This fun Christmas Rice Krispie Treats recipe makes an adorably sweet holiday snack. Kids love these delicious, chewy Santa's hat crispy rice treats, and so do grown-ups!
What's a holiday without a few fun Christmas snack ideas to make for your kids or grandkids?! It's a great time to bring your kids into the kitchen and let them help you make these sweet treats!
You might also want to make some peanut butter blossoms (Hershey Kiss cookies) and hot cocoa In the Instant Pot to enjoy along with them.
With only 10 minutes of prep time and a few simple ingredients like marshmallows, butter, and crispy rice cereal, you'll have a cute dessert that's perfect for holiday parties and gatherings.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Quick and Easy: Seriously, this is one of the easiest holiday treats to make.
- Budget-Friendly: With grocery costs on the rise, this is an inexpensive dessert to make without a lot of effort!
- Fun Party Food: Need a treat for a kid's Christmas party? Your guests will love these cute Santa's hat treats.
If you are looking for a traditional recipe, make these gooey homemade Rice Krispie treats.
Ingredients
See ingredient substitutions in the next section. ⬇️
- salted butter: The salt pairs well with the sweet marshmallow flavor.
- mini marshmallows
- crispy rice cereal
- red candy melts: Candy melts are basically colored almond bark. I usually get them from a party store, or you can find them in the party section of stores like Walmart.
- red gel food coloring: Gel coloring is much easier to use than liquid food coloring, and it is more concentrated, so you don't need to use as much.
- peppermint extract
- royal icing: You'll use this as an edible glue, to attach the marshmallows along the bottom rim of Santa's hat.
Substitutions
- butter: If you need or want to use unsalted butter, that's fine. Dairy-free butter and margarine will also work.
- mini marshmallows: If you can't find mini-marshmallows, you can always improvise by cutting regular marshmallows into smaller pieces.
- peppermint extract: If you need a substitute, vanilla extract or vanilla essence are good options. You can omit the extract completely, but the minty flavor adds a festive touch.
- royal icing: If you don't know how to make it, here's a royal icing recipe you can use. There are also ready-to-use packages of royal icing, if you can find them. If those aren't options for you, buttercream frosting works too!
- red food coloring: Feel free to use any gel color instead of red. Green food coloring is a festive option, too!
How to Make Christmas Rice Krispie Treats
Summary only. The complete recipe instructions are in the card at the bottom of this post ⬇️
- Make the marshmallow treat mixture. Start by melting butter and marshmallows over medium-low heat. After that, you'll stir in the red candy melts, extract, and gel coloring.
When everything is melted, combine it with the crispy rice cereal.
- Put the mixture onto a buttered, rimmed sheet pan.
- Spread it out into an even layer.
- Use cookie cutters to make the Santa hats.
- Arrange them on a serving platter.
- Decorate the Christmas treats with royal icing and marshmallows.
Liz's Tips for the Best Crispy Treats
- Butter your hands to prevent the marshmallow mixture from sticking. Alternatively, you can cover the mixture with a sheet of parchment or wax paper and press down on that to spread the mixture out.
- Let the treats cool a bit before cutting out the Santa hats. They firm up a bit as they cool down, making it easier to cleanly press the cookie cutter through.
- Coat your cookie cutter with non-stick cooking spray. This will help prevent the cutter from sticking to the treats as you cut them out.
Storage
Store at room temperature for 3-4 days. Your Christmas Rice Krispie treats do not need to be refrigerated. However, they may keep for a couple of extra days in the fridge.
These holiday treats are really best when they're fresh. I don't recommend freezing them, but if you are going to, be sure they've cooled completely. I also recommend wrapping them individually in wax paper and then storing them in an airtight container.
This will help prevent them from sticking and freezing together.
Christmas Treat Variations
- Make different shapes. Use any holiday cookie cutter to cut out other festive designs. Reindeer or snowmen would be really cute, or even Santa Claus crispy treats!
- Shredded coconut: Swap out the mini marshmallow decoration for shredded coconut.
- M&M candies: Use M&Ms, sprinkles, or other candy treats to use in place of the mini marshmallows for decoration.
- Use a different color of food gel. Of course, red is the traditional color, but don't let that stop you from being creative! Make them green, or any other color you like.
Christmas Rice Krispie Treat Recipe FAQs
Marshmallow treats can fall apart if you use the wrong proportion of ingredients. Using too much butter will make it hard for the cereal to stick to the marshmallow mixture. Also, allow them to cool completely before handling.
Using high heat can cause the melted butter and marshmallows to penetrate too much into the Rice Krispie cereal, causing it to become softer than desired. Use low to medium heat.
Coating your cookie cutters in nonstick cooking spray helps the cutter not stick to the marshmallow treats. Allow the rice Krispies to cool for about 10 minutes before cutting, so they'll maintain their shape.
Other Christmas Sweets You'll Love
- Saltine Cracker Candy
- Peppermint Fudge
- Pecan Snowball Cookies
- Candied Walnuts
- Gingerbread Cake
- Caramel Popcorn
Christmas Rice Krispie Treats
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- 10 ounces mini marshmalllows
- 6 cups rice krispies cereal or other crispy rice cereal
For decoration:
- 1½ cups mini marshmallows about 72 marshmallows- you might need more if your cookie cutter is larger
- ¼ cup red candy melts
- ⅛ teaspoon red food coloring
- ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract
- 1 batch royal icing homemade or store-bought, in a piping bag with a nozzle
Instructions
- Butter a large rimmed sheet pan. Set aside.
- Add Rice Krispies to a large mixing bowl. Set aside.
- In a 4-quart (or larger) saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, melt the butter and marshmallows, stirring occasionally until it is a smooth, thick mixture.
- Add in the candy melts, peppermint extract, and food gel coloring. Stir to combine, using more gel color if necessary, until you have your desired color.
- When the mixture is completely melted, remove saucepan from the heat. Pour it over the Rice Krispies. Using a wooden or silicone spoon, gently stir the mixture until all of the cereal is coated.
- Pour the Rice Krispies treat mixture onto the sheet pan. Using buttered hands (to prevent the mixture from sticking), or a silicone spatula, spread the mixture into an even layer on the pan. Let the marshmallow treats cool completely, 30 to 60 minutes.
Decorating the Santa's Hats
- Once cool, use a Santa hat cookie cutter to cut out 12 crispy rice treats.
- Pipe a wave of royal icing on the bottom edge of the hat, and a circle on the top. Then place a marshmallow on the circle and 5 marshmallows along the bottom edge. Continue until every hat is decorated. Note: You can use any leftovers to create balls, ornaments, etc.
- Serve and enjoy.
Helpful Notes and Tips From Liz
- Spreading the marshmallow mixture out onto the pan is the easiest if you butter your hands first. Alternatively, you can cover the mixture with a sheet of parchment or wax paper and press down on that to spread the mixture out.
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