September 18th is National Rice Krispies Treats Day. Make no mistake: We really like Rice Krispies treats. But it made us wonder: What about other cereals? We also love Cheerios, Corn Flakes, and Raisin Bran.

And Rice Krispies Treats can be made with any crisp breakfast cereal, bound together with butter or margarine and marshmallows. They are one of 11 types of cookies, a no-bake of “faux” cookie.

Today, instead of another recipe for Rice Krispies Treats, we offer you a switch-of-crunch to Cheerios Treats.

There are more cereal bar recipes below, along with the history of Rice Krispies Treats.

So why Cheerios?
 
 
THE TOP CEREAL BRANDS

Cheerios are the #1 breakfast cereal in the U.S. What’s #2? Honey Nut Cheerios!

When we received this Cheerios Treats recipe from Culinary.net promising chocolate-iced treats in just 5 minutes, we got up from the computer, walked into the kitchen, and made them.

They were a hit. Next time, we’ll try Corn Flakes, a favorite of ours but way down on the top cereals list, at #19.

Rounding out the Top 10 breakfast cereals in the U.S. are, in this order, Frosted Flakes, Honey Bunches of Oats, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Lucky Charms, Froot Loops, Frosted Mini-Wheats, Life, and Fruity Pebbles. Note that eight of the Top 10 are packed with sugar [source].

Our beloved Raisin Bran just missed the Top 10 (it’s #11), and Rice Krispies are #13.

Although when Rice Krispies Treats were invented, in 1939, most cereals on the list had yet to see the light of day.
 
 
RECIPE: CHEERIOS CHOCOLATE-PEANUT BUTTER TREATS

This recipe mixes the melted milk chocolate and dark chocolate together. We’re not sure why two varieties of chocolate are used.

It seems that milk chocolate people will want to use milk chocolate, dark chocolate fans will want all dark chocolate, and those who love white chocolate can use all white chocolate.

A video of the recipe is at the bottom of this page.

The recipe was adapted from 5-Minute Dark Chocolate Cereal Bars at ScrummyLane.com. Find more seasonal dessert recipes at Culinary.net.
 
Ingredients

 
Preparation

If you’re using different types of chocolate, you can melt them in the same bowl.

1. LINE a 9-by-13-inch pan with parchment paper.

2. HEAT a saucepan over low heat. Add the butter, marshmallows, and peanut butter; stir to combine. Add the cereal; mix until coated. Add the cereal mixture to the pan.

3. MIX the melted milk chocolate and dark chocolate in a bowl and drizzle the chocolate over the cereal mixture. Spread it evenly over the cereal mixture and allow it to cool.

4. CUT into bars and serve. Store in an airtight container. When you need a bite of chocolate-PB goodness, just pop the lid and take one out.
 
 
MORE RICE KRISPIES & CEREAL BAR RECIPES

 
Another way to use cereal treats: Make a batch in a loaf pan as a base for cake pops, marshmallow pops, or other sweets-on-a-stick. After the pops are gone, slice the loaf, eat it as is, use the slices as a base for a sundae, or dip them in melted chocolate.

You can also toss leftover holiday candy—candy corn, for example—or stale marshmallows, into a batch of cereal bar treats.
 
 
THE HISTORY OF RICE KRISPIE TREATS

Rice Krispies Treats were invented in 1939 by Malitta Jensen and Mildred Day, recipe developers in the home economics department at the Kellogg Company. The recipe was created as a fundraiser for the Campfire Girls.

The recipe remained very popular over the decades. Kellogg subsequently trademarked the name and began to sell plain and chocolate-toped treats in 1995.

Brand names differed by country: Rice Krispies Treats in the U.S. and Mexico; Rice Krispies Squares in Canada, Ireland, and the U.K.; and LCMs* in Australia and New Zealand.

Soon other manufacturers had offered similar products under similar names, such as Crisped Rice Treats and Marshmallow Treats.

Here’s the Original Rice Krispies Treats Recipe.

Subsequently, Kellogg created Chocolate Scotcheroos with Cocoa Krispies and peanut butter (or regular Rice Krispies and chocolate morsels substituting for Cocoa Krispies. Here’s the recipe.

Today, you can go to RiceKrispies.com and find Treats recipes for every holiday of the year, and then some.

[1] Cheerios Treats with chocolate-peanut butter icing. The recipe is below (photo © Family Features).

[2] Another Cheerios Treats variation with peanut butter. Here’s the recipe (photo © Just A Taste).

[3] Cheerios Treats with a red, white and blue theme. You can use any holiday or seasonal colors. Here’s the recipe (photo © Betty Crocker).

[4] Celebrate National Rice Krispies Treats Day (photos #4 and #5 © Kellogg’s Rice Krispies | Facebook).

[5] The original Rice Krispies Treats recipe.

[6] Scotcheroos use Cocoa Krispies instead of Rice Krispies. Here’s the recipe (photo © Kellogg’s).

Rice Krispies, made from a patented process that Kellogg’s called “oven-popping,” are one of the iconic American cold breakfast cereals, launched in 1928 by W.K. Kellogg Company.

Their first television commercial aired in 1955.

When milk is added to the cereal, it collapses the crispy grains, resulting in onomatopoeic sounds that are represented by the three elfin brand characters. Snap first appeared in on the package in 1933, with Crackle and Pop joining in 1939.

The characters and their sounds are tailored for foreign languages (see †footnote).

In recent decades, their popularity has resulted in line extensions: Chocolate and Vanilla Rice Krispies (mix), Cocoa Krispies, Rainbow Krispies, and Strawberry Krispies as well as now-discontinued specialty flavors like Apple Cinnamon, Banana, and Marshmallow Rice Krispies.

There are also generic brands called Crispy Rice or Rice Crispers.

> See how the Rice Krispies package art has changed over time.
 
 

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*The name LCM didn’t stand for anything; it was just catchy-sounding. However, customers attributed the initials to Light Crispy Morsels, Little Cereal Milk Bar, or Little Crunchy Munchies, among others [source].

†The English Snap! Crackle! Pop! is translated into: Afrikaans: Knap! Knetter! Knak!, Belgium: Poos! Pas! Pes! Danish: Pyf! Paaf! Pof! Dutch: Pif! Paf! Pof! Finnish: Riks! Raks! Poks! French: Cric! Crac! Croc! German: Knisper! Knasper! Knusper! Spanish: Pim! Pam! Pum! Swedish: Piff! Paff! Puff!