Gluten-Free Brown Butter Rice Krispies Treats

Gluten-Free Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats are a total revelation and a MAJOR glow-up from classic rice krispie treats. They’re gooey and gorgeous, made with the caramel-like flavor of brown butter and finished with a few flecks of flaky sea salt. You’ll never go back!

Gather Your Ingredients

I’m telling you, I’ve never fallen harder for a rice krispies treat recipe! And you want to know how many ingredients it takes to create all this no-bake magic? FIVE. Just five ingredients! Let’s take a look…

Can I Use Dairy-Free Butter Instead? No, not if you want it to brown. Butter browns when the milk solids caramelize. This isn’t possible with dairy-free butter sticks (like Earth Balance), vegan butter, or butter substitute (like margarine), since they don’t have milk solids to give the butter its caramelized flavor.

How To Make Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats, Step By Step

As always, you can find the full recipe, with ingredient amounts, detailed instructions, and tips in the recipe card below.

1. Prepare Your Pan. Line an 8×8” baking pan with parchment paper. I like to leave some parchment hanging over the sides to use as handle later. It makes lifting the treats out of the pan super easy!
2. Measure & Set Aside Your Rice Krispies Cereal. Add your gluten-free crisp rice cereal to a large bowl (the largest mixing bowl you have!). Set aside close by, so its within easy reach when your marshmallow mixture is ready.
3. First, Brown The Butter. Add butter to a medium or large pot. Melt butter over medium heat, whisking or stirring nearly constantly while the butter melts, until the butter is fully melted and begins to bubble. Continue cooking the butter over medium heat (you’ll hear it popping and bubbling) to let it caramelize and brown. After 6-8 minutes or so, the butter will begin to foam and bubble as the popping slows down. When the butter looks deeply golden, smells caramel-y and sweet and you can see that the butter solids are starting to brown, reduce the heat to the lowest possible setting. (The butter will continue to cook and brown on the stovetop, so it’s better to stop a minute early than a minute too late!)
4. Immediately Mix In The Marshmallows & Vanilla. As soon as your butter is browned, reduce the heat to LOW and immediately add your marshmallows.
5. Whisk briskly, adding the vanilla extract and a small pinch of salt. Continue to whisk briskly on low heat until the marshmallows are completely melted and the mixture is smooth. (It will be flecked with the brown bits from the butter-this is fine!)
6. Pour Marshmallow Mixture Over Crisp Rice Cereal. As soon as the marshmallow mixture is smooth, pour it over your Rice Krispies and stir to combine. This will be a very gooey process, but do your best to work quickly to coat the cereal evenly. (The marshmallow mixture starts to set as soon as you pull it off the heat.)
7. Gently Press Down Into Your Baking Pan. Quickly transfer the rice krispie treats mixture to your prepared pan. To keep a light, gooey texture, use a gentle hand or a light touch when patting the brown butter Rice Krispies mixture into the pan. I recommend a flexible spatula or your fingertips. (Dip your fingertips in a little water or lightly mist your spatula with spray oil to keep the gooey marshmallow mixture from sticking to you!)
8. Finish With Flaky Sea Salt. Lastly, finish by sprinkling some flaky sea salt over the top of your gluten-free Rice Krispies treats.
9. Let Them Set At Least 15-30 Minutes Before Slicing. If you try to cut them right away, they’ll be too gooey. Also, pro tip: serrated knives work best for slicing rice krispies treats. They don’t crush the cereal as much, which makes for beautiful, even squares!

FAQ + Tricks For The Best Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats

Make Sure You’re Using Gluten-Free Rice Krispies! In case you skipped to the bottom (I get it!), do NOT use Rice Krispies brand cereal if you’re gluten-free or baking for someone who is. It is NOT gluten-free. Instead, use one of these gluten-free crisp rice cereal brands.

Prep Your Ingredients In Advance! You’ll need to work quickly, so make sure you have everything ready and measured before starting on this recipe. Fishing around for a measuring cup or stepping away from the butter to get your baking pan out can mean the difference between brown butter & burned butter or soft, gooey rice krispies treats and dry ones!

Use Gentle Pressure To Pat Them Down. To keep a light, gooey texture, use a gentle hand or a light touch when patting the cereal mixture into the baking dish. I recommend a flexible spatula or your fingertips. (Dip your fingertips in a little water or lightly mist your spatula with spray oil to keep the gooey marshmallow mixture from sticking to you!)

