Lucky Charms Bars
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These Lucky Charms bars are a super silly quick cereal treat bar, with only 4 ingredients. Browned butter and vanilla bean paste will transform ho-hum into YUM! Cereal bar heaven! And these are not just for St. Patrick’s day, one bite will have your recipe testers screaming for more!
I love making special treats for any holiday, typically I make this Guinness Stout Cake for St. Patrick’s day or these fun and festive Mini King Cake bites, but sometimes you are in the mood for something even easier!
So whether you are looking for a quick and easy classroom treat to make or you just want to surprise your own family, these Lucky Charm Bars are the perfect quick sweet treat!
What is it about the sweet burst of squeaky Lucky Charms Marshmallows? They take me back to childhood, my mom never bought them, but my grandparents kept them on hand just for us!
I added one step to these traditional cereal bars that will have you scrambling for more! By browning the butter, the overall flavor is deeply enhanced making them the best Lucky Charms cereal bars ever!
Love browned butter? You will love my Brown Butter Rice Crispy Treats, and these brown butter Buckeye Bars.
Why You Will Love This Lucky Charms Bar Recipe!
- Lickity Split | By the time you finish browning your butter, these come together in minutes.
- Gluten-Free | Did you know that Lucky Charms are naturally gluten free?
- Makes a Lot | While you can cut this into 9 squares, I like to cut them again into 18 or even 36 squares, for great small bite sized treats!
Simple Ingredients
The full ingredients and details are in the printable recipe card at the end of this post.
- Lucky Charms Cereal | I bought the giant sized box and got three batches of treats, plus a little leftover for snacking. Because even though Lucky Charms are not what I would call the healthiest of cereal choices, I am a believer of all things in moderation. After-all, these are magically delicious!
- Butter | As always use, real butter, it should be hard coming out of the fridge, I used salted butter.
- Mini Marshmallows | Recipes are all over the place from 10, 12 to 16 ounces of marshmallows. Every package of marshmallows I found was 10 ounces, so that is what I am going with and it worked perfectly.
- Vanilla Bean Paste | this is optional, but adds a lovely hint of vanilla.
FRESH TIP | Mini marshmallows melt much faster than full size, make sure they are fresh marshmallows. Stale marshmallows take longer to melt, and actually cook a bit making your bars much harder.
How to Make Lucky Charms Rice Krispie Treats
Line an 8×8 or 9×9 inch square pan with parchment paper for easiest clean up, or butter the pan well.
Melt butter over medium heat in a large pot. If browning the butter, continue over medium heat, swirling pan occasionally, the butter will foam up and get really quiet, then as you swirl the pan you will start to notice some brown flecks in the bubbles, continue until the butter smells nutty.
FRESH TIP | Use a pot large enough to be able to stir the cereal in after all of the melting.
Pour in mini marshmallows and stir over medium-low heat until they are just about melted. Remove from heat and continue stirring until fully melted. Stir in salt and, if desired the vanilla bean paste.
Add cereal all at once, stirring until it is all coated. Dump into the prepared pan and using a piece of parchment paper, plastic wrap or buttered hands, press the mixture lightly into the pan.
Allow Lucky Charms Bars to cool for about an hour before cutting.
Make It Yours!
- Add more marshmallows to your Lucky Charms rice krispie treats! Got leftover marshmallows? Toss in up to a cup while stirring in the cereal.
- Use another type of cereal | You could use Cheerio’s or other toasted oat style cereal.
- Stir in ½ cup of chocolate chips when you stir in the cereal, or try the same amount of m&m candies if you want these really over the top!
- Use Lucky Charms St. Patty’s Day cereal with only green and yellow marshmallows!
FRESH TIP | Do not push down hard on these lucky charms treats, when you compact them it makes them extra hard, and not nearly as chewy!
Tips & Tricks
- Thick Bars I This cereal bar recipe yields, big, fat Lucky Charms bars. If you want thinner bars that will stretch further, then press into a 7×11 inch pan or 9×13 pan.
