Gluten Free Crispy Cereal Cakes

My friend was having a birthday and I wanted to make her a cake, gluten-free, of course!  I didn't want to make a super rich flour-less cake or try to mess with a bunch of types of gf flour, so I decided to make a Crispy Cakes!  I used Fruity Pebbles for one, and Cocoa Pebbles for another.  You can use Rice Krispies or any gluten-free crispy cereal. 

There are so many options for decorating these "cakes" and even people who aren't gluten-free will enjoy them.  Who doesn't like Crispy treats??

I can't say that I had a favorite between the two cakes...they were so different.  Normally I would always choose chocolate, but Fruity Pebbles are SO good! 

Basic Recipe for Crispy Treats

• 3 tablespoons butter 
• 1 package (10 oz., about 40) regular marshmallows or 4 cups miniature marshmallows
• 6 cups crispy cereal 
• 1/2 t. vanilla 

1. In large saucepan melt butter over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.

2. Add cereal. Stir until well coated.

3. Using buttered spatula or wax paper evenly press mixture into pan(s)* coated with cooking spray.

*To make the layers, pour the mixture into different sized bowls and press down gently to level.  Don't press down too hard (like i did) because it will compact and crush the cereal, making the bars harder than they should be.

My pans/bowls were a little too big, which made the layers thin, so I ended up making another third of a batch (1 tablespoon butter, 1 1/3 cups mini marshmallows, and 2 cups cereal).  Just multiply the recipe for how many you want to serve. 

I piped canned vanilla frosting onto the Fruity Pebbles cake and used skittles and swedish fish to decorate.  I didn't have any frosting bags handy, so I just scooped the frosting into a ziploc bag and snipped off a corner. 

Chocolate-drizzled potato chips - YUM!

For the Cocoa Pebbles cake, I added some peanut butter into the marshmallow-butter mixture before stirring in the cereal, and used peanut butter frosting that I had saved and froze from this recipe.  I decorated with M&M's and then drizzled dipping chocolate (Merkins) over the cake by pouring the melted chocolate into a ziploc bag and snipping off a tiny corner.  There was leftover chocolate in the bag - I can't throw that away - so we drizzled the chocolate over some potato chips. 

These were so good and are going to be my "go-to" cake - especially in the summer when I don't want to turn on the oven!