Avalanche Bars

(picture from Cookies and Cups blog)

You can never go wrong with plain old Rice Krispie treats. But, I'm always on the lookout for a new twist to put on them. When I saw this recipe for Avalanche Bars on Cookies and Cups, I thought, this is it! Not to mention, I had a bag of white chocolate chips that I needed to use up.

The recipe came together very easily. The only change I made was using M&Ms instead of the chocolate chips since that's what I had on hand. They added a nice pop of color to the bars.

The thing to remember, though, is that the consistency of these bars will be more candy bar like rather than chewy and gooey since the cereal is held together by the melted chocolate rather than melted marshmallows. Kind of reminds me of those white chocolate-pretzel-Rice Krispie combos that people used to make during Christmastime. Hmmm, speaking of which, pretzels might actually be a neat addition to these bars. It'll give it that little bit of saltiness to counteract the sweetness. But, I digress. As for the taste of the bars themselves, I just wasn't won over by the white chocolate-peanut butter flavor. It wasn't bad, but it was a little sweet for me, so I'm not sure that I would make these again. That said, I do think that other people would enjoy them.

To cater to my own tastes, I would probably use dark chocolate chips and butter instead of white chocolate chips and peanut butter, omit the marshmallows and chocolate chips, and add chopped pretzels and peanuts. Then, I'd top the whole thing off with a peanut butter drizzle. YUM!!! I can see it now . . . . . .

Avalanche Bars

1 (12 oz.) pkg. white chocolate chips
1/4 c. creamy peanut butter
3 c. Rice Krispies
1 1/2 c. mini marshmallows
1/4 c. mini chocolate chips

Melt the white chocolate chips in a double boiler. Add the peanut butter. Add the Rice Krispies. Let the mixture cool 15-20 min (if your Rice Krispies came from the fridge, it'll cool down a lot faster). Add the mini marshmallows and chocolate chips.

Press into a greased 8x8 pan and top with more chocolate chips, if desired. Chill in the fridge until set.

New combinations:

1. Dark chocolate + peanut butter + marshmallows and peanut butter chips + PB drizzle
   
2. Dark chocolate + butter + mint chips (or Andes chocolates)
3. Dark chocolate + butter + milk chocolate chips + toffee pieces or caramel bits
   
4. Dark chocolate + peanut butter + pretzels + honey roasted peanuts + PB drizzle
5. Peanut butter chips + butter + marshmallows + chocolate or butterscotch chips