Red, white, and blue - these 4th of July Rice Krispie Treats are a great no-bake option for the warm summer holiday! Keep the kitchen cool and your friends and family's sweet tooth happy with this easy, patriotic treat!
Rice krispy treats are such a well-loved classic and are easily decorated to match the occasion, like these Frankenstein Rice Krispie Treats 🧟♂️ To make 4th of July Rice Krispie Treats all you need is some food coloring and some white chocolate for an optional chocolate star and drizzle.
Check out more of our Fourth of July Recipes, like this no-bake Red, White and Blue Strawberry Icebox Cake!
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Top Tip: Use quality food color dyes
For the best color, use a quality food coloring set. I use the Wilton Color Right set when making these rice krispie treats. I like that the bottles have a dropper and have found that the colors are more true than the average set you pick up at the grocery store.
No matter how much I added, I found that the red in those sets came out more pink than red. The red from the Color Right set is bright and true!
How to make red, white, and blue rice krispie treats
Repeat this process for each layer of the rice krispie treats, creating one layer of red, one plain and one blue. I like to add mini marshmallows to either the plain or blue layer as if they're the "stars" on the flag.
Add mini marshmallows and butter to a large microwave-safe mixing bowl. Microwave for one minute, stir, and then microwave until melted in 30-second increments.
Add the food coloring, vanilla extract, and salt and mix until it's a cohesive color.
Add the rice krispies cereal and mix until all the cereal is coated.
Press into a 9 x 13 baking dish. Repeat for each of the three layers.
Tip: Spray your hands and spatula with non-stick spray to keep the marshmallow mixture from sticking!
How to Decorate Rice Krispies for the Fourth of July
For extra decoration, I melted some white chocolate and poured it into a star-shaped mold. I let the stars harden while the rice krispy treats firmed up. I also drizzled some melted white chocolate across the rice krispies.
Decorate on either the red or blue side. If you drizzle white chocolate across the red side, it's symbolic of red and white stripes, and if you place the stars on the blue side of the treat, it's symbolic of the stars on the blue patch of the flag. Mix and match how you decorate to your liking!
How to Keep Rice Krispie Treats Fresh
These rice krispie treats are going to be the softest and most gooey on the day they're made. They'll be a bit firmer on the second day and will be good for a third or fourth day - if they aren't eaten before then!
Keep them stored in an airtight container at room temperature to preserve their freshness as long as possible. The more exposure to the air they get, the faster they'll firm up.
FAQ
Make rice crispy the night before or the morning of a party for the best results! The fresher they are, the more ooey-gooey marshmallow-y they'll be!
Store the rice crispy treats in an airtight container with a removable lid, like this one or cover the dish with plastic wrap, making sure to seal it tightly.
4th of July Rice Krispie Treats
Ingredients
- 9 tablespoons salted butter cubed
- 16 cups mini marshmallows divided
- Red and blue food coloring
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract divided
- ¾ teaspoons salt divided
- 12 cups rice krispies cereal divided
- 1 ¼ cups chopped white chocolate or white chocolate chips divided
Instructions
- Spray a 9 x 13 dish with non-stick spray and set aside.
- Add 5 cups of mini marshmallows and 3 tablespoons of butter in a large microwave-safe mixing bowl. Microwave for one minute, stir with a rubber spatula, and then microwave in 30-second increments until smooth (I usually only need to do this one more time).
- Add 5+ drops of blue food coloring, 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, and ¼ teaspoon of salt, and stir until the mixture is a cohesive blue color.
- Add 4 cups of rice krispies cereal to the blue marshmallow mixture and gently mix until all the cereal is coated making sure to scrape along the sides of the bowl.
- Add the mix to the 9 x 13 baking dish. Lightly spray your hands with non-stick spray and use them to gently press the rice krispies into an even layer.
- Repeat with a clean bowl and no food coloring, but add 1 cup mini marshmallows to mix in with the rice krispie cereal.
- Repeat for a third layer with red food coloring.
- Let the rice krispie treats sit to harden for about 1 ½ hours or as needed. Once firm enough, spray a knife with nonstick spray to cut the rice krispies into 12 equal rectangles.
To Decorate
- Melt 1 ¼ white chocolate in the microwave for 1 minutes and 30 seconds in a microwave safe-bowl. Stir until smooth.
- Fill a star-shaped mold with the melted white chocolate and then set aside to harden.
- Add the remaining melted white chocolate to a piping bag fitted with a small round tip. Use it to pipe stripes across the rice kripsie treats. Once the chocolate stars have hardened pop them out and place on top of the rice krispie treats, gently pressing them against the treat to secure them.
Notes
To make in an 8 x 8 baking dish
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons of butter, cubed and divided
- 9 ½ cups of mini marshmallows, divided
- 3 teaspoons of vanilla extract, divided
- ¾ teaspoons salt, divided
- red and blue food coloring
- 7 ½ cups rice krispie cereal
Instructions
- Spray an 8 x 8 with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
- Add 3 cups of mini marshmallows and 2 tablespoons of butter to a large microwave-safe mixing bowl. Microwave for one minute, and stir with a rubber spatula sprayed with nonstick spray. Microwave for another 30 seconds if needed.
- Add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ¼ teaspoon salt, and 5 drops of blue food coloring. Stir until the marshmallow mix is a cohesive blue.
- Add 4 cups of rice krispies cereal and gently mix until all the cereal is coated. Optional: Add ½ cup of mini marshmallows and mix in.
- Add the mixture to the 8 x 8 baking dish. Spray your hands with non-stick spray and use them to gently press into an even layer.
- Repeat the process using a clean bowl without adding any food coloring. Press the uncolored rice krispies mixture on top of the blue layer in the pan.
- Repeat for a third time, this time adding red food coloring to the mix in Step 3. Layer on top of the uncolored rice krispie layer and gently press it into an even layer with your hands.
- Let the rice krispies set for about 1 hour, or as needed.
Please note, Holiday Sweets N Treats isn't a professional nutritionist. Any and all nutritional information shared is an estimate. If you're following a specific diet or counting calories, we suggest you use the nutrition calculator of your choice. Calories can vary depending on the brands and products used.
Natalie
So festive and cute! Love this idea!
Emma
Thanks Natalie! Hope you have a great Fourth!