Vegan Rice Crispy Treats {3 Ingredients}

Name: Vegan Rice Crispy Treats
Prep time: 1 min
Cook time: 4 min
Total time: 5 min
Ingredients: 2 cups rice crispy cereal; 1/2 cup almond butter; 1/2 cup maple syrup (can sub for agave nectar or brown rice syrup)

This post may contain affiliate links. See my disclosure policy.

My vegan rice crispy treats are a household favorite. Thick, crispy, and gooey, they’re made with just 3 ingredients.

Craving more vegan desserts? Try my vegan chocolate chip cookies, vegan brownies, or vegan cookie dough next.

Table of Contents

Why I love this recipe
Key ingredients
How to make vegan Rice Krispie treats
Arman’s recipe tips
Frequently asked questions
Vegan Rice Crispy Treats (Recipe Card)
More kid friendly recipes

If you love classic rice crispy treats, you’re going to want to make this vegan version.

Rather than being made with marshmallows (which, sadly, contain gelatin), I use nut butter, which gives the bars the perfect chewy texture and, according to my family, makes them taste ten times better than classic Rice Krispy treats!

Why I love this recipe

The best texture. Like my peanut butter rice crispies, these are chewy, crunchy, dense, and just a bit gooey.
You only need 3 ingredients. So long as you have crispy rice cereal, nut butter, and maple syrup, you’re ready to roll! Or, ready to mix, I suppose.
A MUCH healthier option. In addition to not having copious amounts of sugar from the marshmallows, there’s also no corn syrup or artificial flavors.

Key ingredients

Crispy rice cereal. Any crispy rice-based cereal works, including Rice Krispies cereal or brown rice crisps. Use gluten-free rice crispy cereal if needed.
Almond butter. Make sure it’s smooth and creamy with no added sugar. If you have a bag of almonds in your pantry, make my homemade almond butter. I promise it tastes SO much better homemade.
Maple syrup. Adds sweetness and helps bind the mixture.

How to make vegan Rice Krispie treats

I’ve included step-by-step photos below to make this recipe easy to follow at home. For the full printable recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Step 1- Prep. Line a square baking pan with parchment paper. Melt the nut butter and maple syrup in a microwave-safe bowl.

Step 2- Mix. Pour the nut butter mixture over the rice crispy cereal and stir until combined.

Step 3- Shape. Press the cereal mixture into the prepared baking dish, flatten into an even layer, and chill until firm.

Step 4- Slice. Use a warm, sharp knife to slice into bars.

Arman’s recipe tips

Adjust the consistency. Sometimes, I noticed the cereal mixture would get a bit too sticky to handle. If that happens, add a handful of cereal. If it becomes too dry, add more maple syrup.
Coat your spatula in coconut oil. This is sticky business, which is why I usually coat my spatula in oil to prevent the mixture from getting too messy.

Variations

Nut-free. Use sunflower seed butter or tahini instead.
Cut the carbs. Make my keto rice crispy treats.
Drizzle with chocolate. Before slicing the bars, drizzle melted chocolate chips over the treats and sprinkle with coarse sea salt.
Use melted marshmallows. For a ‘traditional’ rice crispy, use mini vegan marshmallows (Trader Joe’s brand is good!) and skip the maple syrup and nut butter. To melt them, microwave them in 10-second intervals until you have a soft and gooey marshmallow mixture.

Frequently asked questions

Which Rice Krispies are vegan?

Technically, no flavor of Rice Krispies is vegan since they’re enriched with D3, which comes from animal sources. For vegan crispy rice cereal, you have to look for a specifically ‘vegan’ brand.