lucky charms marshmallow bars

These are my little twist on Rice Krispies Treats, one of my husbands favorite things...  crossed with Lucky Charms, one of his favorite cereals!

We absolutely love Lucky Charms around here, and this is such a fun way to enjoy them!

Actually, this is kind of the only way we can enjoy them anymore...  Bjørn loves the marshmallows so much that, if we pull out a box for any reason, he throws a fit until he gets some!

The problem with that is...  he will only eat the marshmallows, leaving a whole mess of plain cereal that no one is excited to eat.

So, when I saw some pre-packaged cereal bars similar to these at the store the other day - I loved the idea... but I didn't love the price, and knew I could make them much cheaper at home.

Enjoy!  :o)

Lucky Charms Marshmallow Bars Recipe

Ingredients:
4 tablespoons butter
1 (10oz) bag marshmallows
6-7 cups Lucky Charms cereal*

Directions:
Grease a 9x13" dish or a large tupperware container.

In a large saucepan, melt the butter.  Stir in the marshmallows and continue to cook, stirring often, until the marshmallows are melted and smooth.

Remove from the heat and stir in the cereal until combined.  Spread into your greased container and press down with damp fingers to flatten and smooth the top.

*You can adjust the Lucky Charms amount depending on how...  gooey...  you like your bars.  We like 'em really gooey, so I used 6 cups cereal!

peanut butter chocolate chip cookie dough truffles

Ok, so I obviously have a bit of a thing for truffles lately...  or dipping things in chocolate...  or whatever.  

I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing, do you?!

If you troll around food blogs like I do, I'm sure you've seen a few versions of Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles lately...

I think they are such a great idea!  Everything I love about raw cookie dough, minus the slightly-dangerous-to-eat raw eggs, and coated in a delicious chocolate shell.  Yum!

Of course I just had to try my own version of these...

I took my truffles one step further by using a peanut butter chocolate chip cookie dough for the filling...  yum!

I've got a regular chocolate chip cookie dough truffle idea in the back of my mind too, so keep your eyes open for that!

Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 cups chocolate chips, divided (1 cup + 3 cups)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Directions:
In a large bowl, cream together the butter, peanut butter & sugars.  Beat in the milk & vanilla until smooth.

Mix in the flour & salt until combined.  Stir in 1 cup of the chocolate chips (this would be a good place to use mini-chocolate chips, if you have some!).  Cover the dough with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least an hour, or until firm enough to roll into balls.

Remove the dough from the fridge and roll into balls of about 1 tablespoon or so in size.  Place the rolled balls onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and place in the freezer for an hour or so, until very firm.

In a heat-proof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, melt together the chocolate and oil - stirring often until smooth.

Remove the dough balls from the fridge and - working quickly - dip each one into the melted chocolate with a fork, tapping gently on the side of the bowl to allow the excess to drip off, and then return to the baking sheet.

Chill again for another hour or so until set, and store the truffles in the fridge until serving!

chocolate covered frozen kiwi pops

I saw this idea a few weeks ago on Pinterest and was so excited to try it when my cousin left a few kiwis at our house last week!

They are so refreshing, cute and fun...  and I feel a lot better about serving this to my toddler than an ice cream bar!

Once again, I did not temper my chocolate... for 2 reasons.  1st, I don't know how.  2nd, I am all about simplicity, and really...  I don't care if my frozen chocolate-dipped goodies 'bloom' a bit (that's what you call it when they get that white-ish look to them!) because they taste exactly the same!  :o)

Chocolate Covered Frozen Kiwi Pops Recipe
adapted from ShowFood Chef via Pinterest

Ingredients:
3-4 kiwis
2 cups chocolate chips
1 1/2 - 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Directions:
Slice off the ends of the kiwis and peel them carefully with a knife.  Slice each kiwi into 1/2 inch or so slices.

Stick a lollipop stick into each slice, lay the slices on a parchment-lined tray and freeze for an hour or two until very firm.

In a medium glass bowl set over a pot of simmering water (but not letting the water touch the bottom of the bowl), melt the chocolate and oil together until smooth.

Working quickly, take the kiwi-pops out of the freezer and dip each one into the melted chocolate, tapping gently to let the excess chocolate drip off.  Place them back on the parchment tray and again into the freezer for an hour or two to set.

If you want to decorate them (like I did with the hearts!) scrape the extra melted chocolate into a ziploc bag, cut off a tiny tip and drizzle designs on the cooled chocolate-covered pops.

(Did I mention my almost-two-year-old loves them?)  :o)