They say necessity is the mother of invention, and that is absolutely true in the case of these cheerio bars. The invention of these bars went something like this. I made a mistake (never happens to you, right?) at the grocery store and got plain, unsweetened off-brand cheerios.
I tried to get my kids to eat them and they told me they were gross. I didn’t believe them so I took a bite for myself. I paused for a moment, then I had to look them in the eye and say, “You’re right. These are gross.”
Other snacks you might like: Chocolate Covered Raisins // Easy Trail Mix
But come on, you guys, I can’t throw away a whole box of cereal! I had to find something to do with them, and eating with milk in the conventional fashion wasn’t going to cut it, so I did an inventory of my pantry and start mixing. I pulled out some stale marshmallows because they needed to be gotten rid of too, and sweet is good, right? And then I pulled out some peanut butter out because it’s good too, and the protein adds some nutrition.
Melt, mix, and cool, and the first iteration of my newly famous peanut butter cheerio bars was born. Much to my surprise, they were actually really tasty. So over the next few weeks we made a few more batches to test the measurements, and today I’m sharing this super simple but tasty snack recipe with all of you.
The moral of the story? Sometimes you can’t save gross stuff, but sometimes you can.
These cheerio bars make great snacks or super quick breakfasts. I like to give them to my kids after school or in the mornings to go along with a breakfast smoothie. They always eat them up! This is also a great recipe to let kids help with because the level of skill needed to make these is super low. Kids can totally mix it up and press it out.
- 10 oz bag marshmallows
- 1 cup creamuy peanut butter
- 4 1/2 cups cheerios
-
Lightly grease a 9×13 casserole dish with butter or oil spray and set aside. Place marshmallows and peanut butter in a large microwave safe bowl and microwave on high in 30 second increments until the marshmallows are soft and puffy. Add in the cheerios and mix until all the cereal is coated. Press the mixture into the prepared dish and refridgerate for about 30 minutes to set. Cut into 12 bars and store in an airtight container for up to one week.
Yum, these look like a tasty treat! And so simple to whip up!
They are tasty and easy — the perfect treat!
Oh my gosh, looks delicious! We always have Cheerios in our house
They are a staple so we almost always have some too.
MmM i think my little one and husband will like these! My hub doesnt really like super sweet things, but if its peanut buttery, hes all for it!
That sounds like my husband too! Except he really does like sweets 🙂
I have a box of this nasty cereal, too. I have lots of peanut butter, too. We are making treats today. Yum!
Boo to the nasty cereal. Glad you have a way to use it now!
These look like a great treat for an afternoon snack!
That’s what my kids think too!