Caramel Almond Rice Krispie Treats

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Caramel Almond Rice Krispie Treats

• After making Rice Krispie treats the other day, I decided I needed to make something else interesting with crisp rice cereal. Caramel seemed a natural crisp rice cereal treat adhesive, so I googled some recipes and saw that it's been done--a lot of them being "salted caramel" variations. 
• The first time I made these I cooked the caramel to 240 degrees Fahrenheit, and they turned out rock hard. Edible if you microwaved them before eating. Not ideal. After cooking the caramel to only about 217 degrees, I got the results I wanted: chewy, crispy, nutty, sweet and satisfying. Way better than plain old Rice Krispy treats. 
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• Caramel Almond Rice Krispie Treats
• Ingredients

• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup corn syrup
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 6 cups crisp rice cereal
• 1 cup chopped roasted almonds
• 3/4 to 1 1/2 cups milk chocolate chips (optional)

Instructions

Line a 9 x 13- inch pan with parchment paper. Place pan on top of a wire cooling rack.

In a large heavy-bottomed stock pot, combine sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, whipping cream, salt, and butter. Monitor the heat of the mixture with a candy thermometer stirring occasionally, but carefully with a silicone spatula. When the thermometer reaches 215-218 degrees Fahrenheit, remove the pot from the heat. Stir in vanilla. 
Stir in rice cereal and almonds until incorporated. Pour into prepared pan and smooth top with silicone spatula. 
Place 3/4 cup milk chocolate chips over half the treats, or 1 1/2 cups over the whole thing, depending on whether you want to have a none, a few, or all with chocolate on top. 
Wait about 10 minutes and then spread melted chocolate over the top.

Allow treats to cool a couple of hours before cutting. It actually takes a long time for the chocolate to set up. Store in an airtight container.

Makes 24-36 servings