These Loaded Rice Krispie Treats take the classic to a whole new level with everything but the kitchen sink! A rich marshmallow base is packed with sweet and salty favorites—pretzels, potato chips, nuts, and chocolate chips—for a bar that’s crunchy, chewy, and completely indulgent.
Before You Start Cooking
- Prep everything first. Once the marshmallows are melted, you’ll need to work quickly before the mixture starts to set. Have your cereals and mix-ins measured and ready to go.
- Use fresh marshmallows. Older marshmallows don’t melt as smoothly and can make the treats dense instead of soft and chewy. We like the Jet-Puffed brand.
- Pan: Use an 8×8-inch baking pan, lightly misted with cooking spray and lined with parchment (leave a 2-inch overhang on two sides for easy lifting).
How to Make Loaded (Kitchen Sink) Rice Krispie Treats
Step 1: Melt the Butter and Marshmallows
In a large, heavy pot (like an enameled cast iron Dutch oven), melt unsalted butter over medium heat. You can use standard American-style butter or a European-style butter like Kerrygold or Plugrá for a richer flavor.
When the butter melts and starts to foam lightly, reduce the heat to low and stir in the salt and cinnamon. Warming the spices in the butter first helps bloom the cinnamon for the best flavor.
Add mini marshmallows and stir just until they’re about three-quarters melted. Be sure to keep the pot on low heat and melt the marshmallows gently. When the heat is too high, the sugars can caramelize, which makes the finished bars tough.
Turn off the heat, stir in vanilla extract, and continue stirring until the marshmallow mixture is melted and smooth.
Step 2: Add the Cereals
These Loaded Rice Krispie Treats use a trio of cereals: classic Rice Krispies, Cocoa Krispies (for a hint of chocolate), and Golden Grahams (for a toasty graham cracker flavor).
Once the marshmallows are melted, add all of the cereals to the pot. Use a rubber spatula to gently lift and fold until the cereals are coated.
The mixture should look glossy and loose, with plenty of melted marshmallow left to coat your add-ins. Don’t stir too vigorously—you want to crush the puffed rice cereal.
Step 3: Fold in the Mix-Ins
Now for the fun part—the sweet and salty “everything” that makes these bars irresistible. Gently fold in miniature pretzels (roughly chopped), kettle-cooked potato chips (roughly crushed), and mixed nuts (chopped), until they’re evenly coated in the glossy marshmallow mixture.
I like using lightly salted mixed nuts in this recipe. If you prefer a more pronounced sweet-salty contrast, go all in with salted.
Let the mixture rest for a minute or two and then fold in milk chocolate chips, just until they’re distributed. You’ll only need a couple of quick folds once the chocolate chips are added. Some of them will melt down, leaving little pockets of creamy chocolate throughout the treats.
My family loves the sweetness and creaminess of milk chocolate here, but if you prefer a less-sweet treat, swap in semisweet chips instead.
Step 4: Press into the Pan
Transfer the mixture to your prepared pan. It’ll be sticky—use the butter wrapper, a lightly greased spatula, or a piece of parchment paper to press it into an even layer. Don’t press too hard; gentle pressure keeps the bars light and chewy.
I like to sprinkle a few extra broken pretzel pieces and chocolate chips on top for texture and a finished look. When you serve the treats, the topping hints at all the good stuff waiting inside.
Step 5: Cool and Slice
Let the treats cool completely at room temperature for at least an hour, preferably 2 to 3 hours if you have the time to wait. The hardest part is resisting the temptation to dig in—but it’s worth it!
Lift the cooled slab out of the pan using the parchment overhang and cut the treats into 9 large or 16 smaller squares with a sharp knife. We cut the batch shown here into 9 squares, but they’re rich and filling enough that smaller pieces are usually the perfect bite for us.
The texture of these Loaded Rice Krispie Treats is best the day you make them, when the pretzels and potato chips are at their crunchiest. You can still enjoy them for 2 to 3 days, stored in an airtight container at room temperature—just don’t refrigerate, or they’ll become too firm.
Variations
- Cinnamon Toast Crunch: Swap the Golden Grahams for Cinnamon Toast Crunch for a little extra cinnamon-sugar kick.
- Different Chips: Try butterscotch or peanut butter chips instead of chocolate chips for a fun flavor twist.
- Colorful Add-In: Swap the chocolate chips for mini M&M’s to add bright pops of color and a little extra sweetness. Stir them in just until evenly mixed to keep the candy shells from bleeding into the treats.
More Rice Krispie Treat Recipes
- Caramel Apple Pie Rice Krispie Treats
- Coconut Rice Krispie Treats with Pecans
- Strawberry Rice Krispie Treats
- Peanut Butter Cup Rice Krispie Treats
Loaded Rice Krispie Treats
Ingredients
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter (see note)
- 12 ounces Jet-Puffed mini marshmallows (10 ounce bag plus 1 cup; 6-1/2 cups total)
- ¼ teaspoon table salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups puffed rice cereal (Rice Krispies, 2 ounces)
- 1 cup chocolate puffed rice cereal (Cocoa Krispies, 1.5 ounces)
- 1 cup graham cracker cereal (Golden Grahams, about 1.4 ounces)
- 1 cup roughly-crushed kettle cooked potato chips (2 to 2.4 ounces, sea salt variety)
- ½ cup roughly chopped lightly-salted mixed nuts
- ½ cup roughly-chopped mini pretzels (about 1 ounce), plus an additional 1/4 cup for topping (optional)
- ½ cup milk chocolate chips , plus an additional 3-4 tablespoons for topping (optional)
Instructions
- Prepare the Pan: Lightly mist an 8×8-inch square baking pan with cooking spray and line it with parchment, leaving a 2-inch overhang on two sides for easy lifting. Set aside.
- Melt the Butter and Marshmallows: In a large, heavy pot (such as an enameled cast iron Dutch oven), melt the butter over medium heat. Reduce the heat to low, and stir in the salt and cinnamon.
- Add the mini marshmallows and stir until they’re about three-quarters melted. Turn off the heat, stir in the vanilla extract, and continue stirring until the mixture is fully melted and smooth.
- Add the Cereals: Off the heat, gently fold in the Rice Krispies, Cocoa Krispies, and Golden Grahams with a rubber spatula until the cereal is evenly coated. Don't crush the cereal by stirring too vigorously.
- Fold in the Mix-Ins: Add the potato chips, pretzels, and nuts all at once and gently fold them in. Let the mixture rest for 1 to 2 minutes, then fold in the chocolate chips with just a couple of turns of your spatula until they're distributed throughout the cereal mixture. Don't overstir.
- Press into the Pan: Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan. Press gently into an even layer using the butter wrapper, greased spatula, or a piece of parchment to keep the marshmallow from sticking to your hands. Don’t press too firmly or the treats will be dense. Sprinkle a few extra pretzel pieces and chocolate chips on top, if desired.
- Cool and Slice: Let the treats cool at room temperature for at least 1 hour (2–3 hours for cleanest cuts). Use the parchment overhang to lift them out of the pan, then cut into 9 large or 16 smaller squares with a sharp knife.
- Storage: The texture is best the day they’re made. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Do not refrigerate.
Notes
Nutrition Estimate
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Please note that our recipes have been developed using the US Customary measurement system and have not been tested for high altitude/elevation cooking and baking.
