Brown Butter Rice Krispie Treats

Step 1:

Butter a 9 inch square baking pan. Add butter to a large saucepan and place over medium heat. Butter will begin to crackle, and eventually foam – whisk constantly. After a couple of minutes, the butter will begin to brown and turn a nice golden amber color – continue to whisk. Watch carefully at this stage; you want the milk solids to go from golden to a medium dark brown, but not black.

Step 2:

Immediately turn off the heat and add the marshmallows and salt to the pot to stop the butter from cooking any further. Stir to coat all the marshmallows in the hot, browned butter until they are well coated and begin to soften, about 1 minute.

Step 3:

Return heat to low and stir until the marshmallows are almost smooth (some small lumps are okay), 1-2 minutes more. Be patient at this stage; you want the marshmallows to melt evenly and gently, softening all the way through without reaching a boil. Turn off the heat. Stir in the vanilla. Add the cereal and, using a spatula, fold the mixture until all the cereal is coated.

Step 4:

Pour into the prepared baking pan. Using the spatula, gently push and pull the cereal to spread out to fill the pan. While still warm, top the treats with rainbow sprinkles.

Let cool for at least 30 minutes to set before cutting.