How To Store Brown Butter Rice Krispies Treats. These brown butter gluten-free Rice Krispies treats will keep covered at room temperature 2-3 days. After that, they’ll continue to dry out. If you want them to stay especially fresh, wrap each square individually in plastic wrap and store the wrapped squares in an airtight container or bag. You can often prolong their shelf life this way!

More Rice Krispie Treats Recipes To Try

Gluten-Free Scotcheroos

Gluten-Free M&M Rice Krispie Treats

Gluten-Free Strawberry Rice Krispie Treats

Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats

Gluten-Free Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats

5 from 2 votes

Author: Emily Dixon, Sweets & Thank You

You only need 5 ingredients to make these easy no-bake Gluten-Free Brown Butter Rice Krispies Treats, and the flavor is going to change your life. In every bite, you'll get toasty, nutty, caramel-like flavor from the brown butter, along with gooey marshmallow, a kiss of vanilla, and a hint of flaky salt. They're a step above classic rice krispie treats, and sure to please wherever you bring them!

Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes minutes

Print Pin Rate

Servings: 9 -16 squares

Ingredients

• 5 cups gluten-free crisp rice cereal*
• ½ cup 1 stick/4 oz. butter, cut into cubes
• 10 oz. mini marshmallows
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• ¼ tsp. flaky sea salt like Maldon

Instructions

• Prepare Your Pan. Line an 8×8” baking pan with parchment. I like to leave some parchment hanging over the sides to use as handle later. It makes lifting the treats out of the pan super easy!
• Measure & Set Aside Your Rice Krispies Cereal. Add your gluten-free crisp rice cereal to the largest mixing bowl you have. Set aside close by, so its within easy reach when your marshmallow mixture is ready.
• First, Brown The Butter. Add butter to a medium or large saucepan. Melt over medium heat, whisking or stirring nearly constantly until the butter is fully melted and begins to bubble. Continue cooking the butter over medium heat (you’ll hear it popping and bubbling) to let it caramelize and brown. After 6-8 minutes or so, the butter will begin to foam and bubble. When the butter looks deeply golden, smells caramel-y and sweet and you can see that the butter solids are starting to brown, reduce the heat to the lowest possible setting. (The butter will continue to cook and brown on the stovetop, so it’s better to stop a minute early than a minute too late!) 
• Immediately Mix In The Marshmallows & Vanilla. As soon as your butter is browned, reduce the heat to LOW and immediately add your marshmallows and vanilla extract. Whisk briskly until the marshmallows are completely melted and the mixture is smooth.
• Pour Marshmallow Mixture Over Crisp Rice Cereal. As soon as the marshmallow mixture is smooth, pour it over your Rice Krispies and stir to combine. This will be a very gooey process, but do your best to work quickly to coat the cereal evenly. (The marshmallow mixture starts to set as soon as you pull it off the heat.)
• Gently Press Down Into Your Baking Pan. Quickly transfer the rice krispies mixture into an even layer in your prepared baking dish. To keep a light, gooey texture, use a gentle hand or a light touch when patting the brown butter Rice Krispies mixture into the pan. I recommend a flexible spatula or your fingertips. (Dip your fingertips in a little water or lightly mist your spatula with spray oil to keep the gooey marshmallow mixture from sticking to you!)
• Finish With Flaky Sea Salt. Lastly, finish by sprinkling some flaky sea salt over the top of your gluten-free Rice Krispies treats.
• Let Them Set At Least 15-30 Minutes Before Slicing. If you try to cut them right away, they’ll be too gooey. (A serrated knife tends to work best for slicing rice krispies treats–it won’t crush the cereal as much!)

Notes

• Gluten-Free Crisp Rice Cereal. We like ALDI Millville, One Degree, or Nature’s Path brands. Do NOT use Rice Krispies brand, as it’s not gluten-free. Be sure to read your ingredient label to make sure there are no wheat, barley, rye, or malt ingredients, as these aren’t safe for gluten intolerance or celiac disease. 

Video

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Diet: Gluten Free

Keyword: brown butter rice krispies treats, gluten-free brown butter rice krispies treats, gluten-free browned butter rice krispies treats, gluten-free rice krispies treats

Find the recipe:

sweetsandthankyou.com/brown-butter-rice-krispies-treats/