Malted Rice Crispie Treats

Today I took a drive through the back roads of South Carolina, going from Charleston to Columbia. It took me longer than driving on 26 would've, but truly I'd rather drive on open back roads than dodge cars on the interstate.

One of my favorite scenes that I come across at least of couple of time I drive on our highways is of a ramshackle building overgrown with wisteria. Seeing the soft purple flower, newly bloomed against crumbling walls stirs something in my heart. 

It's a similar feeling to biting into something reminiscent of childhood, made better by knowledge gained in (marginal) adulthood. 

I don't know how much instruction you need for crispie treats, but here it goes. You'll need: crisped rice cereal, marshmallows, vanilla extract, salted butter, and malted milk powder.

Begin browning the butter in a small pan. All good things begin with browned butter. I prefer just slightly less than medium heat in case I forget to pay as much attention as I should.

In a large pot, start melting the marshmallows over medium-low heat. Don't set it too high or your marshmallows will get a little too toasty. You could totally do this in a large microwave-safe bowl. I prefer not to microwave plastic, and I don't have glass mixing bowls--so stovetop it was.

Nutty and golden. Perfect.

Pour the butter over the semi-melted marshmallows and start stirring.

When the marshmallows are close to smooth, stir in the malted milk powder...

And the vanilla extract. Keep stirring until the marshmallow mixture is completely smooth.

The cereal is the last to join. Just keep mixing until you don't see any large patches of marshmallow. Although those parts are definitely my favorite. So maybe save just one.

I like to press the crispies in a pan using a sheet of wax paper sprayed with nonstick spray. Remember, the bigger the pan, the thinner the crispie treat. 

Made for both a girls' weekend and Easter, these are best transported on roads with lush greenery.

Malted Rice Crispie Treats (makes 16-25 squares, depending on pan size)

2 tbs salted butter

10 oz marshmallows (miniature or large are both fine)

1/3 c malted milk powder

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

4 c crisped rice cereal

• Spray a pan with nonstick spray. An 8x10 will yield a thicker treat, a 9x13 will yield a thinner square. The choice is yours.
• Begin by melting the butter in a small pan. Let it continue to cook until it becomes golden brown and smells nutty.
• While butter browns, begin melting marshmallows in a large pot. Pour in the browned butter and stir until marshmallows are almost smooth.
• Stir in malted milk powder and vanilla extract until completely incorporated and smooth. Stir in the cereal a cup or so at a time until all the cereal has been mixed in.
• Spread the mixture in the prepared pan. Spray a piece of wax paper with nonstick spray and press the mixture until it fills the pan evenly. Allow to cool before cutting and serving.

Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

Oh, where to begin? I think with good news. So, I'm living in Columbia on a permanent basis now. Because I got a job! With a South Carolina-based company, Hotelguides.com. I'm super-excited because they seem super-awesome. My first week was last week, so training kind of derailed my normal shooting schedule. It's cool though, you're still totally getting cookies.

And these are some damn tasty cookies. I'm a sucker for dried cranberries and oatmeal cookies. So is the baby. Seriously, Grady l-o-v-e-s dried cranberries. Especially if they're in this goat cheese spread. I know, right? See, I give him little tastes of whatever I'm eating, and sometimes with cheeses he'll take it and spit it out. But he was all. about. that goat cheese.

And I've always been a fan of oatmeal cookies. No, I don't have those trust issues some people claim to have from eating an oatmeal raisin cookie and expecting chocolate chip. No, siree. I think I get it from my grandmother. She likes raisin pie.

Pawleys Pie

 

I feel like I should be talking turkey. Y'all, Thanksgiving is only 14 days away. Two weeks on the nose. I just about have the menu finalized, which mostly comes from our Thanksgiving last year.

Instead I'm talking pie. And not the pumpkin or sweet potato kind that fits right in during the holiday season. This is one of my favorite local recipes. It's like a chocolate chip cookie on steroids thanks to coconut and pecans.

Peanut Butter Rice Crispy Treats

I'd like to start by dedicating this post to Marcus Lattimore, who has to be one of the most well-liked and well-respected college athletes I've ever seen. I realized some of y'all have no idea who I'm talking about. He's a running back for the Gamecocks, and he suffered what looked to be a horrific injury this past Saturday. Since then he's received an outpouring of love and support not only from Gamecock fans, but other players, athletes, and fans. He's basically an insanely talented, incredibly humble young man, and this is my small gesture of support.

Pumpkin-Yogurt Bread

Pumpkin bread might be my favorite of the quick breads. Or maybe that's just the fall-euphoria talking. Oh who am I kidding, I've never turned down a piece of bread in my life. But! This bread is not so bad for you, seeing as it only has half a stick of butter and is mostly non-fat Greek yogurt and pumpkin. It's practically healthy. Except for maybe the powdered sugar I sprinkled on top.

Cinnamon Toast Popcorn

This list makes me glad my mom never listened to me when I wanted to get a Glamour Shot made. I was a very...theatrical child, so it made perfect sense that I would want to play dress-up and get my picture taken. My mother is a wise woman.

Deep Dish Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake

Y'all, this is my 100th post!  I figured I should make something a little special, and it should probably be a cake.  Let's also factor in that Will's birthday was Saturday, and he wanted a cookie cake.  So we've got us a deep dish chocolate chip cookie cake.  Holy.  Moly.

Oh and can we talk about how today is the first day of spring, and we've already had days in the upper 80's?!  Y'all, that's hot.  And it's only gonna get hotter.  So if you need a slice of cookie cake and a cold glass of milk on a screened-in porch with a fan, I totally understand.