Good morning! Happy Monday! How is everyone adjusting to their fall schedules? Anything new or different from your summer? I’m starting my third week of grad school..definitely still adjusting to this crazy life!

Mini-Weekend Recap

Picture-wise, my weekend wasn’t all that exciting. But real life-wise it was pretty great! I ended up taking the weekend off from exercise for the most part. It wasn’t really planned, it just kinda happened that way. But on Friday I did squeeze in this elliptical workout and the cardio workout from Body Revolution. So I guess I didn’t take the entire weekend off. But Saturday and Sunday were just not happening.

Random things I did this weekend:

• Threw a mini-house party to celebrate my cousin’s 21st birthday.
• Shopped and had lunch with my mom (just bought a couple new cardigans, one for the wedding next weekend).
• Ate an entire jar of this. Will not apologize for it.
• Went to The Boy’s house to meet his friends and take shots of Burnett’s Whipped because I’m not 25 years-old or anything.
• Wiped my DVR clean.
• Homework, homework, and more homework.

• Eventually ran some errands on Sunday. I hadn’t had milk in the fridge since Wednesday.

• Prepped some side dishes for dinners this week. Zucchini and sweet potato fries.

So yea, my weekend wasn’t exactly the picture of health and productivity. But this is a blog about my life, and sometimes, I need a weekend of being super lazy and only getting the bare minimum amount of stuff done. That’s just the way it is.

Ok so now. I want to talk to you all about The Perfect Storm. No not the classic movie starring George Clooney and Mark Wahlberg. Although come to think of it, I wouldn’t mind talking about George Clooney…the definition of a silver fox in my book….

Ok focus Meghan! I want to talk about The Perfect Storm of ingredients.

Many of you know that I hate wasting food. Hate, hate, hate wasting food. It’s just how I was raised people.

So way back during the first weekend of August we threw a housewarming party. And my roommates bought 4 bags of marshmallows, figuring we’d all make s’mores. Nearly two months later, we still have 2 bags left.

Then came my sister’s bridal shower. One of the dessert recipes I made included a graham cracker crust. One month later, we still have graham crackers.

And finally, I mentioned last week that my roommate had a ginormous box of Rice Krispies left over from Labor Day festivities.

You see what’s coming together, don’t you? Rice krispies + marshmallow + graham crackers….we’re missing something.

Oh of course, chocolate and butter. I pretty much always have these on hand because, well. I guess I don’t have a good explanation for that other than I love chocolate? And butter?

S’mores Rice Krispies Treats
Adapted from Glorious Treats. Generously serves 15. Stingily serves 30.

Ingredients:

Bottom layer or “batter”:

3 tbsp of butter
1 bag of marshmallows (10 oz)
6 cups of Rice Krispies cereal
1/2 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips

Additional layers:

1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips
10 or so full sized graham crackers, broken in half
30 large marshmallows (approximately)

Instructions:

1. Spray a 9″x13″ pan lightly with cooking spray.
2. Place 3 tbsp of butter and 10 oz bag of marshmallows in a large microwave safe bowl.  Microwave about 3 minutes (stirring after 2 minutes). Watch the microwave, cooking times may vary. Stir gently once butter and marshmallows have completely melted.
3. Add rice krispies cereal and stir to combine (try using a rubber spoonula sprayed with cooking spray to decrease stickiness and make your life easier).
4. Add 1/2 cup of chocolate chips, stir quickly, and immediately pour mixture into prepared 9″x13″ pan.  Press into pan (with spoonula, again sprayed with cooking spray).
5. Melt remaining 1 cup of chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl, at 30 second intervals, stirring between intervals.  Heat until just melted.  Spread chocolate on top of rice kripies layer in pan.
6. While the chocolate is still warm, lay graham cracker squares on top, leaving a tiny bit of space between each cracker.
7. Put entire pan of treats in the fridge or freezer until the chocolate has set (about 10-15 minutes).
8. While the treats are cooling, cut large marshmallows in half to get ready for the final layer. Use the tip of a sharp knife to “stab” the marshmallows, then pull apart.
9. When the treats are cooled and the chocolate has hardened a bit, cut them into squares with a sharp knife, using the graham crackers as a guide.
10. Separate treats on a large baking sheet, and top with your sliced marshmallows, cut side down.
11. When all the graham crackers are topped with marshmallows, use a kitchen torch (if you have one) to toast the marshmallow. I’m not that fancy so I toasted mine in the oven, using the broiler on low. I watched them the entire time, rotating the pan, and it only took 30 seconds – 1 minute.

Notes:

We had an abundance of marshmallows, so I went all the way with these guys and topped with the toasted marshmallow. But I most definitely ate a naked one because I’m impatient and I never learned patience despite my mom’s best efforts (sorry mom).

15th Rice Krispies Treat is noticeably absent. #evidence.

So I can tell you with confidence that these are just as delicious naked. The warm, toasty marshmallow on top is incredible, but if you don’t want to buy that extra bag you can definitely do without it.

And yes I know I’m supposed to be baking with pumpkin. And trust me, I want to bake with pumpkin. You may have noticed I bought some this weekend at Target. But it’s still 80 degrees outside and sunny. So if I want to make a summer inspired no-bake treat in September, damnit. I’m going to.

Pumpkin coming soon though, I promise.