Make these green Rice Krispie treats for St. Patrick’s Day, Easter dessert, or for a fun birthday party treat. The secret is lime Jell-O!
This isn’t just any ol’ Rice Krispies Treats recipe – this one includes a fun twist using Lime Jello for added flavor. They are so bright and festive, everyone is going to love them.
Colorful Rice Krispie Treats
My idea for adding jello mix to Rice Krispies Treats and creating Strawberry Rice Krispies Treats was such a hit with my family (and you!) that I had to try it for St Patrick’s Day too. And it works just as well.
If you and your kids love Rice Krispies treats, this is such an easy variation and so much fun. It’s no harder than making regular crispy treats.
In fact, Lime Jello Rice Krispies Treats are a perfect recipe for inviting your kids to help out in the kitchen. They can stir, pour, and even pat down the rice krispies treats into the pan. Even small children will love helping you “smoosh” the crispy treats into the pan and it will save you from getting your fingers sticky!
Green Rice Krispie Treats Supplies & Ingredients
This recipe only makes one 9×13-inch pan. Depending on how you cat the treats, it makes about 2 dozen squares. If you are going to be feeding a lot of kids at a party, you might want to double the recipe (or just cut them up smaller).
What You’ll Need for Lime Rice Krispies Treats:
- Rice Krispies
(use gluten-free if needed) - Mini Marshmallows
- Lime Gelatin
- butter or margarine (I use butter)
- vanilla extract
- Green Food Coloring (optional)
(use gluten-free if needed)
extractOptional Add-Ins
Here are a few things that I didn’t use, but thought about adding later. Try a few of them to jazz up your St. Patrick’s Day treats.
- St. Patrick’s Day Sprinkles
- Multi-colored marshmallows
- White Chocolate Drizzle
- Edible Shamrock Decorations
How To Make Lime Jello Rice Krispies Treats
Here are some step-by-step pictures of the entire process so you can see how easy they are to make. I have all the steps in a printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
First, here are the pictures along with some extra tips that I wanted to share with you.
The very first thing you need to do is gather all of your ingredients together. This recipe comes together very quickly, especially if you already have everything you need sitting on the countertop.
Melt the Butter
Then, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Melt it slowly so that it doesn’t burn.
Add Marshmallows
Add the marshmallows. Just let them sit for about 30 seconds with the heat turned down to low.
There’s something fun about watching marshmallows melt, isn’t there?
Stir it gently so that it doesn’t burn on the bottom of the pan. If you overmix the marshmallows, the treats will have a firmer texture, so be very careful as you stir them.
Add Vanilla and Lime Jello
Next, add the vanilla extract and lime gelatin.
Stir this mixture. Then, remove it from the heat before the marshmallows are completely melted. (Overheating the marshmallows will make them tough, which equals hard Rice Krispies treats.)
Keep stirring – off the stove – until the marshmallows are melted and the mixture is smooth.
Optional: Add Green Food Dye
Now, do you see how it’s light green in the photo above? The lime gelatin gives a nice flavor but it’s not super colorful. Especially when you add rice krispies in the next step. If you want, you can add some green food coloring for more color in your Lime Jello Rice Krispies Treats. For a vibrant green color, try my favorite food color.
Now that’s better! Just look at that bright green color!
Mix in Rice Krispies
Add the Rice Krispies and gently stir to combine.
Dump/spoon into a greased 13x9x2″ pan.
Pat it down gently with your hand – just enough to smooth out the big bumps. I recommend greasing your hand and doing it that way – it’s too sticky to use a spatula easily.
Let Sit
Let your Lime Jello Rice Krispies Treats sit for an hour or two. This allows your treats to cool and firm up while reducing the sticky factor. I prefer to let them sit on the countertop at room temperature, but you can also put them in the refrigerator.
If you chill them, they will have a tougher texture. I like them chewier, that’s why I let them sit at room temperature.
When you’re ready, cut into squares and enjoy your Lime Rice Krispies Treats!
At this step, you could also use cookie cutters to cut them into Shamrocks or other festive shapes.
How To Store Lime Rice Krispie Treats
If you want the rice crispy treats to last the longest, you should store them in the refrigerator in a sealed container or plastic bag.
No matter which container you use, place a sheet a parchment or wax paper between each layer so that they don’t stick together.
They will last about a week if you store them in the fridge.
PrintSt Patrick’s Day Lime Rice Krispies Treats
A delightful twist on the classic Rice Krispies treats, St Patrick’s Day Lime Rice Krispies Treats are lime-flavored!
