Kick up the flavor of your marshmallow cereal treats by adding peanut butter and butterscotch. Start with our very best rice crispy treat recipe and add melted butterscotch chips and creamy peanut butter to make these delicious Peanut Butter Butterscotch Rice Krispie Treats.
These treats are gooey and marshmallowy just like our Best Rice Krispie Treats but I ramped up the flavor by mixing in melted peanut butter and butterscotch chips.
When I decided to make a batch of butterscotch peanut butter cereal treats I started with a recipe that simply calls for mixing melted peanut butter and butterscotch chips together with Rice Krispies cereal.
I can't say I didn't enjoy the treats but they were a bit too hard, more like a very thick piece of chocolate bark filled with crisp rice cereal. I really missed the gooey texture that marshmallows add to cereal treats.
Plus the butterscotch peanut butter flavor was a bit strong for my liking. I knew that by adding marshmallows I could tone that intense flavor down.
So, I began experimenting.
It took some time to figure out just the right balance of flavors and texture but I finally got it right.
These treats are crispy and chewy and have the perfect balance of flavors.
Let's talk about ingredients.
Peanut Butter
- ⅔ cup of peanut butter will give your cereal treats just the right amount of peanut butter flavor without making them too soft.
- I used Jif Creamy Peanut Butter but you can use whatever peanut butter is in your pantry. If you like Peter Pan, Skippy, Reese’s, or even a store brand, they will all work well in this recipe.
Can I use natural peanut butter to make these peanut butter treats?
- Yes, just be sure to stir your peanut butter really well before adding it to the recipe.
Butterscotch Chips
- I used Hershey's Butterscotch chips but any brand will work well in this recipe.
- I did not want my treats to have a really strong butterscotch flavor so I chose to use only ⅔ cups of the chips. If you want a really robust butterscotch flavor you could use as much as 1 cups of the chips, just know that your treats might be a bit more firm.
Marshmallows
- We found in our taste testing that the best marshmallows to use are Kraft Jet-Puffed Marshmallows.
- I prefer to use miniature marshmallows as they melt faster but a traditional, large, marshmallows work fine too.
- Kraft Jet-Puffed Marshmallows melt easily and they produce a nice gooey Rice Krispie Treat and they are not too sticky.
- You can use other brands of marshmallows, but just know that the texture may be quite different. We found Kroger and Walmart brands of marshmallows are seriously sticky, hard to stir, and produce an overly chewy cereal treat. If you do use them you may need to add up to 1 cup of additional Rice Krispies cereal.
Butter
- We always recommend using a good quality, European-style, salted butter to make your treats. It seriously makes a huge difference in flavor!
- However, being the peanut butter and butterscotch flavors are the more dominant flavors in these treats and the peanut butter already has salt in it, the type of butter you use is really not very important.
- You can use any brand you like, and use salted or unsalted.
Cereal
- We always recommend using Kellogg’s Rice Krispies Cereal because the crisp rice has just the right texture and flavor, but we also found that Kroger brand and Walmart brands taste good too.
- We do not recommend using the Market Pantry brand from Target though, as the cereal is just too hard and crunchy.
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Ingredients:
- 6 cups Kellogg's Rice Krispies Cereal
- 4 tablespoons salted butter
- ⅔ cup creamy peanut butter
- ⅔ cup butterscotch chips
- 10 ounces marshmallows
Instructions:
- Grease an 8-inch or 9-inch square pan with butter or spray with non-stick baking spray.
- Spray a large mixing bowl and a rubber spatula lightly with non-stick baking spray or grease it well with butter.
- Pour the cereal into the bowl and set aside.
Stovetop Method:
- Set a medium saucepan over low heat and begin to melt the butter and creamy peanut butter.
- Stir often, until completely melted.
- Add the butterscotch chips and stir constantly until melted.
- Pour the marshmallows into the pan and stir constantly until about half of them are melted.*
- Remove the pan from the heat and continue to stir until the marshmallows are completely melted and the mixture is smooth and glossy.
- Pour over the Rice Krispies Cereal and stir to evenly coat.
- Press into an even layer in the prepared pan.
- Set aside to cool for at least 1 hour before cutting into 16 squares.
*NOTE:
- Do not overheat the marshmallows or these treats will become too chewy.
- It's best to just heat them until half of them are melted then remove them from the heat and allow the residual heat to melt them as you stir them until smooth.
Microwave Method:
- Combine the butter, peanut butter, butterscotch chips, and marshmallows in a large microwave-safe bowl.
- Heat on high power for two 30-second increments, stirring after each.
- Heat on high power for 15 seconds, then stir vigorously, smashing the marshmallows, until melted.
- If needed, heat for an additional 15-second burst of power, stirring well after each, until melted.* (see not above)
- Pour over the cereal and stir until well blended.
- Press into an even layer in the greased pan.
