Pumpkin Rice Krispies are a fun and festive treat for fall and Halloween. Easy to make, with different ways to decorate, they are sure to be a kid and adult favorite!
This past weekend was an extra special one.
Our school had a Homecoming football game on Friday night, along with an alumni BBQ. My kids, ages 10 and 8, go to the school I went to, so we did both. And since they are "legacy" kids -- children of an alumni -- they were part of the halftime Homecoming show on the field. They did a great job cheering for all the upper school kids that were part of Homecoming court.
Then on Sunday, we got to go for our first visit to meet our new puppy! She's a chocolate lab and part of a litter of 12 puppies. They are just 2 weeks old, so they were just barely crawling around and opening their eyes. But we had the best time snuggling them!
We'll get to go back when they are around 6 weeks old, and we'll bring her home a couple of weeks after that. We're hopeful that our current chocolate lab, who is 12 years old and the sweetest dog in the world, will set a good example for the new puppy.
But let's move along to the food!
Rice Krispie treats are a favorite here in my house. And we especially like to make them holiday-themed.
It started with Rice Krispies Christmas wreaths, which I’ve made every year at Christmas with my mom since I was a kid.
My kids and I also now love to make Rice Krispie Christmas trees, which are fun to “decorate” with sprinkles and such. My kids adore them!
And we make Easter egg Rice Krispies that you can dip in white or regular melted chocolate, decorate with pastel sprinkles, or both.
I make chocolate Rice Krispies, too. For Valentine’s Day, but also just year-round. My 8-year-old is a chocolate fanatic.
Today though, it’s a different holiday and a different twist with these cute pumpkin Rice Krispies for fall and for Halloween.
They are round and orange and have a cute little Tootsie Roll stem at the top.
They’re chewy and marshmallowy and sweet and kinda irresistible!
Kids think they are so fun, and I’ve found that adults love them just as much.
Quick note: These are pumpkin shaped. Not pumpkin flavored. We’re just dying the marshmallow mixture orange and shaping the Rice Krispies into balls to make little pumpkins.
You could certainly try adding some pumpkin pie spice to the mixture if you’d like, but I’ve not made them that way myself.
OK, now that that's cleared up, let’s get cooking.
I’ve got some notes and tips coming up below on how to make pumpkin Rice Krispies. Just tryin’ to be helpful.
If you want to jump on down to the recipe, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.
Notes on making pumpkin Rice Krispies:
- Marshmallows: You can use mini marshmallows or big ones. You’ll want a 10 ounce bag. (Although a 12 ounce bag works fine, too.)
- Orange food coloring: I found some orange food coloring at my grocery store, and you can also find it at specialty stores, baking stores and online. You could also use red and yellow food coloring to make orange.
- I needed about 8 drops of food coloring to get this pretty color. Start with 6 or so, stir it in and adjust from there.
- Cereal: Make sure your Rice Krispies, if they are not a new bag, are not stale. I’ve made that mistake before and didn’t realize it until we’d made a batch. No fun.
- Forming balls: You’ll need to smear some softened butter on your hands, or use a splash of water, to help you shape the mixture into balls for the pumpkins. Otherwise, the rice Krispies will stick to you instead of themselves. You’ll also need to reapply after ever few pumpkins so the Rice Krispy mixture doesn’t start to stick.
Now, as seen here, we think these are plenty fun all on their own.
Plus, I’m not particularly crafty, so I tend to quit while I’m ahead.
However, I do have some additional ideas for you to make these even more fun and fancy if you’d like!
Decorating ideas for pumpkin Rice Krispies:
- You could add some sprinkles to your pumpkins if you’d like. I think the chocolate jimmies kind would be a fun Halloween look.
- You could also do a drizzle of melted white or milk chocolate over the pumpkins as a decoration.
- I use mini Tootsie Rolls, cut in half and slightly flattened out, to use as the pumpkin stems on top. You could also try another small candy or chocolate piece.
- If you have green icing gel, you could add a little leaf near the stem, too.
Oh, and if any of you creative types out there have other ideas, please share them in the comments section below. We’d love to hear from you!
Last thing, what to do with any leftovers.
These go quickly, but if you have extras, they will keep, covered, at room temperature for up to a week. An airtight container is best so they stay fresh and chewy.
Wishing you a fun and happy October, with plenty of pumpkin love and Halloween fun. (For more pumpkin love, check out these pumpkin cookies with orange icing - they are dangerously good!)
Enjoy!
XO,
Kathryn
P.S. If you are looking for some other festive Halloween snacks for kids, check out these healthy Halloween spider snacks and green monster fruit snacks.
Pumpkin Rice Krispies
Pumpkin Rice Krispies are a fun and festive treat for fall and Halloween. Easy to make, with different ways to decorate, they are sure to be a kid and adult favorite!
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for greasing hands
- 1 10 oz. package marshmallows (regular or mini)
- 6 cups Rice Krispie cereal or another crispy rice cereal
- Orange food coloring (or red and yellow to make orange)
- 7 small Tootsie rolls, halved
Instructions
- Melt butter in a large saucepan over low heat.
- Add marshmallows and stir until coated in butter. Melt over low heat, stirring occasionally.
- Once marshmallows are completely melted, add orange food coloring (or use a combination of red and yellow to make orange). Start with 6-7 drops and add more until it’s the right color. Stir well.
- Turn off the heat and carefully stir in Rice Krispies cereal until it’s completely coated.
- Grease hands with some of the extra butter - or wet them with a little water - and grab handfuls of the Rice Krispies mixture (be careful not to burn yourself if it’s hot). Form into a small round shape as your pumpkin. Place the balls on a piece of wax paper to cool and set up and continue until you’ve used up all the Rice Krispies mixture.
- If you want to add sprinkles, you’ll need to do that just after you shape the pumpkins, before they cool, so that the sprinkles stick.
- Place a half a Tootsie Roll in the top of each pumpkin and press in slightly, to be the stem. (If the balls start to loosen, just pick it up and reshape it with your hands.)
- Let the pumpkins cool and set up completely on the wax paper.
- Serve immediately or keep in a covered container at room temperature for up to a week.
Notes
Marshmallows: You can use mini marshmallows or big ones. You’ll want a 10 ounce bag.
Orange food coloring: I found some orange food coloring at my grocery store one time, and you can also find it at specialty stores, baking stores and online. You could also use red and yellow food coloring to make orange.
I needed about 8 drops of food coloring to get this pretty color. Start with 6 or so, stir it in and adjust from there.
Decorating ideas:
- You could add some sprinkles to your pumpkins if you’d like. I think the chocolate jimmies kind would be a fun Halloween look.
- You could also do a drizzle of melted white or milk chocolate over the pumpkins as a decoration.
- I use mini Tootsie Rolls, cut in half and slightly flattened out, to use as the pumpkin stems on top. You could also try another small candy or chocolate piece.
- If you have green icing gel, you could add a little leaf near the stem, too.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
14Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 157Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 7mgSodium: 92mgCarbohydrates: 32gFiber: 0gSugar: 16gProtein: 1g
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