Gluten Free Salted Butterscotch Chocolate Crispy Rice Bars
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Hello friends,
Before we get started, I want to let you know I’m having an April Fool’s Day sale! If you’ve been interested in joining the Next Level Gluten Free community you can sign up for a paid membership for 15% off between now and April 2nd! Paid memberships include not only NEW exclusive recipes, videos and product reviews but also the past archives, so you can still get this Best Soft Gluten Free Sandwich Bread, this Gluten Free Flour Review, this Gluten Free Beignet recipe and another 80+ recipes, discounted for a limited time. Now, back to the recipe!
Sometimes you just need a simple treat. A taste of childhood or at least a nod to perceived childhood. It’s even better if that comes with little effort and low stakes. Enter these bars. Based on a church potluck/game night/sick family member staple of my mother’s these Gluten Free Salted Butterscotch Chocolate Crispy Rice Bars are dead simple and so decadent. They are always welcome at a party and you don’t even turn on the oven.
They are based on a recipe featured in the mid-1900s on a box of Rice Krispies- which my friends, I’m sorry to tell you are NOT gluten-free. It’s true, even though people often make them as the gluten free option for their party, the name-brand cereal is sweetened with barley malt, gluten. It’s a bummer for sure.
Several brands are gluten-free including, ironically Malt-o-Meal brand (it does NOT contain malt, despite the name) and several private label brands. I often use the one from ALDI but I always check that it has the GF on the box.
Once you have your cereal, you can move on to the other ingredients, the original contains corn syrup and peanut butter as the sticky substance that holds everything together. I like to kick the butterscotch notes up and replace the corn syrup with Lyle’s Golden Syrup, made from sugar cane. It’s a light golden color and tastes of caramel or butterscotch. This combined with the peanut butter is simply delightful. (This is also the BEST thing to put in your pecan pies!!)
I top the cereal mixture with melted chocolate and butterscotch chips, as is traditional, but add flaky sea salt to balance out all the sticky goodness. What treats from your childhood stand out?
Happy Baking,
Rachel
Gluten Free Salted Butterscotch Chocolate Crispy Rice Bars
Butter or nondairy butter for the pan
1 cup cane syrup, such as Lyle’s Golden Syrup (I prefer this caramel flavor, brown rice syrup, or light corn syrup can be substituted)
1 cup sugar
1 cup peanut butter
6 cups gluten free crispy rice cereal
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup butterscotch chips
1 tsp flaky salt
Butter a 9x13-inch pan.
Combine the cane syrup and sugar in a saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until the sugar dissolves and the mixture boils. Remove the sugar mixture from the heat and stir in the peanut butter until well combined. Add the rice cereal and stir until it is mixed well. Press the mixture into the prepared baking dish with buttered hands.
Melt the chocolate and butterscotch chips in a microwave safe bowl, stirring every 15 seconds. Spread them evenly over cereal mixture. Sprinkle the bars with flaky salt. Let them stand until firm, about 20 minutes. Cut them into 18 bars.
Download the Recipe
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Next Level Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls Participants in this hands-on class snack on fresh gluten free cinnamon rolls, learn some fun and easy flavor variations for gf cinnamon rolls, then create a batch of classic gluten free cinnamon rolls to take home and bake either that evening, the next morning, or freeze to bake at their convenience (Mother’s Day is coming up!) Limited spots available, reserve your place now for a truly delectable experience!
What was your fave treat as a kid? I think my children would probably vote for Ooey Gooey Butter Cake!
Have you ever tried these with sunbutter or another nut-free alternative? Curious before I try!