- Set the pan aside to cool before cutting into 16 squares.
How to store peanut butter butterscotch rice crispy treats:
- These treats will stay fresh for up to one week if stored in an airtight container (preferably) or in a large zip-top bag.
- You can freeze the treats for up to 3 month3 if you wrap them well in parchment or wax paper then place them in a zip-top bag. To thaw, remove the bag from the treats from the freezer and thaw on the counter for several hours before removing them from the bag.
Recipe
Peanut Butter Butterscotch Rice Krispie Treats
Chewy peanut butter and butterscotch flavored cereal treats have the perfect texture and flavor combination.
Equipment
- 8-inch square pan
- large mixing bowl
- rubber spatula
- medium-large saucepan
Ingredients
- 6 cups Kellogg's Rice Krispies Cereal
- 4 tablespoons salted butter
- ⅔ cup creamy peanut butter
- ⅔ cup butterscotch chips
- 10 ounces marshmallows
Instructions
- Grease an 8-inch or 9-inch square pan with butter or spray with non-stick baking spray.
- Spray a large mixing bowl and a rubber spatula lightly with non-stick baking spray or grease it well with butter.
- Pour the cereal into the bowl and set aside.
- Set a medium-large saucepan over low heat and begin to melt the butter and creamy peanut butter.
- Stir often, until completely melted.
- Add the butterscotch chips and stir constantly until melted.
- Pour the marshmallows into the pan and stir constantly until about half of them are melted.*
- Remove the pan from the heat and continue to stir until the marshmallows are completely melted and the mixture is smooth and glossy.
- Pour over the Rice Krispies Cereal and stir to evenly coat.
- Press into an even layer in the prepared pan.
- Set aside to cool for at least 1 hour before cutting into 16 squares.
Notes
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week.
- You may freeze for up to 3 months.
- See the blog post for microwave instructions.
- https://howtomakecerealtreats.com/peanut-butter-butterscotch-rice-krispie-treats
Butterscotch Crispy Rice Cereal Treats
We love creating easy Rice Krispie Treats recipes to share with you and hope you find our tips and instructions helpful. ___ - 
Did you make this recipe and think it was great or do have any questions? Leave a comment below and rate the recipe using stars (5 stars is the best!)
Teresa
These are so good but I altered it a bit. I put 1 stick & 4 Tbls of real butter an 2 bags of 10 oz marshmallows. Everything else the same! So obey & gooey!
Robert
6 cups of Krispies is way too much.
Beth Klosterboer
If you prefer your treats to be softer and thinner you can certainly use less cereal.
Emma Akre
These treats were so delicious. I never thought to combine peanut butter with butterscotch but I am in love with the flavor combo.
Nina Lance
I had never thought to combine peanut butter and butterscotch together to make rice krispie treats. My sister used your recipe and brought the treats to a party and I couldn't stop eating them. I just made a batch for my kids and they can't stop eating them either. They are amazing!
Beth Klosterboer
It's definitely an interesting combination and I'm so happy you and your kids love this recipe!
Teresa M.
Delicious!!!!!!!!!!! The combination of peanut butter and butterscotch was fabulous and not overly sweet. The texture was crispy and gooey too. This recipe was perfect in my opinion. Thanks!
Beth Klosterboer
I'm so happy you enjoyed this recipe!
Victoria
This recipe fit a 9x13 pan and we’re still thick when cut. I followed the exact recipe and after cutting, the treats were crumbly as if there were not enough wet ingredients to combine all the krispies… would prob use an extra tbls butter and the entire package of butterscotch if I made again
Beth Klosterboer
I love thick and chewy rice krispie treats but you can certainly spread these treats into a larger 9x13-inch pan to make them a bit thinner.
I am sorry to hear your treats were crumbly. There are a few things that could have caused your treats to be too dry.
If you used too many butterscotch chips, the treats would be too crumbly. Butterscotch chips harden as they cool so having too many of them in the mixture will cause it to be too dry. I recommend spooning the chips into a dry measuring cup and leveling it off at the top edge. If the cup is heaped too full, your treats will be dry.
Old marshmallows can also affect the texture of rice krispie treats. Marshmallows dry out as they age and using them to make treats will cause your treats to be dry too. Always use the freshest marshmallows you can find.
Measuring the Rice Krispies Cereal properly is important too. Use a dry measuring cup and level off the top. If the cups are heaping, you will have used too much. I like to weigh my cereal. 1 cup of Rice Krispies Cereal equals 1 ounce.
The final thing that could have been an issue is the peanut butter. If you were sure to measure your peanut butter in a dry measuring cup, not a liquid measuring cup, it's possible the problem was with the peanut butter. I use Creamy Jif Peanut Butter. I know some store brands are much drier in texture.
If you mix everything together and it feels too dry, add more peanut butter not more butterscotch chips.
I hope you give this recipe another try!