Butterscotch Pretzel Rice Krispie Treats

9 servings
15 min

These Butterscotch Pretzel Rice Krispie Treats are soft and chewy rice krispie bars made extra special with the addition of butterscotch chips and crushed pretzels for a sweet and salty treat!

Rice krispie treats are one of the most simple and versatile desserts you can make. I love taking a tried-and-true recipe and making some slight changes or additions to transform it into something fresh and new like these Butterscotch Pretzel Rice Krispie Treats.  


What You’ll Need


  • Unsalted butter 
  • Butterscotch chips
  • Marshmallows – mini ones will melt faster but either mini or regular sized will work just fine
  • Rice krispie cereal 
  • Pretzel twists – crush into small chunks before measuring. I love seeing chunks of pretzel through the bars so don’t make them too small!
The Key to Perfect Rice Krispie Treats


There are a couple tips that will ensure the most perfect soft, chewy rice krispie treats. The first is fresh marshmallows. I think there is a myth that making rice krispie bars is a great way to use up stale marshmallows. False! Stale or dried out marshmallows will create hard bars that will be more of a jaw workout than a delicious treat. 

The second key is to not press the bars down too hard into the pan. It may be tempting to really “smoosh” the mixture down with all your might but this will cause the bars to be hard because everything will be so compacted.  

These Butterscotch Pretzel Rice Krispie Treats have the perfect ratio of butter to marshmallow to cereal & pretzels to create the ultimate sweet & salty dessert bar. 

Quick & Easy Recipe


All that’s needed to pull together these Butterscotch Pretzel Rice Krispie Treats is a large saucepan, a rubber spatula and an 8×8 baking pan. To ensure the bars don’t stick, grease the bottom and sides of the baking pan with a tablespoon of softened butter. I just use a piece of paper towel and essentially “wipe” the butter all over the bottom and sides of the pan. 

In a large saucepan, melt butter and add in butterscotch chips. Stir and cook until chips are completely melted. Then, add in marshmallows and stir constantly until melted and smooth. Make sure you have your rice krispie cereal and crushed pretzels measured out and ready to go at this point. Remove the marshmallow mixture from the heat and add in cereal and pretzels. Stir until everything is well coated. I like to use a rubber spatula to mix everything as I find the gooey marshmallow mixture doesn’t stick to it as much as a wooden spoon. 

Gently press the mixture into the bottom of the baking pan. A trick I like to use is to take a plastic measuring cup and spray the underside with non-stick spray. Use the bottom of the cup to gently press the bars into place so your hands or spoon don’t become a sticky mess. I like to place a whole pretzel on each section of what will be an individual bar while they are still sticky. Allow the bars to cool completely before cutting into squares. Cutting the pan into 3×3 squares will give 9 nice sized bars. Feel free to cut them 4×4 for 16 more bite-size bars. Store these bars covered at room temperature.

These Butterscotch Pretzel Rice Krispie Treats are a great dessert for a potluck or a fun treat to slip into a lunch box for a mid-day pick me up. 

Butterscotch Pretzel Rice Krispie Treats
Recipe details
  • 9  servings
  • Prep time: 15 Minutes Cook time: 0 Minutes Total time: 15 min
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Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp. butter softened, for greasing
  • 1/3 cup unsalted butter
  • 3/4 cup butterscotch chips
  • 16 oz. marshmallows
  • 5 cups rice krispie cereal
  • 1 cup pretzel twists crushed
  • extra pretzels for garnish
Instructions

Grease bottom and sides of 8Ă—8 baking pan with softened butter.
In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add butterscotch chips and stir until melted. Add marshmallows and stir constantly until completely melted.
Remove from heat and add cereal & crushed pretzels. Stir well to coat completely. Gently press mixture into the bottom of 8Ă—8 pan.
Allow to cool completely before cutting into 9 squares.
Tips
  • Crush pretzels before measuring. I like them to be small enough to distribute evenly throughout the bars, but big enough to see the pretzel chunks throughout
  • Either mini or regular size marshmallows will work
  • Cut 4X4 for 16 smaller bars
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