That Rice Crispy Treat Ya'll Know And Love...Well, He Grew Up.

Please, wipe your tears away. I know, I know, it's not easy to watch someone you love grow up. But this is what happens: time passes, we are influenced, we evolve, and best case scenario....we get better. And such is the case with two things in my life right now - my move and rice cripsy treats.

No longer do I live in Dorchester, I have moved across town to darling Somerville. This move occurred this past week and is still happening. It will probably take about a month for us to be TRULY living comfortably here. We must clean, repairs must be made, unpacking, the purchase of necessary households items, but I believe we are ready for the challenge. Meghan, Lisa, and Sam are the new roommates - the most lovely girls I could have hoped to find via Craigslist (or anywhere, really). Updates to come on the living quarters, but the best part of this move is my almost non-existent commute to work. It has been cut into 1/4 of what I have been doing for the past year. And what a positive change this is! For now, I am exhausted from the move and am searching for the motivation to get going again.

So, naturally, I will procrastinate with a blog post.

Opening Notes:
1. If rice crispy treats are something you love, these will knock your off-season holiday socks right off.
2. This recipe is from a cookbook named Flour. This bakery is in Boston. I love this book, everything I have tried from it has been perfectly delightful.
3. Vanilla beans can be expensive, try to shop at a spice market for these guys (vanilla extract simply won't do the job here, sorry).
4. Listening to this song makes me feel light and bubbly - also like I should be on drugs...pretty sure the people in this video were.

Brown Butter Crispy Rice Treats

by Joanne Chang 

Yield: 9x13 pan of treats

Difficulty: Easy

Prep time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter

1/2 vanilla bean

2 10 oz bags marshmallows

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

9 cups crispy rice cereal

Directions:

Grease a 9x13 inch pan.

Add butter to a large sauce pot (mine is huge and non-stick, works really well) and turn on low heat. Cut the vanilla bean in half and, using a spoon, scrap out the beans into the butter. The mixture will start to bubble and make crackly noises (Chang says it sounds like applause). Once it browns up and smells nutty (about 5 minutes, be patient), add the marshmallows and salt. Stir until completely melted and turn off the heat.

Add the crispy rice cereal and mix until it is fully incorporated. Pour into your already greased pan and let cool before cutting and serving.

Nom, nom, melt-in-your-mouth, nom!  

Closing Notes:

1. Be a little bit careful with the browned butter, it can easily go from delicious to burnt. Once it stops foaming and making noises, it is probably done.

2. I like to think of these as the ultimate adult version of a childhood comfort food.

See? Growing up isn't so scary after all. And it can be delicious!