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 10
- Total Time: 25
- Yield: 12 1x
Ingredients
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
- 1 bag (10.5 oz) mini marshmallows
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1.5 oz package (or half of a 3 oz box) of lime gelatin
- 6–6.5 cups of Rice Krispies
- green food coloring
Instructions
- In a saucepan, melt the margarine over medium-low heat. Add the marshmallows and let sit for about 30 seconds, turning the heat to low. Gently stir. Add the vanilla extract and lime gelatin and stir again. Let the marshmallows partially melt but remove from heat before fully melted. Stir (off the burner) until completely melted.
- Add the Rice Krispies and mix until combined.
- Grease a 9x13x2″ baking dish and spoon the Rice Krispies Treats evenly into the pan.
- Pat down gently with a greased hand, if necessary.
- Let sit until cooled and firm, cut into squares, and serve.
More Rice Krispies Treats Ideas
For more tasty Rice Krispies Treats recipes, check out these recipes:
- Strawberry-Flavored Rice Krispies Treats
- Easter Peanut Butter-Flavored Rice Krispies Treats
- Popsicle Rice Krispies Treats
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Susan Alban says
These look like so much fun! I will use this for our preschool cooking project. Thank you!
Sam Dock says
I will have to make these for my husband!
Lori says
these sound really great my dads birthday is on st patricks day maybe I make them for him
Megan Blumenthal says
This look so yummy! Thanks for sharing. This will be lots of fun to make
Ellen Christian says
I never would have thought to add Jello. What a great idea!
Janine Huldie says
Awesome Erika and am so trying these, too now!! Thanks!! 🙂
Ari says
Oh that’s great that you put the gelatin. It will add the lime flavor which will make it extra special! Thanks for sharing!
Maddie K says
These look great! I love the color!!!
md kennedy says
Oh Em Gee these are so – I don’t know – GREEN! The kids will LOVE them as they don’t even look like a food product!
Crystal W says
These would be so great for a St.Patty’s party at my kids school..unfortunately the rules forbid anyone from making anything anymore (but you can bring in pre-packaged chemical laced cupcakes anyday!!)
Anita L says
I really love your photo’s! They certainly show a great description of making these treats! I have many boxes of rice krispies right now from a coupon deal that happened last summer. I’ve donated some, but was looking for some ideas of how to use what I have left. I really love this idea and I think it will go over well with my family! Thank you for sharing…. they sound yummy 🙂
Maddie K. says
LOL…so I went and bought the stuff to make these today, right? And I’m in the kitchen and hubby and I are chuckling about them. I put them in the pan, and cut out a bunch of clovers and he snags a piece of the area that didn’t get cut. Gobbles a whole bunch and declares them nom nom nom worth and grins wide…..
His teeth were all green as well as his tongue and lips.
I just started laughing and couldn’t stop.
It was pretty funny.
Erika says
That’s hilarious! Thanks for telling me!
sheila ressel says
I love rice krispies squares and these are sure to be a hit this St. Paddy’s day. Thanks for recipe.
Heather Howard says
Thank you so much for posting this!
James Weaver says
This looks like a great variation of the old favorite. Yummy!
Nicole Becker says
My granddaughter and I will be definitely making these this week!! YUMMY!!
Nena Sinclair says
This sounds like a fun recipe to make with my grandson! I never would have thought to put gelatin into rice krispie treats! Great idea!
Randa says
Those banana bites look awesome.
Michael Lambert says
These look really neat. Will have to try these for my daughter.
Caitlan Meador says
I HAVE to try these, my husband’s favorite color is green and all our boys love bright foods, thank you so much for sharing!
Daraya says
Thanks for sharing! They look super yummy! 🙂
Michael Lambert says
I would love to try these, they look great!
Anita Pienaar says
I just made these for my daughter’s class at nursery school – and they were fantastic! Not that sweet to eat, and the green colour was great and most importantly – not difficult to make at all. I had to double the recipe for the number of kids in the class but still only used 1 bottle of good colouring.
Your tip about using greased hands to pat the mixture down in the in pan was a life-saver!
I only left the mixture in the pan for about an hour and albeit that it sliced well, the treats still came out quite sticky, so if anyone else is trying the recipe, I would recommend leaving it in the pan for longer if possible (maybe overnight) – just ensure that you do grease the pan properly so that you can take the treats out easily.
Thanks again for a lovely St. Patrick’s Day treat! 🙂
Erika says
I’m glad to hear they were a success. Thanks for sharing your tip about leaving the treats in the pan longer. I’m sure that will be helpful to others.
Have a wonderful day, Anita!
Crissa Robertson says
Made these last night for St. Patty’s Day today. YUM! Can’t wait to try this with other flavors!! Thanks!
Erika says
Yay! Thanks for sharing, Crissa. Have a wonderful day!
Jackie says
This is a great idea. Have you tried to use chocolate pudding instead of jello? I just wondered if that would work too.
Erika says
I don’t think pudding would work, Jackie. It’s a very different texture than jello.