You know the weekend was a good one when the whole household is passed out sleeping by 9 pm. In the living room, on the couches, in front of the television.
These last couple weeks have been an exciting whirlwind, and this weekend that kept going – our schedule was full from morning to night both days. I am in no way complaining, because we had a great time.
So many great times.
One of them was a going away party for a dear friend who is moving back home, back to Missouri. The party was as epic and fabulous as she is – she broke her own rule of “there will be no crying”. Friends flew in to surprise her. Several bands played. There was grilling and a huge table full of food.
I brought desserts. They had to be colorful, they had to be over the top.
These were definitely a hit and did not last long.
orange zested rainbow crispies
inspired by this recipe
vegan, dairy free
makes 9-12 squares
2 tablespoons butter (Earth Balance)
10 oz package marshmallows (Dandies vegan!)
zest of 1 orange
1-2 droppers Orange NuStevia
6 cups Trix cereal
Zest the orange (grapefruit zest is good also), set aside. Melt butter in saucepan, add marshmallows and orange stevia. Stir over medium heat until melted. Remove from heat, add rice puffs, stir until combined. Add orange zest, mix completely. Press into prepared pan (9×9 square makes tall rice crispies!) cover and let set.
Safe travels, Jeni Mae. Have grand adventures and we will see you soon!
{ 62 comments… read them below or add one }
Oh what a wonderful way to celebrate with friends coming in like that! Sounds like a very special friend. So glad you had a nice time.
she will be missed for sure. she is an old friend of Jason’s (both from Missouri), and a pretty big part of each other’s life. now we will just have one more friend back home when we visit!
Awww what a fun and BRIGHT way to celebrate your friend! I love these, especially because they involve Trix cereal, SUCH a throwback food!! I feel like I’m five just looking at these goodies!
I know, these are definitely not just for kids!
How gorgeous are those?!?! So bright and colorful and vegan! Awesome!
aren’t they fun? normally I like naturally bright and colorful foods, but I just could not resist!
Best wishes to your friend! I hope the new journey treats her well!
Those treats look like so much fun! It’s kind of amazing what orange zest does to foods. I put some orange zest on cantaloup before and it completely brightened the flavors. I bet this did the same to all the fruity flavors of the cereal. YUM!
thanks, Sarena! she is off on a great new adventure, for sure.
Mmm, orange zest on cantaloupe, I will have to try that. complete opposite of this, right?
Holy crap. TRIX?!?! Yessss. You know these would be wicked for Easter as well!
these WOULD be great for Easter! hmmm, is there a pastel colored cereal out there?
I’m so glad Trix aren’t just for kids. Though, these would go over SO well with kids…husbands…
yep, silly rabbit, these are for everyone!
how fun!!! those are so bright and colorful! and i bet they taste amazing too!! thanks for sharing!
they were good – very sweet. they didn’t last long at the party!
These should be illegal, like the fruity pebbles version of these I made earlier this year. What does the stevia add? I cannot imagine needing additional sweetness with something this sweet
you’re right, Lacey, these absolutely do not need more sweet – I just wanted some orange flavor to go with the zest. it was a nice layer of fruity flavor.
Trix is not just for kids apparently! These look awesome! Love how BRIGHT they are and I love RKTreats so would love a TwixTreat too!
I know, I love the bright colors too – they’re just too fun.
trix?! omigosh, this post is amazing! it takes me back to when i was a wee one
thank you for being so awesome!
aw, thank YOU for being awesome! these are SO fun… next time you have to make something for a party, remember these!
OMG, these look SOO fun! What a fun idea!! It looks like polkadots
I know, Meagan, I love the polka dot look – so bright and fun!
Aww they look so fun! I bet they meant so much as a going away treat.
this was the FUN dessert… the OTHER dessert I brought was the meaningful one… coming soon
What a fun dessert for you to bring along! I can’t help but smile when I see these crispy squares — YUMMMMYYYY!
that’s what I said, they DO make you smile! they were popular, and Jason was pointing out everyone who was walking around with one, holding them up and talking about them…
how cute and festive
THESE ARE SO CUTE! they make me want to paint the town.
right?? you can’t help but smile.
HOW do you come up with this stuff! Seriously, you are awesome. You’d be good on Chopped, you can use ingredients in SUCH a good way that nobody else can, I swear!
Chopped would be SO fun, I have thought that so many times…
aaahhh, I remember talking to you about Trix crispies last time I was in Portland, three summers ago? Glad they made an appearance!
wow, you remember that? good for you – I have my LIST to help me remember these things!
pretty sure trix are not gluten-free. looked it up and they have wheat starch. you might want to alter the recipe notes to not say gluten-free. wouldn’t want anyone to get sick.
http://www.foodfacts.com/NutritionFacts/Sugar-Based/General-Mills-Trix-Cereal-Breakfast-Pack-914-oz/9906
hi Bitt,
my box (there is a new “swirled” formulation) does not have the wheat starch or any wheat ingredients – I read the ingredient list before I bought it. I also googled before actually labeling this recipe gluten free, and saw many celiac forums talking about how it does not have any wheat/gluten ingredients, and many people have consumed it safely (while others said they could not).
while the ingredients in the box I used were corn and rice, I did remove the gluten free label because the box does not have a gf designation, and I learned a long time ago that people do not read.
Thanks!
You are a genius. I love that you used Trix and added orange zest. I’m sure it made the flavor really pop!
I like to add things like that to my crispies – citrus zest, cardamom, all kinds of weird yum
i am so excited for you and all that is going on. I really hope i get to go to Portland to see you. Will you save me one of these? so pretty! better than voodoo donuts for sure!
haa – I think Voodoo has one with Trix, or Fruit Loops or something. yeah, these are better
I hope to see you too, I’ve been incredibly busy but things will hopefully be calmer around then… XXO!
I love the look of these Kris. Does that make me a kid, since Trix are for kids???
kid at heart, always! XXO!
Wow, this looks so amazing. Perfect for the kids.
absolutely. perfect for everybody!
Beautiful as always! I wish I lived closer to you so you could make me colorful and delicious treats on the regular
oh I wish you did too, Ashley! just think if we were neighbors – the FUN we’d have in the kitchen!
I can’t get over how FUN these look! Absolutely love them! …and Trix holds a special place in my heart
aren’t they too fun? big hit for parties, for sure!
how fun are these, wow! I agree, probably very sweet. still, I can’t wait to make some LOL.
yeah, sweet, but sometimes that is what it’s all about, right?
My husband is gonna love these!
yay!
I’m probably being a bit dim, but are these really vegan and dairy free with 2 tbsp butter?
I call it butter, but I also specify in the recipe that it is Earth Balance, which is vegan/dairy free.
LOVE LOVE this! look at the colors.
aren’t they fun?
Love the rainbow colors! These sound perfect for a party.
i dint even know such things and rainbow trix existed. so fun and colorful!
What a totally cool and fun idea! At first I wasn’t quite sure what they were, so I zoomed in the picture and read the recipe… when I got to marshmallows and Trix, my brain clicked and went YUM. Cheers! =)
isn’t it such a bright thing, compared to the normal crispie? I may never make the plain colored crispie again! and cheers to you!
why the added orange flavor & zest?
hi Heather,
I added the orange flavor and zest for more citrus flavor, to enhance the flavor in the cereal.
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