Brown Butter Churro Crispy Treats
Brown Butter Churro Crispy Treats are absolutely positively not something that you should make at midnight, keep within a 9-inch radius of your person at your desk then next morning, then carry on a road trip with the honorable intention of bringing them home to “share with family.” Just don’t. The situation will end in sticky, buttery, cinnamony marshmallow shame.
Consequently, the situation will also end in sticky, buttery, cinnamony marshmallow bliss, which is why I’m demanding that you risk your dignity and make these Brown Butter Churro Crispy Treats immediately.
Years ago, I managed to convince myself that I don’t care for marshmallow crispy treats, a prognosis I blame on the psychological backlash of four high school years spent eating cafeteria food. My daily lunch consisted of a rotation between jumbo lemon poppy seed muffins and the biggest, softest gooiest marshmallow crispy treats you’ve ever met, always with a side of fries. Fries, bakery muffins, and marshmallow treats: my daily bread.
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College followed with its thinner, drier, and decidedly less satisfying marshmallow crispy treats, along with a casual awareness of basic nutrition. My fry and rice crispy-treat diet made room for soup and salad (along with the all-you-can eat frozen yogurt bar.) Any marshmallow crispy treat I tried paled in comparison to my high school memories of what a crispy treat should be, so I stopped eating them entirely.
All this marshmallow crispy treat history is to say: I’m not precisely sure why I became completely and obsessively captivated by the idea of making marshmallow crispy treats at midnight last Monday night. All I knew is that I needed marshmallow crispy treats, I needed them rightthissecond, and nothing was standing between me and a pan of sticky, crunchy marshmallow goodness.
Cinnamon is one of my favorite flavors, and churros had been on my brain, because what else would I think about in the shower, where 98% of all my deep thinking occurs? (Reference: Mini Quiches with Caramelized Pears.) The other 2% of my inspiration strikes at midnight, so at 11:40 p.m. when I should have been sleeping, I had just enough brain-juice to connect my churro desires to my immediate need for marshmallow crispy treats.
Brown Butter Churro Crispy Treats boast a walloping tablespoon of cinnamon, rich dark brown sugar, vanilla, and (just to be excessive thorough) Cinnamon Chex cereal in place of the classic crispy rice. I love the extra boost of churro-appropriate cinnamon-sugar that the Chex provide. The larger, airier cereal squares also give the bars a lighter, chewier texture than classic rice crispy treats.
Speaking of light…since it’s not every night I make an entire pan of marshmallow crispy treats for myself at an inappropriate hour, I wanted these churro crispy treats to be special and, dare I say, grown up. My crispy treat history began in high school, but I’ve grown into a mostly mature young woman, capable of handling important adult tasks—like browning butter. Browning the butter does tack a few, well-spent minutes onto the cook time, but the richness and intensity it brings to Brown Butter Churro Crispy Treats is more than worth this small effort.
My final adult move: salt. I’ve long been a sucker for salty-sweet treats, and a generous pinch of kosher salt keeps the churro sweetness in balance. It also makes these salted Brown Butter Churro Crispy Treats fabulously impossible to stop eating, particularly at midnight.
Salted Brown Butter Churro Crispy Treats are my high school diet, turned grown-up midnight snack. I think I’ll cut myself an extra large square to enjoy with a glass of wine. I am an adult after all.
Brown Butter Churro Crispy Treats
With rich brown butter and loads of cinnamon flavor, these churro-inspired crispy marshmallow squares are a treat for grown ups and kids alike!
Yield: 16, 2-inch squares
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 10 ounces miniature marshmallows
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 cups cinnamon rice squares (Cinnamon Chex)
Directions:
Did you try this recipe? I want to see! Follow Well Plated on Instagram, snap a photo, and tag it #wellplated. I love to know what you are making!
More midnight snack-worthy marshmallow recipes:
- Peanut Butter S’mores Pizza from Well Plated
- Cookies and Cream Crispy Treats from Picky Palate
- Mocha Marshmallow Pops from Foodie with Family
- Strawberry Shortcake Crispy Treats from Sweet Treats and More
The post is written by me on behalf of Imperial Sugar. All opinions are, as always, my own.
This post contains some affiliate links, which means that I make a small commission off items you purchase at no additional cost to you.
About Erin Clarke
I’m fearlessly dedicated to making healthy food taste incredible. Wearer of plaid, travel enthusiast, and firmly convinced that sweets and veggies both deserve a place at the table. MORE ABOUT ERIN…
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I’m a sucker for salty-sweet combo! Gotta have balance right? The beauty of marshmallow treats is you can put any kind of cereal and you really can’t go wrong! This reminds me of fried ice cream…and yeah thats one of my favorites :) Thank you, Erin! Have a nice weekend!
I pretty much just died. That gooey, cinnamon sugar goodness … *swoon*. Your blog needs a warning label!
These sound heavenly! Off to find the recipe now!
This is definitely not your average crispy treat! It is even better!!
So these churros treats are simply brilliant!
Your high school and college eating habits sound JUST like mine. I remember getting salad with cheddar cheese, ranch dressing, croutons and deli meat on top and Cheetos on the side and thinking I was healthy because there was lettuce somewhere in my lunch. Oh, and a Caramello bar for dessert, always. So random.
Wish I had a big ol’ batch of these crispy treats in mah face right about now!