- Fresh Mallows | Be sure your marshmallows are fresh, trust me on this one, I used some older, stale marshmallows in a test batch and it yielded really hard Lucky Charm bars, they still tasted good, but definitely give you a jaw workout.
- Salt | I use salted butter in pretty much all of my baking, these have a lovely sweet-salty flavor, if you are not a fan, either omit the additional salt all together, or cut it in half. It’s not overpowering, but some may not care for it.
- DO NOT COMPACT | Unless you want really hard Cereal bars, do not press down too hard when pressing into your pan.
- Press a few additional Lucky Charms marshmallows into the top of the treats right after pressing into the pan.
- Use parchment to line your baking pan for easy clean-up and to easily lift out of the pan for easy cutting.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes they are! I made these for friends who are gluten-free and was delighted to realize that the cereal was labeled as certified gluten-free! So because we’re only adding butter and marshmallows these lucky charms bars are naturally gluten-free!
According to several vegan websites, no, Lucky Charms are not vegan, since they contain marshmallows and there is gelatin in the marshmallows derived from animal products.
Yes, this recipe easily doubles! Be sure to use a large pot when making the recipe though!
No, in fact, refrigerating Lucky Charms bars will actually take away from their chewiness and make them rock hard. Store in an airtight baggie or container for just right krispie treats!
Storage
Lucky Charms Bars are best when eaten the day they are made, but definitely within 2-3 days.
Store on the counter in an airtight container for up to 5 days (they won’t last that long, trust me!)
FRESH TIP | If your Lucky Charms treats harden, try microwaving for 10 seconds at a time until softened. Or place in 300 degree oven for 2-3 minutes.
Recommended Equipment
All you need is a big pot and a wooden spoon and you are golden for this recipe!
- My favorite wooden spoon
- This is the 8×8 pan I use and love!
LOVE IT? PIN IT!
Enjoy these other St. Patrick’s Day Recipes
I sure hope you love these Lucky Charms cereal bars! I know they did not last long at all in our house! These are perfect for St. Patrick’s day or anytime you want something different a Rice Krispie Treat.
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 stick 8 tablespoons butter, browned (salted or unsalted)
- 10 ounce bag of marshmallows I used mini marshmallows, be sure they are fresh
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste optional
- ¼ – ½ teaspoon kosher salt optional
- 6 cups Lucky Charms cereal
Instructions
- Line 8×8 or 9×9 inch square pan with parchment paper for easiest clean up, or butter the pan well.
- Melt butter over medium heat in a large pot, if browning the butter, continue over medium heat, swirling pan occasionally, the butter will foam up and get really quiet, then as you swirl the pan you will start to notice some brown flecks in the bubbles, continue until the butter smells nutty.
- Pour in mini marshmallows and stir over medium-low heat until they are just about melted. Remove from heat and continue stirring until fully melted. Stir in salt and, if desired the vanilla bean paste.
- Add cereal all at once, stirring until it is all coated. Dump into the prepared pan and using a piece of parchment paper, plastic wrap or buttered hands, press the mixture lightly into the pan, allowing it to cool for about an hour before cutting.
- Store in airtight baggie or container up to one week, best eaten within 2-3 days. If Lucky Charms bars get too hard, place in microwave for 10 seconds at a time until softened, or heat in 300 degree oven for a few minutes.
Fresh Tips
- Use a pot large enough to be able to stir the cereal in after all of the melting.
Nutrition
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About Kathleen Pope
Recipe Innovator | Food Photographer | Food Writer
Hi, I’m Kathleen Pope. Here at The Fresh Cooky you will find easy, mostly from-scratch, trusted recipes for all occasions. From speedy dinners to tasty desserts, with easy step-by-step instructions. I am here to help teach you how to make mouthwatering recipes without spending hours in the kitchen. Read more about Kathleen here.
