Holiday Wreath Treats

At its basic form, Holiday Wreath Treats are just beautified Rice Krispies Treats. With the help of marshmallows, butter, and green food colouring, these beautiful no-bake cookies are perfect for Christmastime snacking!

When it comes to no-bake treats this time of year, cereal tends to be featured quite a bit. I’ve seen Holiday Wreath Treats similar to this, but they tend to use cornflakes. You can use cornflakes if you wish, but I find Rice Krispies cereal to work better. The cornflakes are larger in size and harder to keep neatly tucked into a circular shape. The Rice Krispies worked perfectly!

No bake treats are perfect for those of you that have kids at home, or for those of you who might be expecting little ones to visit over the holidays. I have never met a kid who doesn’t love a confection prepared with marshmallows! And, because they’re so easy to make, it might be a good idea to get the kids involved. They will love sticking the red candies to the tops of the wreaths!

I think these would be a great addition to a cookie platter. The pop of colour would certainly brighten up just about any plate! I bet the kids will go for these first. Maybe it won’t be the kids at all. Truth be told, I quite enjoyed these!

INGREDIENTS NEEDED FOR THIS RECIPE:

• Butter – I used salted butter for this recipe. You can use unsalted too. It really won’t make a difference at all.
• Marshmallows – To take out the guesswork, I actually counted the marshmallows. You will need 40 large marshmallows.
• Vanilla Extract – Marshmallows already taste like vanilla. In this case, the extract will add more vanilla flavour and will help to thin out the thickness of the melted marshmallows.
• Rice Krispies Cereal – Apparently, there is some difficulty sourcing those in some parts of the country right now. If that’s the case, you can use any puffed rice cereal, or any flaked cereal like cornflakes or Special K.
• Green Food Colouring – Liquid colouring works best here.
• Red Candy Coated Chocolates – Large red sprinkles will work too. Or, pick out all of the red M&Ms and use those!

NO-BAKE RECIPES

I used to think that the term no-bake meant that a recipe was more of an assembly-type recipe. Something like a salad, for example. It sounds simple enough, right? Toss the lettuce and any other veggies you want into a bowl. Top it with cheese, croutons, avocado, hard-boiled egg, etc. Add some dressing and you’re all done! But, no-bake actually just means no baking. There still might be some stove-top cooking needed – or even a microwave, for that matter.

To prepare these Holiday Wreath Treats, you will need to use either your stovetop or microwave. So, even though they’re no-bake and kid-friendly, you will need to use one invention or the other. But, it’s only to melt the marshmallow mixture.

Some other no-bake-type holiday recipes you might enjoy are these Rudolph’s Red Nose Cookies. Hairy Moose Droppings are delicious and always quite the conversation starter! My mom’s favourite were these Marshmallow Coconut Balls and so were these Christmas Crunch Cookies. You can find many more no-bake cookie recipes here at Lord Byron’s Kitchen by using the search field at the top of this page.

KIDS LOVE TO HELP IN THE KITCHEN AND THIS RECIPE IS PERFECT FOR JUST THAT!

Holiday Wreath Treats are the perfect sweet confection to make with the kids in your life. If you don’t have children of your own, borrow your sister’s kids, or your best friend’s kids, or even your neighbour’s kids. Don’t worry; you can take them back! And, I’m sure those friends or neighbours would appreciate the break!

I may have written that exact sentiment in a previous blog post – or, I’m experiencing a very strong sense of deja vu! Either way, find some kids, or drag one of your friends into the kitchen with you. If you go the friend route, make sure they love melted, gooey, sticky marshmallows as much as you do!

HOW TO MAKE HOLIDAY WREATH TREATS:

Preparation is often the key to recipe success. So, start by lining a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set it aside. Next, get your red candy-coated chocolate ready for use. You can use large sprinkles, red M&Ms, or Smarties if you’re in Canada. Those little red cinnamon hearts would work too!

Add the marshmallows and butter to a large bowl and microwave in 30-second increments on full power, stirring well with a rubber spatula between each increment. Once fully melted, add the vanilla extract and the green food colouring. Stir until well mixed. Add as much green food colouring as you wish to get the green you want. Finally, add the Rice Krispies cereal and mix until well coated and dispersed throughout the marshmallow mixture.

The next thing you need to do is to form the mixture into wreath shapes. For this, you have several options, which I will talk about in the next section. Once the wreaths are formed on the parchment paper-lined baking sheet, add the red candies. Push them just slightly into the wreath so that they remain stuck to the marshmallow mixture as the wreaths cool and firm up. When fully cooled and firm, transfer to a food-safe container and keep covered. Do not refrigerate! These are best at room temperature.

HOW TO FORM WREATH SHAPES

I have a donut pan, which is what I used. If you have one, lightly coat the pan with non-stick cooking spray and spoon the marshmallow mixture into the donut cavities. With lightly buttered fingers, press the mixture into the pans until packed, but not too tightly packed. Immediately turn the donut pan upside down onto the prepared baking sheet. Tap the bottoms and the wreaths should pop right out. Garnish with red candies and allow the wreaths to cool and firm.

Alternatively, you can use a mason jar lid. Remove the flat sealing part and just use the ring. Lightly coat the inside of the ring with cooking spray. Lay the ring, right side up, on the prepared baking sheet. Spoon in the marshmallow mixture and gently pack it down with a lightly greased hand. Poke your finger or the handle of a wooden spoon into the center to make a hole. Lift off the mason jar lid and add the red candies to the wreath.

STORING, PACKAGING, & FREEZING

When it comes to most no-bake confections, they taste best at room temperature, but they don’t hold up well to being left out on your countertop for long periods of time. Some of them will stay fresh in a cookie jar or food-safe container with a lid for 3-5 days if left to sit on your kitchen countertop. But, others most certainly will not! If in doubt, store them in a food-safe container in your fridge. When you want one, two, or half a dozen, take them out of the container and place them in a single layer on a plate. Let them sit at room temperature for 5 minutes and they’re ready!

Most no-bake confections are made without the need to freeze them for long periods of time, but they can be frozen. For this recipe, I have tested whether or not they can be frozen, and they certainly can! Once they are completely cool and firm, pile them into a clean, food-safe container. The container must be freezer friendly! If you stack them, lay a sheet of parchment paper between each layer. You’ll want to ensure a very tight-fitting lid too. I use these quite often when freezing baked goods. I like to place a sheet of plastic wrap over the top of the container before pushing the lid on. This helps to create a better seal. The goal is to keep all of that freshness locked in!  

You can freeze these for up to three months. If you plan to give previously frozen confections as a gift, lay them out onto a wire cooling rack in a single layer to thaw out. Condensation might form and that’s normal. Giving them space to breathe by not overlapping them will help to eliminate that. Once thawed, pile into cellophane bags and tie with a ribbon, or stack in a cookie tin/box. With all of that said, these are still best at room temperature.

QUESTIONS?

If I have not answered all of your questions in the text above, don’t hesitate to reach out to me! You can contact me by sending me a message in the comments section further down the page. I will try my best to answer as soon as possible! You might reach me even faster by following me on Facebook and sending me a private message. Scroll down to follow me and never miss another recipe!

Finally, as I stated previously, every day I will be posting a new recipe. If you miss one, don’t fret. You can find my entire collection of Christmas Recipes right here! There are over 100 Christmas recipes and counting. There’s something for everyone! Cheers!