Chocolate Covered Strawberry Rice Krispy Treats

I think you can really tell a lot about a person by the food they buy. Simply by looking at their grocery cart (or lack of one) you can usually tell if a person is single or married, a parent or childless, frugal or spendy, organized or haphazard, cool or not-so-cool... Where is this leading? My latest trip to the grocery store...

I'm at the checkout stand, loading my week's groceries onto the conveyor belt. As I'm standing there I'm noticing the things the girl ahead of me is purchasing. From the looks of it she's going to have a hot date that night or something (valentines day warm-up?). Here's a rundown of her items:

- fresh lobster trail (what is that like $30 a lb?)
- a wild rice pilaf mix (you know it's good when there's black rice in there)
- some salad fixings (all organic I'm sure)
- some expensive looking alcohol (I don't drink so I'm just assuming it was...)
- a carton of fresh strawberries and a tub of dipping chocolate (... ahem?)

WooOOoo, definitely out to impress somebody. All she was missing was candles. Then I look over at my loot:

- a 10 lb bag of potatoes (10lbs for $2? How can anyone say no?)
- a gallon of milk (no, just regular cow's milk, I'm not hip enough to drink Soy or Almond)
- a box of Cheerios and a box of Lucky Charms (how old are we?)
- a block of cheddar cheese (yes, cheddar. I live on the wild side.)
- a loaf of bread (here's where I step it up--I buy whole wheat bread, with the little seeds on top so you know it's legit. +1 Summer.)
- a jumbo box of goldfish crackers (for the more mature snackers in my house)
- the family pack of boneless/skinless chicken breasts (we are pretty exotic with our proteins)
- a bunch of bananas

Jeez... my coolness factor is like in the negatives. I was tempted to throw a People magazine on top of my pile just for appearances but then I thought that might look a little desperate.

Anyhoo, so when I got home I decided I was going to make something special. Something cool and hip like Lobster girl. I opened my cupboards, searching for anything inspirational. Oatmeal, applesauce, leftover chili, mint n chip ice cream... hmm, wait, pull that out for later... Then I saw them, the strawberry marshmallows I'd got the week before. Ding! Who says I need to have the real thing to enjoy myself a chocolate dipped strawberry?

These things are delish. No, seriously they are. You get that sweet note from the strawberry marshmallows, along with the velvety chocolate topping. Ah, heaven. There's just something about fruit and chocolate (or fruit flavored marshmallows and chocolate). Am I ashamed to admit I ate most of these before my husband even got home? No. Maybe a little... Bonus is that these would be a perfect Valentines treat to share with everyone! Fun fun! Now go make these for your lovebird!

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Rice Krispy Treats

3 Tbsp butter
1 bag of strawberry marshmallows** (they cheat you on these flavored ones and only give you an 8oz bag instead of a 10oz bag... I Noticed Kraft!)

1 tsp vanilla extract
5 cups rice krispies
Chocolate Coating (recipe below)


Pour the rice krispies in a large mixing bowl and set aside. Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat. Once they're melted add in the marshmallows. Stir until the marshmallows are mostly all melted (this will take a few minutes--low and slow is key for perfect texture) then stir in the vanilla. Once fully melted, take them off heat and pour over the rice krispy mixture. Stir lightly to combine. 

If you are going to cut these out into strawberry shapes: I would recommend pressing them into a 9x13 pan so they are thinner. Allow them to cool for about 20 minutes, then cut out your strawberry shapes with a cookie cutter. Eat the remaining odds and ends Dip the "strawberries" into the melted chocolate coating and set on a piece of wax paper to harden. Enjoy!

If you are just going to keep them as squares: Press them into a 9x9 pan to get good, thick treats. Let them cool for about 20 min, then pour the chocolate coating on top in a thick layer. Allow to harden and enjoy!

**If you can't find the strawberry marshmallows, don't despair! Instead use 5 cups of regular marshmallows, and add in about 3 Tbsp of dry strawberry jello mix when you add the vanilla. It will give you a similar flavor.

Chocolate Coating
2 cups milk chocolate chips
1/2 tsp oil
(if you want to do a white drizzle do the same thing but you'll only need like 1/2 cup white chocolate and like 1/8 tsp oil)

Melt chocolate and oil in a microwave safe bowl in 30 second increments, Stirring between each one. Continue until fully melted.