KMC’s Rice Krispy’s were sooooo good, with the big hunks of marshmallow. Haha, thanks for the memory!
But WOW are your churro bars tasty! Thanks again for sharing with James and me!
Oh my goodness yes to needing this immediately! Love that you used browned butter and salt! How very, “grown-up” hahaha. I’ve been obsessed with using brown butter in cookie recipes because it adds so much flavor, and salty-sweet is the perfect combo in my mind!
Holy moly I would eat all of these! These sound delicious.
Isn’t it weird the way we used to eat in high school? I used to eat a huge slice of pepperoni pizza or a bagel with cream cheese. There’s probably no nutrition in that. How was I so skinny?
Panera cinnamon crunch bagels with an inch-thick layer of honey walnut cream cheese was another of my staples too Natalie. We had it made, lol
Erin – this is such a BRILLIANT idea to have used Cinnamon Chex cereal in these treats! And cinnamon – good golly girl, you could convert a non rice-crispy lover like me to change my ways!
It’s the power of the cinnamon chex. Thanks Shashi!!
You had me at brown butter….Every childhood favorite needs a little adult update so it can still be enjoyed without actually feeling like a child again. :)
What a fun crunchy treat!
These are the best crispy treats I have ever seen! Such a great flavor combination!
Thanks so much Jessica! I tend to go bonkers for anything cinnamon
Glad I not the only one that thinks of food while they should be dreaming! These sound so delish!
Your lunches in high school sound vaguely familiar to my own. I’m a sucker for crispy treats and I don’t know how many times I said I would bring some to family to share and well they never made it. I love cinnamon and love how you used Chex, can’t wait to make these and “share” them!
Haha … I’m sitting here typing this at half past midnight, Erin, and was just thinking that I could really do with a lovely sweet treat with my cup of tea. Alas, there is nothing suitable in the house, but it helps a little to read about your delicious midnight churro treats! ;-)
It’s past midnight here right now and you bet that if I happened to have some butter left, I’d be making these and eating the whole pan – YOU BETCHA.
Love the churro flavors and the brown butter addition: that stuff is heavenly!
Hope your Friday is being a cool one :”)
How can crispy treats sound THIS AMAZING?? You are inspired :)
I’m blushing!! Thanks so much Lauren.
Oh man, I love the sound of these crispy treats! You had me at cinnamon and then you added browned butter and salt? Amazing combo and totally drooling – I must make these immediately!:)
Yes you must Kelly! Hope you love ’em :)
Hi Erin
It is a so good idea! really love it.
Chantal
Thanks so much Chantal! Cinnamon is always a good move in my book :-)
That’s so funny – my college had the BEST rice krispie type treats! haha I ate wayyyy too many in my days there : ) Love this spin … and with cinnamon and brown butter, I mean c’mon! So good!
Erin, I can’t even imagine how good these taste! This is one of those amazing ideas of yours!
Oh no… why did I click on this?! Now I’m going to have to rush right home and make this ridiculously beautiful slice. Then I shall eat it and remember my childhood days of reckless, sugary abandon…! xx
Reckless sugary abandon <--- AMEN. Those were the days were they not?!
I think I’d eat the whole pan!
SHUT. UP. Holy crap. Sweet baby Jesus, I have never been so disappointed in my lack of marshmallows in my home rightthissecond before.
So, my family and I just got home last night from Disney World. We went over spring break, but we’d also spent 2 weeks there this summer. I ate a rice krispie treat every day over the summer. Every day.
This trip, I didn’t have one. Not one. So do you what I bought as my souvenir? A giant rice krispie treat in the shape of Mickey’s head. It is the size of my head. I’m not kidding. And it is about 3 inches thick. It will take me a few days to get through it, for sure. At midnight with wine is a great idea!
Wish you lived closer … I’d happily share my 74328 pound treat! :)
My littlest just asked me what churros were. I did my best to explain them. But I’m not sure that ‘amazing-cinnamony-sugary-coated-awesomeness’ gave quite the mental picture for her to understand!
LOL Gretchen. What a great story about the Mickey rice krispie! I think you should eat every bit of it. You deserve it! Hope you guys had a great trip.
Oh my goodness, the KMC lunch! I miss being able to eat fries and a cinnamon roll/rice krispy treat with basically every meal and never once feeling guilty! These look tasty; excited to try them!
Erin, your inspiration flows like a waterfall! Can’t wait to try. I’m thinking this would make an awesome chex mix, too – following your recipe except not melting the marshmallows, just stirring the burnt butter mixture with the chex, cooling slightly and adding the marshmallows. Using pastel colored marshies might look nice on an Easter table! Have a lovely holiday!
Laurie, I LOVE that idea! I might even try baking the buttered chex mix in the oven for a little bit, then letting it cool before stirring with the marshmallows. Sounds addictive. Thanks for the fun suggestion!
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These are just like too good to be true! They look amazing! Anything with brown butter and then add in cinnamon?!? Heaven.
Mmmm…love sweet and salty. Definitely going to give this a try!
Thanks Debra! I hope you love them!
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My daughter made these for her friend’s birthday. We were looking for a recipe that is gluten free since she has Celiac’s disease. They are so delicious that we could not stop snacking on them as we mixed it together and then pressed it into the pan. Such a fun twist on Rice Krispie Treats. Thanks for the great recipe!
They are SO hard not to snack on, Gilliane! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe.