Peppermint Candy Cane Rice Krispie Treats

These Peppermint Candy Cane Rice Krispie Treats are the perfect treat for Christmas. They're full of peppermint flavor from crushed candy canes and made rich with white chocolate. They're also wrapped with pull 'n' peel Twizzlers to give them those classic stripes. Try these fun shaped treats for your next holiday party!

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📋 About the Recipe
🛒 Ingredients
📓 Instructions
⁉️ Substitutions and Alterations
❄️ How to Store
🔍 FAQs
💭 A Couple More Tips
🍴 Related Recipes
Peppermint Candy Cane Rice Krispie Treats
Reviews

📋 About the Recipe

These festive treats are not only shaped like candy canes, but taste like them too! With peppermint extract and crushed candy canes, they're packed with bright minty peppermint flavor.
They stay fresh for days! The added butter and marshmallows help them last much longer on your counter.
The white chocolate boosts the rich, buttery flavor, making them irresistible.
Great kid friendly Christmas activity! Have the kids help shape the treats into candy canes and wrap around the edible candy "ropes".
Ditch your Christmas cookies this year and spend time together decorating some fun holiday rice krispie treats! Kids love helping decorate these candy cane treats, along with my santa rice krispie treats, reindeer rice krispie treats, and snowman rice krispie treats!

🛒 Ingredients

A few notes about the ingredients:

Rice cereal - You'll need 8 cups of rice cereal to make your treats. Be sure to measure! Using too little rice cereal will result in treats that are too gooey to fully set and therefore will be difficult to work into the classic shape without it sticking to your hands.
Marshmallows - A MUST when making fluffy, gooey rice Krispie treats! I recommend mini marshmallows over using regular sized marshmallows. They'll melt more uniformly, which will prevent over heating and keep these treats as soft as possible.
Butter - Adds a rich, creamy flavor and keeps the treats moist and chewy. I prefer to use unsalted, but salted will work as well (just omit the added kosher salt).
Candy canes and peppermint extract - Essential to making these treats taste like candy canes! I recommend using both for optimal flavor. Make sure to use food grade edible peppermint extract. Do not use peppermint essential oils!
White chocolate - These treats use white chocolate instead of milk chocolate in order to keep them "white" with red stripes. If you're looking for a treat that uses milk chocolate, try my Reindeer Treats or Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Rice Krispie Treats.
Candy "ropes" or candy "strings" - This is what you will be wrapping around the candy canes to give them the stripes. I used Twizzlers Peel 'n' Pull.

📓 Instructions

In a large pot, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Once the butter is almost completely melted, add the marshmallows.

Stir to coat the marshmallows fully in the butter. Cook for 5 to 8 minutes, stirring intermittently until the marshmallows melt completely. Don't overcook, as this will cause the mixture to burn and the marshmallows to harden.
Remove the pot from the heat. Stir in vanilla extract, peppermint extract, and salt.
Pour in the cereal. Stir to fully combine, making sure to scrape any additional marshmallows from the bottom of the pot.

Rice cereal on top of melted marshmallows in a large pot.

Rice krispie treats shaped as candy canes on a gray backdrop.

Allow the mixture to cool for about 5 minutes before adding the white chocolate chips and crushed candy canes. Stir to combine.
Working with 1 at a time, scoop out ½ cup of the mixture and using your hands, shape it into a candy cane. You may need to spray your hands with nonstick spray to prevent sticking. Continue to form the rest until you have 16 equal sized treats.
Peel the candy ropes so they're 2 strings thick. Twist the strings tightly around the candy canes to resemble the red stripes.
Use your fingers to press the candy strings into the rice Krispie treats so they don't unravel.

Candy cane shaped rice krispie treats wrapped in red candy strings.

⁉️ Substitutions and Alterations

If you can't find candy canes, you can also use crushed peppermint candies.
You can leave out the peppermint extract if necessary - the peppermint flavor will just be more subtle.
If Twizzler Peel 'n' Pulls aren't an option, I'd recommend peeling apart a licorice rope or using Strawberry flavored red licorice strings.
If you don't have any cooking spray to rub your hands with before molding the treats into the shape of a candy cane, try rubbing your hands with a bit of coconut oil or even a bit of additional butter. This will help prevent sticking!
Four ounces of a white chocolate bar can be substituted for the white chocolate chips.

❄️ How to Store

To store: For optimal taste and freshness, store at room temperature in an air-tight container. Refrigeration or freezing is not recommended - this would make the treats too hard.

🔍 FAQs

How do you make rice krispie treats not stick to your hands?

Lightly grease your hands by spraying them with cooking spray before forming the treats into candy cane shapes. Just as cooking spray prevents the treats from sticking to a pan, it will also prevent it from sticking to your skin.

Why are my rice Krispie treats not sticking together?

This can be caused by a number of things. If your treats are not sticking together, it is possible you used too much rice cereal, too much butter, or did not melt the marshmallows completely before mixing in the cereal. Be sure to measure correctly and take your time melting the marshmallows low and slow.

Why are my marshmallows not melting?

If it appears your marshmallows aren't melting properly, they could be too stale. Vegan marshmallows also do not melt well and are not recommended. Use a fresh bag of marshmallows for optimal results.

💭 A Couple More Tips

Make sure to allow the mixture to cool slightly before adding the white chocolate chips and crushed candy canes. This will help prevent them from melting and making the treats hard.
If you have extra Twizzler Pull 'n' Peels, try making my Snowman Treats too!

Peppermint candy cane rice krispie treats arranged on a dark gray backdrop with small candy canes around them.

Share your cooking with me! If you make this recipe, I'd love to know! Tag @yourhomemadehealthy on Instagram or leave a comment with a rating and some feedback at the bottom of this page!